Who would have thought that one would find Tumelo Sibanda better known as Tume, all chilled out in his room on a Friday afternoon. The young actor who was busy studying for his exams managed to give us some time to get to know him better.

Not only is he talented but he also an academic at heart. He is currently a third year student at the University of Johannesburg (glad to say that he qualified for his Honours studies), pursuing his childhood dream of becoming an accountant. Inspired by his mother, he recalls wanting to become just like and till this day still looks up to his mother. With his love for theatre, Tumelo has found someone to look up to and seek inspiration from fellow actress Sibulele Gchilitshana contributes to the person he has become.

Sibulele Gchilitshana

One newspaper had reported that he would like to become the President, but right now he has realised that he does not have to be a President to bring about in South Africa.

Being the second born to his mother, Tumelo hopes to have 3 to 4 children *phew* of his own one day. It goes without say that he is an emotional person who is very fond of family. His eyes glow as he tells us about his niece who was turning a month old on the 4^th (November).

Going back to his career, these days he can be found playing Lucky on Scandal, a role that he describes as his “longest job” but not only is it a job for him it is a role that allows him to do what he would not normally do. “I have shot a person, being raped, have had diabetes, fought somebody, forced somebody to kill someone and been a street kid” that is what acting has enabled him to do. He said “being an accountant is a calling and being an actor is an anointment”. One would think that with so many international movie appearances, Tumelo would be used to fame but rather prefers to keep to his books and swears to reply to all his Facebook and Twitter messages. His intentions are to pursue both careers and only time will tell for this young man although accounting takes preference. He sees himself “lecturing and consulting during the day, performing at night and shooting a feature film for six months” he is basically a man on a mission of his own.

Favourite hang-out spot: Panyaza *so ghetto Tume lol* and his room

Favourite car model: Toyota Corolla *hmmm*and Range Rover

Favourite brand: Allan Grey *very biased*

Favourite restaurant: Tasha’s

Favourite mall: Maponya Mall *lol side eyes*

Favourite artist: Adele

And yes ladies he’s single but sadly not looking *sigh*, as he is working on changing that status.

I must say Tumelo is such a passionate person who let all his guard down for us. Haven’t meet such an emotional and touching soul in a long time and his honesty is moving. One thing that moved me is his passion behind his craft and work. Not only is he an great actor but he has proven people wrong that actors do have brains by obtaining his Bachelor Of Commerce in record time while pursuing his other love. Wishing him all the best in all his ventures in the near future and may he keep gracing our screen and soon the theatre stage.

Follow him on Twitter @tumelojames

Waddup! Waddup! Waddup!

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We got another exclusive for you guys….

So while Allegro is busy covering South Africa & rest of Africa for us, Nike holding it down in L.A., Tangie covering Detroit & the Midwest & new to the team, Demi doing best in New York City, I caught up with Chingy!

Yup! Chingy in the building!

I have to thank my fabulous co-host, Erika Washington, who hooked this interview up for me! You can catch up with E, Kaya, Zee & I talking up a storm on Afrotainment Television Channel , week-days, on “Point Of View”. For more on our talk-show, “Point Of View”, CLICK HERE….

So this was a fun interview to do!

For many reasons.

I had been texting back and forth with Chingy on when to do the interview. It was insane, his schedule & my schedule. But finally, we locked down on a time & day and made it work! So I ended up doing the interview during the week I was hosting one of my college besties, who was visiting with her hubby from the Bahamas AND prepping for the 2011 Afrotainment Museke Awards….*smile*

I loved Chingy for his energy & honesty! He mentioned that at one time, he did not want do music anymore! *gasp!* Artists go through that?! He also mentioned that he had gone through some personal challenges and had to step away from the game for a minute. I can respect that. I appreciated him saying that because sometimes we forget that artists are humans as well….I even went there with the alleged transvestite rumors surrounding him….

Hear what Chingy had to say on our exclusive interview:

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Your Thoughts?!?

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Special thanks to our music guy & DJ, DJ Manny for production of this interview!

Photo: Erika Washington & Chingy

Good morning lovely people!

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From our Guest Contributor, Teurai Chanakira: Model, Author / Writer & Founder of the Elizabeth Chanakira Cancer Trust…

Photo: E:thos Photography by Rudo Nyangulu 2011

We went several years without blatant reminders of Cancer. Albeit, my visits back home where I saw how much weight Mum had lost. The fact that she had to (with a look of piercing disappointment) put a silicone pad in one of her bra cups. Her bald head underneath her wig (which she never liked anyone to see, even my father). Her strict eating habits, for example, she had to take plenty of natural multi-vitamin powders, plenty fruit and vegetables, soy milk etc. It was never really gone from the back of my mind.

In early 2010, after having relocated to Cairns, Australia, I was speaking to Mum on the phone to catch up with her. She told me that she was having terrible headaches, feeling dizzy. She mentioned she would be going to see the doctor the next day.

I rung back to hear the result. In a shaky voice, mum told me that the Cancer was back in the breast….but had also spread to the lungs and liver.

I wanted to wail.

