News / Local
DJ Sbu converts masses at Hustlers Summit
26 Mar 2022 at 06:17hrs | Views
"PREACH Pastor Sbu", said one of the hustlers who assembled at the Zimbabwe International Trade Fair Hall 4 in Bulawayo on Thursday for the Hustlers Summit.
DJ Sbu has been addressed with many titles, yet his preferred one is "father".
This is because he believes that he acts as a father figure and role model to a lot of children who look up to him.
Yes, he is a father and his address was like a sermon but pregnant with words of motivation.
DJ or should one say "Pastor Sbu" rallied various captains of street cred and said it is only befitting since he is a bonafide hustler himself.
"I was born in the hood with virtually nothing but that wouldn't define who I would be.
Instead, that would be the very reason why I would wake up and greet the day with purpose and hunger to succeed.
My family raised a hustler in me," he said.
Let not anyone be fooled when it comes to how DJ Sbu speaks the Queen's language.
Most of the time, many fall into the trap of thinking that DJ Sbu's alter-ego, the masked Mzekezeke's way of pronouncing English words is how DJ Sbu would, and that is very far from the truth.
In as much as he prefers to speak in IsiZulu, it's out of love more than anything else.
Saturday Leisure sat down for an interview with DJ Sbu during the Hustlers Summit where he was invited as the guest speaker.
His default look is that of one who is bald-headed and medium-sized bearded, but lately, he has grown a lot of beards and has long dreadlocks. They call it Chiskop in South Africa.
"One day, someone said something intriguing to me when I was having lunch with her.
She said to me, ‘When you are in your natural habitat without having to touch the things of the world, your hair grows and this makes you look a certain way.'
Over the years, a lot of people have made us believe that if someone has an Afro or dreadlocks, they do not look presentable or are scruffy and less than human.
"With that being said, my look is not about me making a statement but rather, an appreciation of our Afrocentric ways of doing things.
The Eurocentric way has taught us not to look at ourselves with high esteem and that is wrong.
How we look and how we dress has been, for a long time, influenced by Western media.
"I'm blessed enough not to have a job whereby I have to dress or look a certain way, but the beard and the locks are my way of accepting that I'm independent and responsible for my life," added DJ Sbu.
Remember this is the very guy who ruffled American rapper Jah Rule's feathers almost two decades ago when Jah Rule touched base in South Africa.
The two had a back and forth conversation about the "hood", a subject that DJ Sbu is well-versed with since he was born and bred in Tembisa.
If ever there is a stickler for music that would be DJ Sbu as when he relaxes, he does so via being in a studio or just listening to music.
Besides listening to and making music, DJ Sbu watches a lot of sports with football and tennis being his favourites. He is a staunch Roger Federer follower.
One thing is for sure, DJ Sbu is a spiritual man who believes in a unique way of doing things and has a distinct faith.
Did you know that DJ Sbu hugs a tree and walks barefooted every time (well, not every morning) he gets the chance to on his farm?
"The idea behind hugging trees and walking barefooted stems from a concept called grounding which is an act of walking barefooted in sand, dirt, or grass.
This has also taught me to appreciate nature and its verdure, animals also.
Hugging trees is said to increase a hormone called oxytocin which is responsible for emotional bonding and feeling calm.
So, I have been doing a lot of studies on this and I'm practising them as I go along so I urge people to hug trees and walk barefooted, even for 30 seconds every day," said DJ Sbu.
The Lengoma singer said there is only one antidote to cure one monkey that has always been on most Zimbabwean artistes' backs.
"If Zimbabwean artistes want to get international recognition, then they have to consider collaborations with global acts which resonate with their sound.
Collaborations, collaborations, collaborations do the trick.
"I didn't know Burna Boy just a while ago, but through a collaboration that he did with rapper AKA, I got to know about him and now, he's arguably one of the best acts to come from Africa.
Look at Wizkid, Davido and Black Coffee who is, by the way, Grammy-nominated, the list is endless and I could go on and on about them.
And there's something common among them, collaborating with international artistes.
"What do collaborations do? They expose one to international markets and a win-win situation is the end product for both parties as one gets to gain traction and fame in the country of the other so my advice to Zimbabwean artistes is to collaborate more with international acts.
This gives you a platform to even visit the country where the artiste you have collaborated with comes from," he said.
DJ Sbu has not collaborated with someone from Zimbabwe but he believes that things are about to change as he has heard a lot of good things about Makokoba-bred female rapper, award-winning Awa Khiwe.
