Getting to know the entrepreneur and radio presenter: Naledi Moleo
Amidst the sound of people chatting as well as dishes being served at Tashas in Hyde Park, Naledi Moleo's voice projects through, confirming her confidence in herself and her passion in what she does and believes in.
Listening to Naledi describe herself as someone from all parts of society who wants to educate others and encourage them to speak up about issues, one would definitely feel inspired.
What stood out for me the most, was her humility with regards to her awards and nominations for the shows that she has worked on:
Naledi says, "Awards are important as they affirm that you are doing a good job but I hope that my award and nominations are because I'm producing good quality content and it should not be just because a show is popular."
Before delving into her current shows on SAFM, we at iloveza.com were curious about her Entrepreneurial Role, and I (Nabihah - iloveza.com) asked Naledi a few questions around it.
Nabihah: Please tell us about your company.
Naledi: My company - Le Laka Media - has done a lot of work with the Government where we facilitate events and conferences for them, as well as compile reports. My business partners are also my producers (from SAFM) because we have found that we work so well together.
Nabihah: Is Le Laka Media mainly Government related?
Naledi: A lot of the work has been through facilitating Government events as well as consolidating of reports for the events.
We'd like to assist the media strategy in Government, because we've noticed that the Government officials are unaware of how to communicate with the media. I don't believe that they're bad, at times, they just need help to communicate their work in order to improve. We would like to get them to comfortably speak to the media to get their messages across about the programs that they're working on because everyone seems to think that the Government isn't really doing anything for this country because when they are working on programs, they aren't communicating what they are doing, they are busy defending their work and it is very easy for us to have a negative outlook on leadership in this country if all they seem to do is defend what isn't working.
That is an interesting point. Communication is always the key and as females, we do know the power of communication!
Nabihah: Speaking of being a Female Entrepreneur, do you find it easier to work with other females or is there competition amongst each other?
Naledi: I believe that everyone does compete, it's natural, there is nothing wrong with competition. But once there is an opportunity to collaborate with one another, with other females, we are there.
It is much easier to work with females. We are more open to collaborate with each other and supportive of each other and one such relationship that I have (with another female-run business) is with Green Queen Communications, where we are open and honest in our dealings.
With those kind words, let's find out what else Naledi is passionate about.
Nabihah: Is there something that you are currently working on?
Naledi: The Talk Shop on SAFM from Mondays to Thursday from 7- 9 in the evenings is my biggest responsibility at the moment; as it is the prime slot where people who really care about what's happening in the country listen in and generally want to be around the radio at that time. They're more relaxed at home and want to think critically about where we're going as a country and want to hear what all the critics are saying. This is a show about nation building and getting people to talk about what hurts us and angers us as well as what we love most about this country and what we need to fix as soon as possible.
Nabihah: What about The Mash-Up on Saturday nights on SAFM?
Naledi: The Mash-up is really my piece of chocolate cake! Because Mondays to Thursdays is such heavy content, since we are such an emotionally-fuelled country, Saturday nights (with my poetry and music) this is my release. Something I enjoy and reflect on.
Nabihah: The Mash-Up is artists coming together to sing and do poetry, How did this come about?
Naledi: I'm obsessed with poetry. I love poetry because we are able to talk about how we feel about things. Poets are able to say what they want and everyone forgives them because it is art.
So when the gap came in the station for another show, I took the dive.
I worked with a brilliant producer, Monique Stander, and with her we've been able to get some of the best producers, musicians and poets to come together with an interesting process.
We get the poet and musicians who, most of the time have never met and they're supposed to jam on air, and they don't have the time to prepare.
The musician has to play or perform something that works with the poetry or what the poet is doing on air and the beauty of it, is that the poet and musician has to come and be vulnerable because they have to hand themselves over to this very difficult process.
But at the end of this, at 9pm, they are so completely proud of themselves because they have done something they never thought that they would do, and a lot of the times have spoken about collaboration after the show which is good, because we need more honest artistic content in this country.
Nabihah: How do you find these artists?
Naledi: There is a belief that there aren't many poets around but in fact there are many, they're are just not known. I believe that they're almost like a secret society so once you've found one, you open up the floodgates and you start to find this entire world of poets. Every single week, there is a brand new poet and a lot of the time, we've only been able to cover Johannesburg. There is still a whole community of poets in all parts of South Africa, they just need a platform and we would love to be able to feature them.
Nabihah: So in your opinion, Who are the artists whom we should look out for?
Naledi:
- Makhafula Vilakazi - he has this beautiful raw poetry
- The sexy and smooth Donald Mokgale - who is also known as the Neosapien
- Koleka Putuma- she has written an anthology called Collective Amnesia
- Sizakele Phohleli - on Instagram she is known as Her mentality and she writes a bit of poetry in each post.
Nabihah: Is there anyone who has inspired you or led you to poetry?
Naledi: Lebo Mashile has definitely been my introduction to poetry.
Someone who has a passion for poetry, but wants to educate and empower others, Naledi Moleo has us intrigued and we just had to ask this question....
Nabihah: Where to from here or what would you like to achieve in life?
Naledi: I'd like to stay in radio because I feel that radio is the one space in media where age doesn't matter; where there are proven examples of personalities who've actually gotten better with age. It's also the medium where I can best teach people how to communicate better with the media.
Naledi: What would I like to achieve in my life?
I'd like to be content with myself, that is the most important thing in life.
Nabihah: What or when are your best moments in life?
Naledi: When I'm hiking! I am an "outdoors" type of person, because it is a great place to be yourself.
I love to drive far away from the city and just unplug. It is the best feeling at the end of a hike, when your feet are killing you and you dig your toes in the sand after walking 15km or more, it is something to be proud of.
Nabihah: On that note, please let our Readers in on your opinions of great places to hike or places described as Hidden Gems, in South Africa?
Naledi:
1. In Mpumalanga, there is a place called Bermanzi which is a beautiful hiking spot set with the lush greens of Mpumalanga as well as surrounded by the beautiful waterfalls.
2. Not many people know about this, but in the middle of Johannesburg, there is a Reserve that has game in it, it is near Greenstone. It's called the Modderfontein Game Reserve.
3. Further up from the Kruger National Park, theres a point that's absolutely amazing to go to, it's almost near the borders of South Africa, Zimbabwe and Swaziland - so it's also an easy way to get your passport stamped!