But, being a strong Zimbabwean woman, I held it together and said to her, “So what now? Chemo again?” She said yes and after a few more comforting words, we both hung up.

I have never felt so lonely and far away from home as I did at that moment. I rested my head on the kitchen counter and cried…I cried until my body couldn’t.

At the time, I was having lots of magazine/newspaper interviews. I made the Top 100 of Naomi Campbell’s Global Model search competition. I also had plenty of photo shoots. I also started writing for Zimbo Jam, etc.

I carried on without anyone ever knowing that I was breaking down inside.  I felt helpless and all I could do was pray. Yet I must admit that it was hard to pray, to believe for a miracle as everyone told me to…I was just numb. Sometimes all I could mutter were a few words…”God, please heal her. You’ve got to.”

At home, Zimbabwe: Teurai’s dad, late mother, Elizabeth Chanakira & cousin, Valerie, 2009

I kept reading up on the causes of Cancer. What stuck in my mind were the causes of cancer; stress, poor diet including our increasing reliance on processed as opposed to natural foods, lack of exercise, etc.

I was already an exercise enthusiast since the age of seventeen and was a firm believer in eating as many natural foods as possible. So from then on, I started watching my health even more. I started being more serious about checking for lumps in my breasts.

I also tried to substitute the pain, fear and loneliness I felt by going out a lot, just so I could block it out; I honestly didn’t know what to do.  But whenever I got back home to my flat, Cancer was always following behind me – slithering in to settle next to me, right where it always was.

And so the family faced the financial struggles of the Cancer treatment, the medication, the chemo etc. Dad sold some valuable household items to cover the costs; various family members chipped in – we all did what we could. Mum had always gone for Counselling and support at the Harare Cancer Centre.  At that time, I grew even closer to the staff members there. In the back of my mind, I subconsciously felt that Mum’s time on this Earth was drawing to a close.

At the same time, I clung to the belief that if she had chemo, it would go away.  She had intensive 2 week chemo.

I started planning to go home to be with her. When I spoke to my Dad on the phone, he said, “Come home Teu, as soon as you can.” His voice said it all. I sent all the money I could to help with the medical costs. It was not easy as I had to balance the cost of flights, etc. I had decided to move to Melbourne a few months earlier, so I had to pack and move all my stuff to Melbourne, then take the next flight to Harare.

I had a lot of clothes I didn’t need. So before I left Cairns, I held a “Clothes Sale” to benefit the Harare Cancer Centre and thank them for all they had done to support us throughout Mum’s illness. I raised $150, not as much as I would have wanted but I was so grateful for everyone who helped me.  That I was going to be able to at least give them something.

Article in the local Cairns Sun (Australian newspaper) for the Clothes sale, November 2010

Two weeks before I was due to leave for Melbourne, I received a phone call from an Aunt. She had never rung me in Australia before so I knew something was wrong.  I asked,

“Makadii Maiguru. Ko chii?” [How are you Auntie? What's the matter?]

“Teu, chiuya kumba as fast as you can. Mama varwara.” [Teurai, come back home as quickly as you can. Mum is sick.]

She told me that Mum’s cancer had spread to the brain, to all the major organs and that Mum was afraid to tell me on the phone.

I started crying and she said,

“Zvisimbise, zvisimbise…” [Strengthen yourself, strengthen yourself - literal translation]

I stopped crying and from that day on, I didn’t cry except for the time I rung my friend, Terance, in Cairns and broke down on the phone, saying,

“Mum’s going to die, Mum’s going to die…oh my God, we are going to lose her”.

And yet to the outside world, I carried on.

I immersed myself in writing; in modelling; in believing in all of my dreams.  Sometimes I would hurt so much because I would think,

“I always wanted Mum to see me living my dreams, to be able to pay for her and Dad to go on exotic holidays and spoil them rotten…will I ever be able to do that?”

In November 2010, I journeyed home to Zimbabwe to be with Mum.  I wanted to cry in the plane and would stop myself. I repeatedly said to myself;

“I have to be strong. Mum can’t see me breaking down,”

Photo: Nuno Avendano Photography 2010

(To be continued…next week)

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Please follow me on Twitter at @Teurai1

Hey! Hey!

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From my homies over at BlackTree TV comes this uber fab interview with the deliciously HOT [#nohomo] Zoe Saldana

Zoe sat down with Jamaal to chat about her action packed new movie ‘Colombiana’. In the action film Colombiana, Zoe Saldana plays Cataleya, a young woman who has grown up to be an assassin after witnessing the murder of her parents as a child. Turning herself into a professional killer and working for her uncle, she remains focused on her ultimate goal: to hunt down and get revenge on the people responsible for her parents’ deaths.

Watch the interview:

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Your Thoughts?!?

Click FaraiToday to follow us on

Twitter!

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International DJ Nasty was recently in the country for a 2 week experience of South Africa. In between his club appearances and other interviews all around Johannesburg, I managed to catch up with him on his last day in South Africa for an exclusive interview.

DJ Nasty is known for his hit productions on a number of songs and quite recently the no. 1 hit that we all can’t get enough of “All I do is win”. Yes, he produced that banging track! A lot of people just assume that DJ Khaled is responsible for that track but that’s only because DJ Nasty prefers staying behind the scenes and just basically doing what he does best.