"To be honest, I know a few artistes from Zimbabwe, personally and one of them is Jah Prayzah.
We DM each other and I comment on his socials.
We haven't yet worked on a song though. Before coming to Zimbabwe, I spoke to some people and they said I have to meet Awa Khiwe.
"I cannot wait to meet her and if all goes well, who knows, we might even do a song together. Apart from Jah Prayzah, I know Sha Sha and the late icon Oliver Mtukudzi who once posted that I was one of his favourite personalities and that meant a lot to me.
I was looking forward to making music with him but unfortunately, it never happened."
Before DJ Sbu went onto the podium to address hustlers, he attended a virtual meeting with the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) and confirmed that he will be going back to the public broadcaster where he has been famous for presenting television shows such as Friends Like These and Future Leaders.
The Billionaires Under Construction author is an avid reader of "positive content" and said that it's in his DNA to read even one book a day.
"I love reading. It inspires me and gives me a different perception of life and how other people view things.
Sometimes, I read one book a day and I try to read as many books as I possibly can in a short space of time.
I hate reading about history though because I believe that most of it is Westernised and does not give a true reflection of how we, people of cloud, have evolved over the years.
"I'm reading Nkosana Mazibisa's The winner who never won and I hope that by the time I go back to South Africa, I'll be done," he said.
The South African television and radio personality also spoke of how depression can be conquered in an unpredictable industry with so many ups and downs.
"Recently, I believe I almost fell into depression and I believe that such a mental breakdown emanates from one listening to the negative voices in their heads.
Usually, there are two voices in one's head, one speaking positive things and the other speaking negative ones so one needs to suppress the negative ones to keep their head above the waters to overcome this.
"You also need a strong support structure to assist you along the way because when you are that down, it's easy to fall into substance abuse.
I'd like to thank my family members who were with me when I lost everything and had to start afresh, but sadly, my father is not here to witness my strong comeback since he died in 2017," he said.
Turning to his music career, DJ Sbu said he is set to release visuals for his recently-released song titled Maru a pula (Clouds of rain).
The song features Papa the voice, Bongane Sax, Atlegang The violinist and Drum Pope.
Asked whether the album will see a reunion of Mzekezeke and him on a song, DJ Sbu laughed and said, the question itself has given him an idea and he will "reach out to Mzekezeke and find out if that (collaboration) is doable or not."
DJ Sbu has been addressed with many titles, yet his preferred one is "father".
This is because he believes that he acts as a father figure and role model to a lot of children who look up to him.
Yes, he is a father and his address was like a sermon but pregnant with words of motivation.
DJ or should one say "Pastor Sbu" rallied various captains of street cred and said it is only befitting since he is a bonafide hustler himself.
"I was born in the hood with virtually nothing but that wouldn't define who I would be.
Instead, that would be the very reason why I would wake up and greet the day with purpose and hunger to succeed.
My family raised a hustler in me," he said.
Let not anyone be fooled when it comes to how DJ Sbu speaks the Queen's language.
Most of the time, many fall into the trap of thinking that DJ Sbu's alter-ego, the masked Mzekezeke's way of pronouncing English words is how DJ Sbu would, and that is very far from the truth.
In as much as he prefers to speak in IsiZulu, it's out of love more than anything else.
Saturday Leisure sat down for an interview with DJ Sbu during the Hustlers Summit where he was invited as the guest speaker.
His default look is that of one who is bald-headed and medium-sized bearded, but lately, he has grown a lot of beards and has long dreadlocks. They call it Chiskop in South Africa.
"One day, someone said something intriguing to me when I was having lunch with her.
She said to me, ‘When you are in your natural habitat without having to touch the things of the world, your hair grows and this makes you look a certain way.'
Over the years, a lot of people have made us believe that if someone has an Afro or dreadlocks, they do not look presentable or are scruffy and less than human.
"With that being said, my look is not about me making a statement but rather, an appreciation of our Afrocentric ways of doing things.
The Eurocentric way has taught us not to look at ourselves with high esteem and that is wrong.
How we look and how we dress has been, for a long time, influenced by Western media.
"I'm blessed enough not to have a job whereby I have to dress or look a certain way, but the beard and the locks are my way of accepting that I'm independent and responsible for my life," added DJ Sbu.
Remember this is the very guy who ruffled American rapper Jah Rule's feathers almost two decades ago when Jah Rule touched base in South Africa.
