230. The Phenomenon of The Soft Life

The Phenomenon of ‘the soft life’ has taken the country by storm finding most of its expression on mainly social media. It is about the glaring ‘need’ for young women to be financially taken care of by a man. In this episode I am in conversation with Lebohang Masango author of the book Soft Life about exactly what this phenomenon is about.  We cover some of the stories of the characters in her book and how no matter how different they are they all seem to gravitate towards a soft life that is provided for by a man predominately but also how they strive to provide the very soft life for themselves. 

 

Bio

 

Lebohang Masango earned her Master of Arts degree in Social Anthropology from the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa. She is a writer and an award-winning poet. She is also the award-winning author of children’s book, M_p_u_m_i_’s_ _M_a_g_i_c_ _B_e_a_d_s_ _(David Philip, 2018), which is available in all 11 of South Africa’s official languages. The book has been awarded the 2018 South African Independent Publishers Award for Children’s Books, 2019 South African Literary Award for Children’s Literature, the 2019 Exclusive Books IBBY SA Award for Best Writer and a 2020 gold Pandering Advertising Award in the Publication Design – Whole Publication category. She has co-authored G_r_o_w_ _t_o_ _B_e_ _G_r_e_a_t_:_ _A_w_e_s_o_m_e_ _A_f_r_i_c_a_n_ _A_c_h_i_e_v_e_r_s_ _with Dr Judy Dlamini (Sifiso Publishers, 2020) and M_p_u_m_i_ _a_n_d_ _J_a_b_u_’s_ _M_a_g_i_c_a_l_ _D_a_y_ _(David Philip, 2020) with Professor Claudine Storbeck, the Director for the Centre for Deaf Studies at the University of the Witwatersrand and it has been awarded a 2021 silver Pendoring Advertising Award in the Publication Design – Whole Publication category. She has written N_a_n_a_n_a_ _B_o_s_e_l_e_s_e_l_e_ _for Wimpy and Ethnikids’ ‘Our Stories, Your Language’ campaign, co-authored O_ _Šo_m_i_l_e_,_ _K_o_l_o_b_e_ _Y_a_ _D_i_t_šh_i_l_a_ _for Save the Children (SA) in 2020 and written T_h_e_ _G_r_e_a_t_ _C_a_k_e_ _C_o_n_t_e_s_t_ _as part of the voluntary literacy initiative Book Dash in 2018.

As an Anthropologist, Lebohang is published in C_o_n_n_e_c_t_e_d_ _L_i_v_e_s_:_ _F_a_m_i_l_i_e_s_,_ _H_o_u_s_e_h_o_l_d_s_,_ _H_e_a_l_t_h_ _a_n_d_ _C_a_r_e_ _i_n_ _C_o_n_t_e_m_p_o_r_a_r_y_ _S_o_u_t_h_ _A_f_r_i_c_a_, edited by Nolwazi Mkhwanazi and Lenore Manderson (HSRC Press, 2020) and A_n_x_i_o_u_s_ _J_o_b_u_r_g_:_ _T_h_e_ _I_n_n_e_r_ _L_i_v_e_s_ _o_f_ _a_ _G_l_o_b_a_l_ _S_o_u_t_h_ _C_i_t_y_ _edited by Nicky Falkof and Cobus van Staden (Wits Univeristy Press, 2020). In 2021, the South African Reserve Bank commissioned Lebohang to write “A Purposeful Journey”, a poem for their centenary. She is published in Y_e_a_r_s_ _o_f_ _F_i_r_e_ _a_n_d_ _A_s_h_:_ _S_o_u_t_h_ _A_f_r_i_c_a_n_ _P_o_e_m_s_ _o_f_ _D_e_c_o_l_o_n_i_s_a_t_i_o_n_ _(Jonathan Ball, 2021) edited by Wamuwi Mbao and T_o_ _B_r_e_a_t_h_e_ _I_n_t_o_ _A_n_o_t_h_e_r_ _V_o_i_c_e_ _(Real African Publishers, 2017), a Jazz poetry anthology edited by Myesha Jenkins. Her poetry, “Ten Thousand Stories” features in MutltiChoice/ DStv’s Most Loved Storyteller campaign and has won a gold Mama Africa Award and gold Best Image Promo Award at the Promax Africa Awards (2020).

Her poetry also features in Metropolitan’s “Freedom Matters” (2019) video and the Hip Hop song “Endurance” (2015) by Reason alongside the late, HHP. She has read her poetry in South Africa, Zimbabwe and the UK. Lebohang is the UNICEF Volunteer Program Advocate and an inaugural Zanele Mbeki Fellow in feminist leadership. With her immense passion for children’s literacy, Lebohang regularly hosts storytelling sessions in schools, bookshops, community libraries and virtually, due to the current Covid-19 pandemic. Lebohang was voted the second runner-up in the D_a_i_l_y_ _M_a_v_e_r_i_c_k_’s_ _Persons of the Year 2021: Youth Champion category. She is currently a PhD candidate.

Instagram @lebohangmasango

Twitter: @lebohangwrites

www.lebohangmasango.com

LinkedIn: Lebohang Masango

 

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