We talked about a lot of things and even played a fun little game where I dished out a couple of international artists names which he had to describe in one word. The funniest for me was his one word description on rapper T.I. as “troubled” lol. I loved how he was so honest and free. He speaks very highly of DJ Khaled referring to him as a brother and the amount of respect he has for Lil’ Wayne, Eve, Jay-Z and Kanye just to name but a few was for me amazing to hear him describe.

We also spoke about his upcoming evennts and the song that is currently on high rotation locally that he produced titled “Legendary” by Keyshia Cole, Chris Brown and NeYo. He also mentioned that as soon as he gets back to the U.S. they will be shooting the video for this song. For him this song is all about MOTIVATION!!!

This was the last tweet I saw from his account before he left the country a couple of hours ago…

Check out the interview below…

From your girl Allegro Dinkwanyane- “I’m just saying”, so have your say…

I am on Twitter: @Allegro_D

YOUR THOUGHTS???

Happy Saturday y’all!!!

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It’s no secret that Necole Bitchie is a media-mogul-in-making, one blog-post at a time!

I first met Necole “Bitchie” Kane in Detroit, Michigan at an event that Rolling Out Magazine was sponsoring on women in entertainment. Also on the panel with Necole was Chrisette Michelle *side-bar, lurve me some Chrisette!*. Anyway I remember Necole being super cool, warm, approachable with a constant smile (Necole stays smiling *lol*) As I was launching my own blog (on lifestyle, entertainment, music, fashion & celeb scoop) with a focus on Africans in the diaspora and on the continent, she was so obliging and gave me some really great tips!

Necole Bitchie

I have always loved that Necole’s personal story is inspirational but also very relatable. Something like *rags to riches*. Her parents and grandmother had passed away while she was in college (Morgan State University & Towson University), she lost her job in radio and ended up on her aunt’s couch in Cambridge, Maryland. Tinkering around on the internet (her aunt thought she was looking for a job), Necole started her blog December 2007 as a way to remain sane! But her aunt kicked her out and Necole found herself in Atlanta where she broke some *eye-popping* stories (Chris Stokes, B2K et cetera, et cetera, et cetera) a la Perez Hilton style and the rest is blog-history….

Today, Necole has turned her blog into a full-blown brand. The blog, Necole Bitchie has generated a monthly audience of 1.2 million and its Founder & Editor-In-Chief has made herself a pillar in the entertainment industry.

Very nice!

Her interview with Black Enterprise:

Since launching in 2007, the site now draws upwards of 1.2 million unique visitors per month and stands as the hub of the Necole Bitchie brand, which has grown to include a web channel (Bitchie TV), lifestyle site (Bitchie Life), T-shirt line (Born Bitchie) and another online property on the horizon (IAmNecole.com). For her mastery of the digital space and branding power, Necole Bitchie joins BlackEnterprise.com’s esteemed list of online thought leaders as part of our first annual Black Blogger Month.

I started blogging because…

I wanted to create my own opportunities… [Initially] I had wanted to work in the music industry and doors kept slamming in my face. Every time I would send out resumes or get interviewed I would never get hired and it came to a point in 2007 where I said I’d never send out another resume and I haven’t.

I realized blogging was a business when…

I was doing research and I wandered on to Perez Hilton’s site. I wasn’t even into blogs like that and I just happened to land on his site and I saw the ad space and I clicked on it. At the time it was like $10,000 for a sidebar ad for like a week and I was like, “What part of the game is this?” I Googled him and I saw how he started his site like in the living room or something and how it grew and I studied his story and I felt like it was something I could possibly get into, so it started from there. Just seeing somebody was actually selling ad space for a week for $10,000. That just got my mind going like, “How could I flip this? How could I make this into a business?”

My biggest influences are…

Will Smith. I read all of Will’s old interviews and watch all of his interviews that he’s done on television and I think one of the things that really got me is that he said, “I will not be overworked. If I get on a treadmill with you and we’re running, two things will happen. I’m either going to outrun you or I’m going to die.” I think that you have to have that mentality to make it because it’s about not just getting comfortable. Once you reach a certain level you always have to think about getting to the next level. That’s also why Oprah is someone else that influenced me because she beat out everybody. So she was like, “What am I going to do? I’m going to go to the next step and that’s own my own network.” Those type of people inspire me to keep going.

The best piece of business advice I ever got was…

To know your target audience. Like, every time a new blogger comes to me and asks that’s one of the first things I say. You have to sit down and define your target audience. Like me I would look at a piece of paper and I would have my picture on it and I would say, “She’s a 24 year old female, African American, she goes to the nail shop twice a week, she reads Vibe magazine, she likes this movie…” I would have her whole profile down because once you know your target then you know what appeals to them like I was doing celebrity gossip at first, but then I thought my target audience was me, well I like nails and different kinds of designs, so I started posting some stuff on nails and the [audience] went crazy…. If you don’t have a target then you’ll try to appeal to everyone and that’s when you’ll get lost and it’ll be very hard for you to brand yourself and your site when you don’t have a specific person in mind that you’re appealing to.

