For a creative professional whose work moves between storytelling, strategy, writing and voice-over, there is no such thing as a typical week. One day may involve audience research and content planning, while the next could mean proofreading campaign material, joining a brainstorm or finding the right tone for a script.
In this Q&A, we get into the thinking behind the work, from asking why a campaign matters to navigating the differences between working with large brands and local businesses. The conversation also looks at creativity in Eswatini, the need for more room to experiment, and what it means to build a career that did not necessarily follow a straight path.
Beyond work, the conversation takes a more personal turn, touching on travel, food, exploring Eswatini, creative influences and the simple ways of switching off from client work. And because five questions are better answered with a little less seriousness, the interview closes with a bonus quiz covering everything from lip balm and books to favourite local artists and an honest take on digital marketing.
1. If someone's never seen your work before, how would you describe what you do in one sentence?
I am a jack of all trades who sits at the intersection of storytelling, strategy and creativity.
2. What's a typical week actually look like for you juggling strategy, writing, voice-over, all of it?
It looks like coffee. Lots and lots of coffee. But honestly, there is no typical week, which is probably why I like it.
One day I'm buried in audience research and content plans, the next I'm proofreading campaign collateral, sitting in on a brainstorm meeting, or trying to find the right tone for a script that needs recording. The life of a multipassionate professional has no typical routine.
3. Was there a moment you remember thinking, "Okay, this is what I want to do"?
I think growing up I always knew I’d end up in a creative career, but the work I’m doing right now? no. There was no Aha moment. Mine was much more of a 'Wait... how did I get here? situation.
I originally studied architectural technology, so marketing was definitely not the master plan. I got into content and digital almost by accident while trying to figure out what I was going to do with my life and looking for opportunities online.
What started as writing and social media eventually grew into something way bigger. So I don't think I had one magical moment where I knew. I think I kept following the things I was good at and genuinely enjoyed, and the career grew around that.
4. When a brand comes to you, what's the first question you ask yourself before building a campaign?
Why? Why does this matter? Why should people care? Why are we saying this now? And sometimes, very importantly, why are we doing this at all? I’m very allergic to doing things simply because "that's what brands do." The why is very important, oh and the budget!
5. You work with big names like MTN MoMo and Standard Bank. How different is your approach for a big brand vs a small local business?
The scale is different, but the fundamentals aren't completely different. Whether you're working with a massive brand or a local SME, you still need to understand the audience, the problem you're solving, the brand's role in people's lives, and what you actually want people to do or feel after interacting with it.
A bigger brand might have more data, more stakeholders, more channels, and a much larger audience to think about. A small business might have five people doing the jobs of twenty people and a much tighter budget.
But a small budget doesn't mean you stop thinking strategically. In fact, sometimes constraints force you to be even more creative.
6. Where do your ideas usually come from? Is it more data, more instinct, or a mix?
I love data because it tells you what's happening. But creativity/Instict is what helps you figure out what to do with that information.
I'm also a professional people-watcher, which sounds slightly creepy when you say it out loud. But I'm constantly observing how people talk, what they complain about, what they get excited about, what they're sharing, and what they completely ignore. I’m highly observant.
7. What's something about your job that people always get wrong?
That its easy and that marketing is just making things look or sound nice.There's a lot more thinking behind it than people realise.
Especially within the social media marketing space, people sometimes see a social post and think, "Oh, you just posted that?" Meanwhile, there may have been research, strategy, positioning, messaging, content planning, approvals, platform considerations, data and about twelve people with opinions involved.
8. Voice-over, writing, strategy: do you have a favourite, or does it depend on the day?
This is a hard one because I genuinely love all three, but if a gun was pointed at my head? Writing.
That is my superpower. It's actually how I started, and I don't think I'd be in communications today if I hadn't fallen in love with words first.
Strategy pays the bills, which I also love because it gives me money to go and explore the world. And voice-over gives me the freedom to literally use my voice in a completely different way. So they all give me something different, but yes, gun to my head? Give me a pen, please.
9. You've said creativity feels a bit limited here. What does that actually look like day to day?
Sometimes it feels like there is a very small box labelled 'what people here will understand', and everything outside of it gets treated as too risky.
You see the same visual language, the same types of campaigns, the same references, and sometimes the same ideas being recycled because everyone is trying to play it safe. And I understand why.
Brands have objectives, budgets, and reputations to protect. But if we're constantly designing for what we already know people like, how do we ever create something new? I think our audiences are often more interesting and more open-minded than we give them credit for.
10. What would need to change for Eswatini's creative scene to feel less boxed in?
I'd love to see more investment in creativity as an actual industry, not just something people do on the side.
More opportunities for creatives to collaborate, more brands willing to experiment, better understanding of what creative and digital professionals actually do, and more spaces where people can build work without immediately asking, "But will people here understand it?"
We also need to stop thinking that everything valuable has to come from somewhere else.There are incredibly talented people here. Sometimes we just need to give them room to make bigger things.
11. Any local creatives or brands you think are doing something exciting right now?
There are actually so many people doing interesting things right now, which makes this a really exciting time to be watching the creative scene.
Sar Nilo is definitely one of them. I love her music and I love watching her grow. There are also brands like Khokho, which I think are doing such an interesting job of building a distinctly African luxury brand. The whole thing is just beautiful.
And KFC Eswatini? Their social media content eats. Excuse the pun. I love seeing brands understand that social media doesn't have to feel like a corporate noticeboard. It can actually have personality.
