Baby Fresh on the way

The couple is expecting their third child together and Sikwane is back on the airwaves.

“I’m very excited about this year,” she says with a smile. “I feel I’m in the right space for a baby and a new radio show.”

FILE PICTURE: DJ Fresh and his wife Thabiso Sikwane. (Photo by Gallo Images/You Huisgenoot)

Sikwane was approached to be part of the original line-up of DJs when Power FM launched in 2013, but wasn’t available to take on a full show.

“The timing wasn’t right for me and I also wasn’t willing to do any radio work after 3pm,” she says. “Part of what makes it easy for my husband and I to manage our family is that we work at different times.” DJ Fresh hosts the breakfast show on Five FM.

Sikwane has always been a firm believer in putting her family first. In fact, her family was the reason she took a break from radio about two years ago.

“Leaving radio to spend time with my family was a personal choice. I didn’t grow up with my parents; I never saw them as much as I wanted to, so I felt I wanted to give my children the experience I never had.

“But anyone who has ever been on radio will tell you once you get on the airwaves, you never really leave.”

ON AIR. Thabiso Sikwane is the new host of Power FM’s Power Lunch. Picture: Nigel Sibanda

As the new host of Power FM’s Power Lunch, Sikwane hopes to bring a different energy to the show, previously hosted by Azania Mosaka.

“I want a lot more music, laughter and cooking on the show. And not just quick recipes – real recipes that people at home can follow and enjoy,” she says. ” I want it to have a much stronger CSI (Corporate Social Investment) component to it.”

Speaking on filling Mosaka’s shoes, she says there is no pressure to be anything other than the best she can be.

“In the few years I’ve been away from radio a lot of things have changed. I can’t say ‘I’ve been on radio for sixteen years, therefore I know everything’. Adapting to new ways of engaging listeners is a challenge I’m really excited about.

“I’m a big fan of Aza [Azania Mosaka], but I’m not trying to be her. I just want to establish a different relationship with the listeners and put my own stamp on the show.”

Even though Power FM has been in the news for all of the wrong reasons lately (cash flow problems and contractual disagreements with DJs), Sikwane feels positive about her new job. “Radio DJs are freelancers and many are always being offered bigger and better opportunities. That a lot of DJs have left Power FM doesn’t necessarily mean there are any internal problems.”