The biggest mistakes I ever made in business have…

All been financial. Not planning. Not setting budgets. Just spending money, like if you told me, “I think you need this,” and it sounds okay I used to not even look to see if we have a budget for that. I really wasn’t money managing. You know, money would come, money would go. It’s not until you sit down and all of the numbers are pulled together and someone tells you you spent three-fourths of your money on expenses and that could’ve been cut in half that you’re like, okay, I need to get it together. So definitely the biggest mistake is not setting budgets and not money managing.

What I learned from that was…

That going through every year, even every month, you should definitely make a budget. I only want to spend this much on graphics. I want to spend this much on supplies or marketing or whatever. It’s just very hard to have a successful business and not have a good business structure and cash flow; knowing what money is coming in and going out, especially when it’s time to look into investors or other partnerships and then they want to know how have you been spending your money in the past.

I measure my success by…

How many people I inspire and motivate everyday. When I first started working with my publicist Christina one of my main things was even if I did interviews and get in magazines I don’t want to get into them just to say, “Hey, look what I did with my blog.” I really wanted the person reading to know the back story and the struggle and the obstacles I had to overcome to even get here in three years, so every time someone comes on Twitter and says, “Girl, I just read your story and you inspire and motivate me,” that’s how I measure my success, not by how much money I make or how many people read the site.

None of my success would be possible if not for…

My aunt. By kicking me out of her house she took the crutch from underneath of me that I wouldn’t get comfortable, so without her I wouldn’t be here.

Her interview with The Tip Online:

What inspired you to start your blog?

To be honest, I tried to start it a few times and each time was a different motivation. But, when I really really started it was because I was in a situation where I had to move back home to live with an aunt of mine and it was in a very small town. There wasn’t anything in the entertainment industry and [the blog] started as a way to pass time. I was supposed to be looking for a job but I knew I didn’t want to work in any of the places that were near where she lived so I basically started it as a way to pass time and as therapy while I was going through that really rough point in my life.

Given that you blog about the entertainment industry, what would you say separates you from the masses?

I think the main thing that separates mine – especially in the entertainment and gossip arena is the fact that my image is very out there. When I first started, a lot of bloggers weren’t putting their image out there so you would go to websites but you had no idea what the person who was writing this stuff looked like. I feel like the fact that I put my image out there, I’ve done videos and released pictures of myself, people feel like they can relate a little more because a lot of my audience looks like me. They’re around the same age and they like the same things I like so it’s almost like they’re coming to my site and seeing me as a friend in their head.

Did you find it difficult putting yourself out there like that?

Yes of course because even now, me moving to New York [to aid career progression], I’m more affected by it than anywhere else because I had a bigger fan base in New York more than anywhere else so when I got here, I could be going into Victoria Secrets to buy something and someone would say “you look like this girl, her name’s Necole”. People recognise me wherever I go so it’s kinda’ strange and hard to get used to. It’s a bit weird because it can become a security issue and I’m very used to going places and not having to look over my shoulder – I just like being on the low. So I can definitely see why people decide not to [share their image] because they can live their lives normally. It’s been hard for me.

How do you deal with negative criticism and constant scrutiny?

Well I always use Oprah as an example. What I do in my free time, which a lot of people don’t know, is I read interviews from people that I look up to and admire. I spend a lot of time reading old interviews from Oprah Winfrey and Will Smith and those types of people. What I did notice about Oprah is that in the early part of her career she was very caught up with what people had to say about her, the negative things that people had to say, it just really hurt her. There was a lot of criticism on everything from her weight to the way she looked, the guy she was dating and it wasn’t until she realised that all of the pain and destruction that was going on in her life was because she cared so much about what people thought of her. She stopped caring and that’s how she became the person she is today. When I first started I read everything – every negative thing people had to say about me. I got a lot of criticism because people thought I hung out with celebrities because they would see me in pictures with them which was never true. I got a lot of criticism because people were under the impression that I wanted to be a celebrity and that was never my intention. I was very hurt by it. One day I just stopped [looking for negative comments]. I’m just numb to it now. It takes a while. As long as you care about what people have to say about you, you’ll never reach your full potential.

Did you ever think that Necole Bitchie would get so big?

It’s funny because I remember at the end of 2008, I was asking this guy if he could help me because he had a lot of industry connects and he asked me “what’s your traffic?” and I said about 500,000 page reads a month and he said “well, when you get a million hits a week then come back and talk to me.” I was so offended and so hurt because I felt like first of all he didn’t believe in me and second of all, a million page reads a week was an impossible goal for him to give me. But six months later I reached that goal! I thought a million page reads a week was unheard of for me, so for me to go past that and I’m still growing is amazing. I never would have thought.

What’s been the highlight of your blogging career so far?