The two had a back and forth conversation about the "hood", a subject that DJ Sbu is well-versed with since he was born and bred in Tembisa.
If ever there is a stickler for music that would be DJ Sbu as when he relaxes, he does so via being in a studio or just listening to music.
Besides listening to and making music, DJ Sbu watches a lot of sports with football and tennis being his favourites. He is a staunch Roger Federer follower.
One thing is for sure, DJ Sbu is a spiritual man who believes in a unique way of doing things and has a distinct faith.
Did you know that DJ Sbu hugs a tree and walks barefooted every time (well, not every morning) he gets the chance to on his farm?
"The idea behind hugging trees and walking barefooted stems from a concept called grounding which is an act of walking barefooted in sand, dirt, or grass.
This has also taught me to appreciate nature and its verdure, animals also.
Hugging trees is said to increase a hormone called oxytocin which is responsible for emotional bonding and feeling calm.
So, I have been doing a lot of studies on this and I'm practising them as I go along so I urge people to hug trees and walk barefooted, even for 30 seconds every day," said DJ Sbu.
The Lengoma singer said there is only one antidote to cure one monkey that has always been on most Zimbabwean artistes' backs.
"If Zimbabwean artistes want to get international recognition, then they have to consider collaborations with global acts which resonate with their sound.
Collaborations, collaborations, collaborations do the trick.
"I didn't know Burna Boy just a while ago, but through a collaboration that he did with rapper AKA, I got to know about him and now, he's arguably one of the best acts to come from Africa.
Look at Wizkid, Davido and Black Coffee who is, by the way, Grammy-nominated, the list is endless and I could go on and on about them.
And there's something common among them, collaborating with international artistes.
"What do collaborations do? They expose one to international markets and a win-win situation is the end product for both parties as one gets to gain traction and fame in the country of the other so my advice to Zimbabwean artistes is to collaborate more with international acts.
This gives you a platform to even visit the country where the artiste you have collaborated with comes from," he said.
DJ Sbu has not collaborated with someone from Zimbabwe but he believes that things are about to change as he has heard a lot of good things about Makokoba-bred female rapper, award-winning Awa Khiwe.
"To be honest, I know a few artistes from Zimbabwe, personally and one of them is Jah Prayzah.
We DM each other and I comment on his socials.
We haven't yet worked on a song though. Before coming to Zimbabwe, I spoke to some people and they said I have to meet Awa Khiwe.
"I cannot wait to meet her and if all goes well, who knows, we might even do a song together. Apart from Jah Prayzah, I know Sha Sha and the late icon Oliver Mtukudzi who once posted that I was one of his favourite personalities and that meant a lot to me.
I was looking forward to making music with him but unfortunately, it never happened."
Before DJ Sbu went onto the podium to address hustlers, he attended a virtual meeting with the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) and confirmed that he will be going back to the public broadcaster where he has been famous for presenting television shows such as Friends Like These and Future Leaders.
The Billionaires Under Construction author is an avid reader of "positive content" and said that it's in his DNA to read even one book a day.
"I love reading. It inspires me and gives me a different perception of life and how other people view things.
Sometimes, I read one book a day and I try to read as many books as I possibly can in a short space of time.
I hate reading about history though because I believe that most of it is Westernised and does not give a true reflection of how we, people of cloud, have evolved over the years.
"I'm reading Nkosana Mazibisa's The winner who never won and I hope that by the time I go back to South Africa, I'll be done," he said.
The South African television and radio personality also spoke of how depression can be conquered in an unpredictable industry with so many ups and downs.
"Recently, I believe I almost fell into depression and I believe that such a mental breakdown emanates from one listening to the negative voices in their heads.
Usually, there are two voices in one's head, one speaking positive things and the other speaking negative ones so one needs to suppress the negative ones to keep their head above the waters to overcome this.
"You also need a strong support structure to assist you along the way because when you are that down, it's easy to fall into substance abuse.
I'd like to thank my family members who were with me when I lost everything and had to start afresh, but sadly, my father is not here to witness my strong comeback since he died in 2017," he said.
Turning to his music career, DJ Sbu said he is set to release visuals for his recently-released song titled Maru a pula (Clouds of rain).
The song features Papa the voice, Bongane Sax, Atlegang The violinist and Drum Pope.
Asked whether the album will see a reunion of Mzekezeke and him on a song, DJ Sbu laughed and said, the question itself has given him an idea and he will "reach out to Mzekezeke and find out if that (collaboration) is doable or not."
Source - The Chronicle