Then there's Madalitso Simelane. Oh what a creative girlie and she’s really doing amazing things in SA within the arts space. There's a lot happening. We're seeing more people build, experiment and create in their own way, and I'm very here for it.
12. You spend a lot of time exploring restaurants, hotels and Airbnbs around the country. What got that started?
Curiosity, definitely. A few years ago, I got to visit a few countries outside of Eswatini. First Kenya, then Mauritius, then Tanzania, and I realised just how much fun exploring actually is, so when I got back home, that curiosity never left.
But I think it was always in me. I come from a family that loves to travel, so we grew up doing family Christmas holidays in South Africa and going out to eat.
And man, I really, really love to eat. All my money goes to food, and I hate cooking for myself, so naturally, restaurants became part of the lifestyle.
Right now,I'm very much in my 'let's see the continent, starting right here at home'era.
13. What's a spot you've discovered that surprised you, somewhere people sleep on?
So many but definitely Phophonyane Falls. That is a gem and not just for the tourists. If you want to unplug and be surrounded by nature without having to disappear halfway across the country, that’s the place.
It's so close to the town center yet also so remote. You get to be around all that greenery and quiet, you experience solitude on another level, you can hike to the famous waterfall, and there’s a pool? Oh I love it and it's actually really affordable too.
14. Do you travel with a 'content brain' always switched on, or do you sometimes just want to enjoy the place?
Unfortunately, the content brain has no off switch, especially as an artistic person who sees ‘good framing' in everything.
But I've learned to let myself enjoy things too. I don't want every experience to become content. Sometimes I want to sit somewhere beautiful, eat my food and exist. Not everything needs an audience for it to be appreciated by you.
15. Has exploring the country changed how you see Eswatini as a brand, in a weird way?
Absolutely. The more I explore, the more I realise that Eswatini has a really interesting story to tell.
And I'm not talking about turning everything into a tourism advert. I'm talking about the little things: our landscapes, food, people, culture, design, hospitality, humour and the way we live.
Travelling around Africa has actually made me more curious about home. There is something powerful about realising that Africa isn't one experience.
Kenya is Kenya. Tanzania is Tanzania. Eswatini is Eswatini. It’s also given me a profound appreciation (and sometimes annoyance) of this place we call home. So many great things, but also so much room to do even more.
16. What's something you do to reset when your brain is fried from client work?
I go outside, hey. Nothing a change of environment can’t fix. I take a walk. I go out to eat. I book a staycation and sleep.
Honestly, my brain is constantly fried, so I've had to become quite intentional about getting out of my usual environment.
Sometimes I travel, sometimes I just go somewhere I've never been, sometimes I find a nice restaurant and sit there for two hours. And sometimes the reset is literally booking an Airbnb and not answering anyones calls.
17. Is there a project dream client, dream collab you're low-key manifesting?
I definitely want to work with the best of the best. Firstly, Eswatini Tourism, hi, do you not see my content? On the strategy front, I’ve got my eyes on agencies like Ogilvy and TBWA London. 😂
I'd love to work with Duma Collective too. Sibu Mabena, the founder of Duma Collective, is someone whose mind I really admire. I see a lot of myself in how she thinks and creates, so I'd love to collaborate with her at some point.
18. What's a piece of content, yours or someone else's, that you're genuinely proud of?
There's actually a poetry film I made back in 2020 that I'm still really proud of. It was a collection of poems I'd written over time, and I got to bring them together through film, writing and visual storytelling. It's called A MILE IN HER SHOES.https://www.instagram.com/tv/CF2AlItHjX6/?stkn=MXFsejgydTY1d3J5eA==
I think I love that piece because it was just me getting to create and show off my writing, editing and storytelling style, without seeking approval or caring about algorithms. Maybe in another life I'm a filmmaker,who knows.
19. What's one thing you wish someone had told you when you were starting out?
You are not behind. I spent a lot of time thinking I was behind because my career didn't look like the straightforward version I'd imagined for myself. But looking back, every seemingly random turn taught me something that I now use.
Your path doesn't have to make sense while you're living it. Sometimes the dots only connect when you look backwards.
Don't wait for someone to give you permission to become the person you want to be. Learn. Experiment. Make things. Put yourself in rooms. Talk to people. Build relationships. Be curious.
The internet has made it possible for someone sitting in Eswatini to learn from the world, work with people outside the country, and build something that didn't exist before. Use that.
BONUS QUIZ
1. Dead or alive, one thing that is always in your bag?
Lip balm. I refuse to be fighting for my life with dry lips.
2. What is the last book you read?
Stay with me by Phiwe Dlamini. Please get your hands on that book, as in yesterday!
3. Hotel or lodge?
Room service is cute but definitely a Lodge. Give me a beautiful view, some peace and the feeling that I've temporarily disappeared from civilisation.
4. Your top 3 favourite artists in Eswatini?
Sar Nilo, Velemseni, and Steez.
5. What's your honest take on digital marketing?
Digital marketing is not as easy as it looks, I’ll tell you that and it's so much bigger than just social media- that’s literally just ONE channel in the grand scheme of things.
I also have a problem with the whole "get rich quick, buy my course, become a digital marketer, then sell the same course to someone else" ecosystem that's blown up on social media lately. Like... what are we doing?
Digital marketing is an actual discipline, and there's still a lot of misunderstanding around what it actually is and what good digital work looks like.
But that's also why I love being in this space. There's so much room to educate, build better work, and show brands what digital can actually do.
As you can see, I have several hot takes about this topic, and I probably should not be given a microphone for too long.
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