Appearing on 106 and Park [who have never featured a blogger before] because I’m very camera shy. That’s what’s been really holding me back to really go to the next level and be as big as I really can be because I freeze up around cameras and I always said I don’t want to do TV. When they asked me I couldn’t tell them no because I didn’t want to look like a slacker or someone who can’t or someone whose incapable. So when they asked me I told them yes even though I was scared out of my mind. I didn’t even promote it to my blog readers or talk about it on Twitter. I didn’t mention it until afterward because I was just that scared. I think one of my [other] highlights is when I got a private message from Prez Hilton on Twitter and he was basically saying keep up the good work, I’m proud of you. When I first started my blog, I looked at him as the Opera of blogging. I modeled my business strategy and the way that I branded myself after him because he was so successful and I was very intrigued by that. When I got the private message on Twitter, that meant the world to me because I didn’t even know he knew I existed like that.

Considering you’ve been doing this for quite some time now, what important lessons have you learnt along the way?

I learnt that your network is your net worth so you need to get out there and meet people. And not just that, you need to be nice to people and not burn bridges because you never know who you might need.

What’s the main misconception people have about Necole Bitchie that you’d like to clear up?

That I’m a rock star with this super poppin’ life and a lot of celebrity friends. I’m actually quite boring!

Finally, where do you see Necole Bitchie in the future?

I would love to continue to expand my brand into clothing, beauty and things of that nature but I am also interested in branding who I am as a person outside of my online persona. I want to connect with my readers more on a personal level and inspire. I’m all for female empowerment and I hope to motivate others to take risks and go hard for what they want out of life. Will Smith once said to me “99% is the same as 0, if you are going to do 99%, stay home” and I will never forget that. I don’t measure my success by the number of hits I get a month or how much money I make, I measure it by the number of people I can inspire every day. My story is proof that anything is possible.

* This piece appeared originally in The Tip Online (Assumpta Ozua)

Love us some Necole Bitchie!

Love that Necole is all about the pink *our fave color here at FaraiToday*!

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Hope You Are Inspired To Stay Grinding Like

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Necole Bitchie!

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Love ya for it!

Photo: Necole Bitchie

Hey lovely people!

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Today we are celebrating Zimbabwe‘s 31st Independence Day!

Despite her many challenges, (and there are plenty!), she persists & perseveres & keeps on going. That resilience, fortitude is part of our DNA as Zimbabweans. Regardless of where you find us, we flourish and we make things happen! We are going to make things happen…

Mushambi Mutuma

Enter Mushambi John Mutuma, Co-Founder & Managing Director of Altivex Creative Foundry based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Young, African & fabulous! Making it happen in South Africa. So much so, that he caught the attention of leading South African men’s magazine, DestinyMan, for their “Men Fulfilling Their Destiny” Business Section….

Mushambi John Mutuma in DestinyMan Mag (right) May/June issue

So we got the unabridged exclusive interview that Mushambi had with with DestinyMan Magazine (we got it like that!).

Check out what this Young, African & Fabulous Zimbabwean had to say:

Full name and age? Business title for both jobs?

Mushambi John Mutuma

Altivex Creative Foundry South Africa – Co-Founder & Managing Director

University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), Program in Global Health – Program Coordinator, Africa

Please give a description of both of your jobs.

Altivex Creative Foundry provides creative business solutions through web & e-commerce development, graphic design, multimedia, social media marketing and smart-phone mobile applications. As Managing Director, I handle the company’s strategic & financial management, engaging new clients and leading our team of creatives.

UCLA’s Program in Global Health is a research institution that partners with academic institutions throughout the world to advance prevention, policy and clinical research for HIV/AIDS. As Program Coordinator, I manage UCLA’s role in research projects in the region, focusing on monitoring and evaluation and training facilitation.

Describe a typical day?

Due to the global and online nature of my job, I’ve always said the best and worst part of my job is I don’t clock in or clock out. Whether its Africa, the US or Asia, someone is always awake, hence the typically very long hours. Working from home is great advantage, but requires focus and time management. I start every day with an hour at the gym. Following that, I handle whatever requests came in during the night from local clients or from other regions. Over lunch I squeeze in meetings with as many potential clients as possible. Despite it being the digital age I believe nothing is more effective than looking your client in the eye when you explain the uniqueness of your services. After lunch, New York and LA are waking up and I start connecting with my US based colleagues. I usually have worldwide conference calls from 6pm to midnight. During this time I also manage and prepare my team for various new projects and we strategize for the future.

How did Altivex Creative Foundry come about?

Altivex Creative Foundry was formed when I realized a very talented group of creative people existed within my friends and acquaintances who weren’t getting an opportunity to maximise their talent in their jobs with more traditional design or IT firms. We also noticed a gap in the South African market in e-commerce, mobile apps and social media marketing. After six months of market research, planning and development we went live and launched our company.

What were you hoping to accomplish with Altivex Creative Foundry when you started? Have you done so as yet?

Altivex Creative Foundry’s vision is to be recognized as South Africa’s premier creative business tools provider, leading the market in e-commerce, mobile app development and social media consulting and marketing. Based on the overwhelming response to our recent launch, I believe we are already well on our way. Our client base literally grows daily and our projections for next quarter are looking very positive!

Why are you doing two jobs? Is it for money or are you driven by passion?

While money is nice, my true motivation is ownership. I want to be in full control of my destiny and my position at Altivex Creative Foundry allows this. So in this transition period I get the security and satisfaction out of making a positive impact on the region’s health sector but I also get the excitement and privilege of being part of a potentially huge new way of doing business in South Africa.

