With her infectious smile, mischievously sparkling eyes and endearing laugh – what’s not to like about television presenter Nonhle Thema? She arrives at our interview clad in sexy black knee-high boots, body-hugging leather pants, a black biker jacket and dark Louis Vuitton aviator shades, looking every inch the edgy and fashionable star that she is.
“Hi I’m Nonhle,” she says as she gives me a warm hug and flashes that dazzling cheeky smile.
“I’m starving!” She looks around for the waiter at Bottega on the Fourth Avenue strip in Parkhurst.
“I’m having quite a hectic day,” she ’fesses, “but I’m not complaining though. God has been so good to me. I feel blessed every day to do what I love and am passionate about and get paid for it.”
Gosh, but the lady can talk, I think to myself. And she seems to be reading my mind. “Yeah, I know, it’s barely been two minutes,” she says, giggling. “You haven’t asked me a single question, and I’m already telling you my life story!”
Her bubbly personality just draws you in, and beyond the chit-chat, Nonhle has an earnest side, luckily balanced with an easy-going attitude.
As she sips she chats effortlessly about herself and her drive for life. This is one girl who is comfortable in her own skin. She knows exactly what she wants and how to get it. It must have been this determination and focus that’s propelled her to become one of the most successful young stars in the local entertainment industry. And what’s more, at the tender age of 28, she’s living a jet-set life about which most of us can only dream.
Destined for big things
Entertainment is in her blood. “I have very talented parents,” she tells me. Her mother, Cynthia Shange, is an actress and was the first black beauty queen allowed to enter the Miss World pageant way back in 1972.
Her dad, Derick Thema, was a journalist and writer, of the book Kortboy: A Sophiatown Legend among other works.
Nonhle’s clearly very proud of her mom and her attempts to pave the way for young black women in the entertainment industry. “She’s my rock, my strength and my biggest inspiration,” Nonhle says, still gushing. “I want to be just as phenomenal as her.”
She idolised her mother to such an extent that she also entered beauty competitions, but she soon realised it might have been her mother’s passion, but it’s certainly not hers. “You can’t succeed in anything if it’s not your destiny,” she says, all philosophically.
“Honestly? My career chose me,” she says. “Since I was a young girl, I was always into music. I always knew I wanted to work there. Thank goodness God had the same plan!”
But her family ties weren’t enough to make her road to fame a smooth one. She’s had to put in loads of hard work. “It hasn’t been easy,” she explains. “I’ve always had to work hard to prove myself and to show that I’m not just a pretty face, that I’m smart and driven as well.” And she’s acutely aware just how fleeting stars are in this fast-paced world of ours. “It’s a constant race,” she says. “The next best thing or ‘It’ girl is always around the corner. I’m constantly on my toes, making sure I remain relevant and on top of my game.”
Of big breaks and beauty brands
After years of doing TV advertisements and voice-overs and landing short acting roles, Nonhle got her first big break at age 20 when she landed a video jockey (or VJ) spot on Channel O. She got to jet all over the globe to interview celebrities and experience the high life. Her talent didn’t go unrecognised for long though, and she was soon picked up by Vuzu.tv, a cross-media network that also includes a television channel. She now hosts V Entertainment on Vuzu.
“I felt I had to leave the room while everyone was still there,” she says of her move from Channel O to Vuzu. She sees it as a stepping stone to even-bigger things. One of these has been the founding of her own production company, Nonhle Thema Productions. The company has just shot its first-ever video, of the track Fairytale by local band Liquid Deep.
She’s also been appointed as global brand ambassador and spokesperson for international ethnic hair-care brand Dark and Lovely, and she has big shoes to fill since she took over the torch from Grammy-award-winning American artist and actress Kelly Rowland.
Her face can now be seen on billboards, magazine spreads and TV advertisements in America, Africa, Europe and Asia.
She says this brand ambassadorship has been the highlight of her career.
But she admits to still occasionally feeling out of her depth in the fame game. “I honestly still can’t wrap my head around my success,” she says. “The other day I saw a big billboard of myself, and I was so overwhelmed.”
Keeping grounded
Seeing your own face blown up larger than life on one of Jozi’s biggest buildings must let it sink in that you’ve pretty much got it made. And it must be quite hard not to let your head get as big as the picture on the billboard. So how does Nonhle manage that? By remembering her roots, praying often and listening to good vibes.
“I’m still the same girl I was when I was 20 and entering the industry,” she says, reflecting that “this is an industry that can strip you of who you are. I maintain my sense of self through prayer, meditation and listening to good music. You need a spiritual core to survive in such an industry. The more I climb the career ladder, there more I fear life, and the closer I get to God.”
And when she needs advice, she turns to mom: “My mother is my anchor. Whenever I start getting ahead of myself, she’s there to tell me to calm down, to not get hung-up and to just focus on what’s important.”
One of the things that are important to her is sharing her own life lessons with others – specifically with young women around the country who need positive role-models. When she’s not busy shooting for television or for Dark and Lovely, you’ll find her headlining motivational seminars at schools and universities around the country through the Nonhle’s Angels programme that she founded in 2007.
Living and loving Jozi
She was born in Durbs but moved to Jozi to live with her dad in Meadowlands, Soweto, when she was still a girl. So one could practically say she’s a born and bred Joburger. And she loves the City of Gold.
“There is no place like it,” she says. “I love the hustle and mad rush of the entertainment industry and the fact that I’m in the hub of things. Dreams are made in this city. This place inspires me to do better and be better.”
Her favourite hang-outs include Parkhurst (I suggested we meet at Bottega, but there was no objection from her side), Cubaña on Cedar Square and Ghirardellis on the Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton. “They have the best pepperoni pizza at Ghirardellis,” she says.
What’s in store?
Nonhle shows no shortage of ambition. “I want to create my own make-up, clothing and perfume lines, and I also want to continue with my humanitarian work,” she answers when I ask what her aspirations are for the future. “Oh, and I’m also working on a TV show that will come out next year. Nonhle Thema Productions will be producing it. I can’t go into details. All is still hush-hush for now. But ultimately as I near 30, I’d love to settle down, have kids and get married.”
I ask her for some words of advice for aspiring young entrepreneurs. “Don’t ask yourself what the world needs,” she recommends. “Rather ask yourself what it is that makes you come alive. And then go out there and make it happen. The world needs more people that come alive.”