Enthralling by nature: meet Andile Masuku
CRESTA – Ancillar Mangena had a chat with TV and radio personality Andile Masuku who has the alluring and elusive quality that makes him shine.
If there is any lesson learned from this 30-year-old TV and radio personality, it is that resilience is the best character trait any person can hold dear.
You may recognise this Cresta resident as the host of the e.tv reality television series It’s My Biz, or as the voice of Super Sport Africa.
While studying business at Helderberg College in Cape Town, Andile Masuku became fascinated by economics, business, psychology, consumer behaviour, sociology and music, but most of all, the world of media.
“I used to go on field trips with media students just to grow my interest. One field trip to Good Hope FM changed my life. When we were in a radio studio watching the DJ do his work, the DJ offered us to co-present a segment with him. No one wanted to do it and I was like, okay I am not part of this class, but I will do it. I sat down and enjoyed every moment.”
Masuku added that for the rest of that field trip he was pretending to be lost.
“I went to different offices and I said ‘Excuse me, I’m a bit lost. I am on a field trip but you know I am trying to get into radio and voice-over work, can you give me a number that I can call’. By the time I left I had five numbers,” he said.
Through determination and never letting his gut down, Masuku is today one of the media personalities to be reckoned with.
He has charisma, an aura of personality that draws people in and holds their rapt attention.
Some will say he has the X-factor that sets him above the fold.
After graduating he worked as a teacher in Johannesburg, then worked in the fashion industry and he now owns a consulting business.
He has also appeared in a number of TV commercials for clients such as Debonairs Pizza, OLX, Edgars and Budget Insurance.
“The advert that made me a household name was the Frisco advert. Everywhere I went people would scream out the advert. It took a lot of providence to be where I am. All the best parts of my career have nothing to do with anything I did, I just had to stick around long enough and God just opens doors when he sees fit.”
Masuku said he chose not to pursue the traditional media career paths such as broadcast journalism because he wants to build his own voice using new technology such as social media.
“I believe the future of journalism belongs to content producers who have a following. Facebook and Twitter are not just for fun but a platform to build yourself as a brand.”
Masuku currently works as a news Anchor at Hot 919 FM and his day is also filled by voice-over work and building his business.