Roddy Chakaipa, Co-Founder & Creative Director

How do you approach time management?

We’ve taken #NoDaysOff as our company motto and creed. Monday to Monday I work, no excuses, no concessions. However, in addition to working around the clock I strongly believe in the need for lists, lists and more lists. With each of my projects I set out a calendar of events, deadlines, conference calls, scheduled follow-ups, etc. At Altivex Creative Foundry, we do the same with each of our clients and their projects. Multiple detailed lists insure that you cover all your bases and leave nothing amiss.

How do you find balance between your two different roles?

Fulfilling commitments is very important to me. At this stage, I work for UCLA full time and I meet that obligation through being available any day, around the clock, to cover the needs of the different time zones we work in. At the same time I owe my Altivex Creative Foundry partners and employees my full attention to our new venture. The balance comes in the management of my responsibilities; I focus on the big picture and issues I consider important.

Isaac Phefo, Brand Architect

What are the thrills of working two jobs?

The best part of my current job set-up is that no day is the same. Every day I face completely different challenges in the public health sector and the for-profit, creative industry. New challenges bring on more planning and more strategic thinking, two things I love. I think another thrill is the people that tell me what I’m doing is impossible. I strive to prove naysayers wrong and love being able to continue to manage a full-time job and full-time company without compromising quality or productivity.

What are the challenges and how have you overcome them?

The biggest challenge day to day is time. I never have enough of it. However, as I said before, managing my time effectively is the only solution. Another challenge is managing growth. Despite contrary belief, it’s not good to grow too much too fast. So while we can’t predict what’s around the corner we are very keen on focusing our targets and capacity on quality, not quantity.

Agi Masekela, Head of Interaction Design

Does having two jobs come at the expense of recreation and family time?

My father has always told me that while I’m young enough to work all day and night I should. So I do. In the same token I believe it’s important to have downtime with friends and family, things that should never be neglected. Finding balance is the important part.

Most companies have policies against moonlighting. How did you navigate the legalities behind being employed by day and doing your own thing after hours? Have you discussed this with management at your day job?

I make sure that my work at Altivex Creative Foundry does not negatively impact my “day job.” Because I will be transitioning away from UCLA in the future they have been very generous and accepting in the fact that I have my own future plans. I’m beyond thankful for the opportunities they have given me and will work with the energy of my first day until the last time I clock out.

Mushambi Mutuma, Co-Founder & Managing Director

The nature of your two jobs are very different, how do you approach the different roles?

I credit UCLA with teaching me how to manage many different programs in multiple countries and settings- whether it be Los Angeles, New York, Jo’burg or rural Malawi, with a wide range of individuals. At UCLA I’m an employee managing programs but at Altivex Creative Foundry I’m an employer managing employees and clients. I believe the positive here is as an employee I know what management expects of me and as an employer I know how and what employees feel and go through.

How did you go about establishing your company while working full time? How did you go about securing clients?

We use any and every free moment available! As I said, with #NoDaysOff we have molded a lifestyle around continuous quality work around the clock. You wouldn’t believe the shock some clients have when they wake up to see a quotation that hit their inbox at 2am! Our clients come from the strength and broad scope of our networks as well as a few targeted prospects. However, the majority of our clients come from referrals. I think an important factor is that we treat each of our clients, whether big or small, with the same respect and time. We’re not merely a once-off service provider but a lifelong creative partner for our clients.

Team #NoDaysOff

When your own venture started taking off, how did you ensure that you didn’t lose interest in your day job?

HIV/AIDS prevention is a strong passion of mine and being part of something that changes lives regularly is a big motivation. I don’t think I’ll ever lose interest in helping people and making the world a better place. At Altivex Creative Foundry we’ve already put together a bursary fund for future university students and I hope in the future it will give us the avenue to do even more, especially for young creative talent here in South Africa.

Since the start of the recession, multiple job-holding – or moonlighting – is on the rise. Why do you think this is?

I believe people are increasingly finding limited security in their day jobs. With the recession, layoffs and corporate downsizing have been on the rise in every industry, leaving many feeling insecure in their job. I believe people want (and should have) a reliable backup plan in order to support themselves and their families. While being your own boss has its full variety of challenges, there is security in knowing that your success is fully dependent on your own work ethic.

What tips can you offer aspiring businessmen for managing two jobs?

The best tip I can offer is investing in a quality team to support you. Without qualified and committed individuals beside you, your business dreams are just dreams. At Altivex Creative Foundry, I believe fully in our products and services but even more importantly, I have full faith and confidence in the abilities of our team. Delegation of tasks and duties is no challenge when I know my team can achieve our goals. Being part of strong and supportive teams with the commitment and capacity to deliver gives you the opportunity to pursue your dream. All you have to do is have the drive to dive in. #NoDayOff Good luck!

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How Inspired Are You By Mushambi…

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& His Altivex #NoDaysOff Team?!

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Photo/Source: Ndalo Media, DestinyMan, Altivex Foundry

Hi y’all

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Loving all things Cynthia Mare! She is an R&B singer & song-writer from Zimbabwe but based in England, U.K. She is part of the Zimbabwe AllStars, whose single “We Are African. #263 Zimbabwe Remix” dropped just in time for Zimbabwe’s 31st Independence, on today, April 18th.

Did I mention that Cynthia is the ONLY female repping on Zimbabwe AllStars?!?!…

Cynthia Mare on set of “We Are African. #263 Zimbabwe Remix”

Cynthia Mare is hot, HOT property in Zimbabwe, where she was born, with two top ten singles already under her belt! She moved to London at the age of 15 to finish school and attend University. It was also then that she began to focus on her true love, MUSIC.

Cynthia Mare & U.S. rap artist, Eve

In 2007 she recorded an E.P entitled “Happy “, which did very well back in Zimbabwe, Africa with two songs going Top Ten!

In 2008, she came with another banger, “The Diet” song which topped the charts once again. The song was also played extensively on U.K. radio stations like BBC1xtra, and Bang FM.

Cynthia Mare (grey blazer) & Akon in Harare, Zimbabwe

Cynthia has performed on may stages in the UK and Zimbabwe but the biggest was at the Akon and Sean Paul show in Harare where she performed to an audience of 50,000 people with her band and four dancers.

“Catch Me When I fall”, the debut single from Cynthia’s upcoming Summer Love album, is one of the most exciting R&B songs due to come out in 2011. The multi-talented singer / songwriter from London has, with the help of A.B.R.A tribe, finally decided to launch the single officially in the U.K. as the front runner to her long awaited album due out later this year. Produced by ‘Krunchie’, the song has a strong catchy acoustic guitar melody and great lyrics… Cynthia delivers the song with such sincere emotion that one cannot help but feel like she is singing to you. The premise is simple; she is falling for a guy and wants to know if he will catch her…

Well, we did catch her….

CHECK OUT OUR EXCLUSIVE WITH ZIMBABWE’S FIRST LADY OF MUSIC, CYNTHIA MARE….

Farai_Interviews_Cynthia_Mare (PRESS PLAY TO LISTEN TO INTERVIEW)

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HOW MUCH ARE WE LOVING…

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ZIMBABWE’S FIRST LADY OF MUSIC….

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CYNTHIA MARE?!?!

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Hello folks!

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So last month, we launched our newest feature, African Girls Rock! as a fun but up-close & personal way of celebrating our African celebs, legends & icons, particularly our African women that are making it happen globally! Kudos to South Africa’s highest paid TV girl, Nonhle Thema for being out inaugural FaraiToday Fab Girl of the Month for January!

We decided not to feature anyone in particular for the month of February since it is/was Black History Month in the United States of America. Every-day is a celebration & reflection of our heros & sheroes….

Dr. Jackie Chimhanzi, Prime Minister, Morgan Tsvangirai (m) & Deputy Prime Minister, Dr. Arthur Mutambara (r)

But we are back this month & our featured FaraiToday Fab Woman of the Month is Zimbabwe’s First Lady & my good friend, Dr.Jacqueline Chimhanzi, phD (or just Jackie to her friends & family). Jackie is the wife of Zimbabwe’s Deputy Prime Minister, Dr. Arthur Mutambara and she is a FORCE in her own right…read on!

Dr. Jackie Chimhanzi is the Lead, In-Business Strategy Consulting for Deloitte Consulting’s Africa Desk and has been featured in South Africa’s # 1 women’s glossy magazine, Destiny.

Read on why we love her!

Here is an up-close & personal interview with Jackie!

How important a tool is networking for your career and what top tip would you offer on doing it effectively?

Networking is hugely important in my career, as there’s a sales aspect to it and my role is a client-interfacing one. To network effectively, deal with people as individuals, be interested in them and find a point of connection that allows for easy conversation.

You did your PhD early in your career. How do you plan to leverage it?

After obtaining my PhD, I worked as a lecturer/researcher in strategic marketing in the UK. My intention now is to accumulate practical working experience and at some point return to academia – possibly in a part-time capacity. My focus will be on infusing theory with practicality, based on my experience in both spheres.

What’s the best professional advice you’ve ever received?

To be clear about one’s career aspirations, to project oneself and to aim for experience at the next level – not the current one.

Where do you see yourself in five years’ time?

In my job capacity, I’m currently helping clients access opportunities in the rest of Africa. I’m also a 2010 Archbishop Tutu Leadership Associate and a member of New Faces, New Voices, committed to the financial empowerment of African women. In five years’ time, I hope these roles will have made a significant and tangible contribution to the continent.

Who’s your mentor?

Graça Machel – she’s formidable and I learn a lot from working with her. She dreams big, has a “can do” mindset, is passionate aboutwhat she does and remains focused and resolute until she’s achieved her objectives. She’s a visionary, but pays equal attention to detail.

What are you currently reading?

Unaccustomed Earth (Random House), a collection of short stories by Jhumpa Lahiri.

How do you unwind after a long day?

By cooking while listening to music.

How would you define ultimate success?

Raising my two sons to be successful in their professional lives, while also being nice, decent people with the right values.

I love that Jackie stays fashionable & trendy, despite leading a busy professional life as Lead Consultant at Deloitte, South Africa, wife to Zimbabwe’s Deputy Prime & mommy to two gorgeous little boys!

And in an interview with the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), Jackie, an African Leadership Institute Fellow had this to say about her recent trip to Tunis to meeting with AfDB President, Donald Kaberuka;

During your (AfLI) meeting with AfDB President, Donald Kaberuka, he stressed the role the youth should play in meeting the current political and economic development challenges in the continent. What are you doing in this regard?

In my professional capacity, I head the Deloitte Consulting Africa Strategy Desk in Johannesburg assisting clients to access opportunities across the continent. On my return to South Africa, tomorrow, for example, I will make a presentation to a group of 15 Swedish investors wanting to understand the investment opportunities and associated risks in Africa and how to navigate the landscape in terms of market opportunity identification and quantification and market entry strategy.

Sweden, traditionally, has had an aid-donor relationship with Africa through organisations such as SIDA so the new focus on Africa as an investment location marks a paradigm shift in how they will interface and engage with Africa, going forward.  I am a strong believer in letting the private sector flourish.  It is a win-win situation: Africa offers investors the highest returns anywhere in the world and in turn, Africa is better off for the investment be it in infrastructure or telecoms on condition, though, that the deal is well negotiated.   While at the Bank, we learnt of the Africa Legal Facility so in my dealings with foreign investors, I will be sure to refer the African parties to this facility for assistance.

I also sit on two boards: New Faces New Voices and the African Leadership Institute (AfLI). While Africa is making gains, I am convinced that development could be even more accelerated by involving more women and more young people.  As an AfLI board member, I am committed to the institute’s vision of developing a critical mass of young African leaders while NFNV, under the leadership and patronage of Mrs Graca Machel, advocates for innovatively investing in African women so that they are financially empowered to meaningfully contribute to the sustainable development of Africa.  NFNV is grateful to the Bank as a key partner in its efforts.

Sitting in front of Zimbabwe, President Robert Mugabe

Zimbabwe Deputy Prime Minister, Dr. Arthur Mutambara & Dr. Jackie Chimhanzi

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How Much Are We Loving JACKIE!

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Holla back & let us know what you think!

Love ya for it!

Source: Destiny Magazine

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Chris Brown who’s latest album F.A.M.E is now out in stores, was invited for an interview and performance on “Good Morning America” hosted by Robin Roberts. From what I read and from what was mostly reported by TMZ, the singer was pushed to the limit and couldn’t take anymore!!!

All this is in reference to his interview conducted by Ms Roberts. According to Breezy’s management, they spoke to the producers of the show prior to the nterview and had agreed that no questions would be asked concerning the event that took place between him and ex-girlfriend Rihanna. However, when the camera’s started rolling, that agreement was overlooked. Robin Roberts asked questions about the Riri saga and when Chris Brown tried to avoid getting deeper into the topic (which to me was understandable), Roberts continued, despite seeing that he was uncomfortable.

I don’t usually take sides in matters such as these but I was very disturbed by the manner in which the interview was conducted. I thought that a show that was supposed to be a platform for the singer to promote his new album, look and image (As a changed persom who has learned from his mistakes), was abused and deliberately used to attack the star. It’s reported that the singer left the building fuming after the interview and cancelled his second performance on the show…

It was obvious to see that they (the show) were looking for some sort of negative response from Chris brown. Hence I wasn’t surprised with sudden headlines such as “Does Chris Brown Need Anger Management?”. Sure he may have taken it a bit too far by busting the window of his dressing room at the shows studio and ripping off his shirt, causing a huge scene in full view of the media but my question and main concern is “did they have to push him to that point?”.

Chris Brown has revealed that he is taking anger management classes before and has acknowledged that he has an anger problem, so the “anger” issue in essence was not the main issue. I have a problem with the media when it abuses its powers to control and attack the innocent (not saying Chris is completely innocent) and producing false/biased information to the public. From that incident alome GMA painted a picture of Chris Brown that said “he is not a changed man, is not ready to release an album yet and that he has huge issues with controlling his anger”.

In the past few months I’ve read numerous interviews on Rihanna in which she slightly taked about the incident. She on the other hand was respected when she did not want to comment or talk about the issue anymore. one or two line from her about her progress after Chris Brown etc, was more than enough. Hence I find it hard to understand why s few sentences from Chris Brown or nothing at all is not enough for the media to live by.

I personally feel like, he is being punished beyond measure for his mistakes which he fully acknowledges and says he has learned from. Why keep bringing the subject up in every interview? I believe Chris is now trying to rebuild and regroup himself as an artist and person and such negativity especially from the media will only push him backwards.

Well it’s a good thing that the star isn’t letting much of this affect his career which seems to be on a high yet again. His F.A.M.E album is already number 1 on iTunes and the reception from his fans is positive.

images: PacificCoastNews.com

From your girl Allegro Dinkwanyane-”I’m just saying”, so have your say…

What are your views on this issue? Was Chris Brown wrong/right or did the show take it a bit too far?