Abongile Tabata, popularly known as Ribo, was born in Gqeberha. He relocated to Cape Town for a short period before returning home. This passionate 26 year old is currently employed as a bar tender whilst studying part time for a Diploma in software development at Damelin.
Abongile, a fitness enthusiast, participated and won the Mr Body Beautiful 2023 Eastern Cape pageant title which was held at the Tramways building on 07 December. He entered this pageant because he wants to inspire men to live a fit and healthy lifestyle whilst being a mentor to the youth. Together with the Mr Body Beautiful Non-Profit Organisation, he will pursue his dream of educating the youth about fitness and nutrition whilst speaking out on peer pressure. Peer pressure is a catalyst in mental health, substance abuse and teen suicide. He is a professional fitness model and has had an acting role in Gqeberha The Empire television series.
This insightful and humble young man will be participating in the Mister International South Africa to be held in Gqeberha in 2024.
Daniel Olatunji is one step closer in being coronated as the reigning Mister Ideal Nigeria.This comes after last week,when he was coronated as Mister Ideal Abuja.In an exclusive interview he shares his experience during the show and what it means being titled,Mister Ideal Abuja.He further elaborates what people should expect from him.
Q.Congratulations in winning Mister Ideal Abuja.Can you introduce yourself to the readers by telling us your bio?A.I’m Daniel Olatunji, 23 years old, From Ekiti State, I’m a final year student of Statistics in Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti
Q.Why did you ventured into Modeling why this pageant?A.I ventured into the Mr Ideal Pageant because I have always had the passion to walk on stage, to prove to people that I don’t just have the ideal body but always the ideal mindset of a competitor
Q.what was your favourite part about the pageant Mister Ideal Abuja Nigeria?A.my favorite part about the pageant I’ll say was during the camp, meeting and connecting with different people from different places, with multiple mindsets & sharing ideas, this made me more enlightened in some areas I had no idea about
Q.what did you learnt about yourself during the pageant ?A.I learnt how competitive I could be when it comes to something I love, this is my first time competing for something like this and I am so motivated to take it to the next step
Q.Given an opportunity to go back to the pageant what would you have changed?A.I don’t think I’d change anything going back to the pageant cause I mean I came out the winner lol, and that’s perfect
Q.Now that you will be representing your state at Mister Ideal Nigeria what should we expect from you?A.Expect Changes in the management, expect good representation, good leadership skills and more
Q Was there any chance during the pageant that you thought of giving up and why?A.There was no time at all I felt like giving up, even if there were times I felt I had strong opponents
Q.Who inspired your journey ?A.Well aside from the management advices earlier to try competing in the pageant because they felt I had a shot, like I said earlier I’ve always liked to walk on stage it’s a time where I have the opportunity to express myself with what I like to do, that is showing the full qualities of an ideal man
Q.Why do you think you should be Mister Ideal Nigeria now?A. I think I should be Mr ideal Nigeria because so far I got what it takes, I’m Smart, Open to learning and working with business minded people, I don’t just have the body but also the brains and the looks, and I’m pretty sure that’s the most quality of an Ideal man
Q.Lastly what is next for you aside Mister Ideal Nigeria ?A. Next for me is to round up with school and fully face my passion in life in the entertainment industry
Mzolisi Mtshayisa,is among Bulawayo Models who are nominated at the 2nd edition of the Bulawayo Models Awards.In a dialogue with him,he explains what it means being nominated in three categories. He further informs what it will mean to win the three gongs after his nomination.
Q.What does it mean being nominated at Bulawayo Models Awards?A.It really means a lot, I’m honored and motivated to see that my hard work as a model has been noticed. And honestly I wasn’t expecting all these nominations it really caught me off guard but I’m very much grateful.
Q.Take us to the categories you are nominated in?A.Most Photogenic- my shoots have caught the eye of many, and I have my photographer to thank for bringing my ideas to life
Outstanding Newcomer- even though I’m rather still fresh and new in this industry, I’m already being noticed and I’m doubling quite well in building a name for myself.
Outstanding teenage model- I find this one very interesting as I am the only male nominated in this category. It’s such an honor to see that I came out Outstanding amongst all teens, which comes to show that, hard work really pays
Q.Winning the gongs?A.This will challenge me to be a better model than I am today as I know that people will now be more interested to see what more can I bring to the industry.
What type of an underwear are you wearing,what is the name of it’s brand and how comfortable is it.Those are the main questions asked by every men before they purchase any underwear.South Africa’s entrepreneur, Kwanele Finch Thusi is set to launch an underwear line,which is under his name ‘Finch’. Below is our conversation with him as he explains more about the brand and the launch.
Q.What does it mean to you to start a new underwear range? A It is such a great inspiration and investment to work with many designers as a model and tv personality and a lot of my fans have been wanting me to put out something with my name on it. It’s a scary feeling because I hate to fail at anything, so this is my greatest challenge and I am destined to win
Q.Last year you toured Europe, is the brand going to available Internationally A.Yes, our limited products are available for international shipping through EBay and Paystack.
Q.Tell us about the other work you are doing? A.The new year promises to be exciting, we will doing more screen work and right now I am just happy releasing content and working in my creative capacity.
Q.How will you encourage young people to achieve success in their careers ? A.I hope that my work that i do will inspire everyone to be the best they can be. I am only doing the best I can right now and I am happy I am finally being accepted for being myself
Q.What type of material are you using for you product and why that material? A.Both the swimwear, Underwear and Sport wear range uses spandex and nylon material.
Q What makes your products different/unique from other underwear lines? A.Using both spandex and nylon is breathable and is able to fit any body type.
Q.When is the launch date and where will you be launching ? A.We have shown the underwear on social already and not the sports wear range. Our launch is next year March in Sandton.
Q.There are different types of underwear for men which ones is your brand focusing on and why? A.We are considering boxers and v line underwear, our products need to cater to both men and women and non binary
Q.Your line is being established in Africa which is a conservative continent,what type of response are you hoping to get from your clientele especially in Africa? A.Fortunately I have made a lot of networks internationally which is where the line would be mostly sold. Our country is battling with a lot right now and maybe this can boost our morale
Deriving from the majestic city of Victoria falls,where it’s not mainly dominated by the arts industry however by the tourism sector.
One of the residents in the city of Victoria Falls who has adopted a new name,’History Maker’ is Mister Africa International 1st runner up,Future Nyoni.
The award winning model,had flew the country’s flag high when he became the first Zimbabwean to reach the top two position of Mister Africa International pageant which was held online this year in October.
During the Mister Africa International pageant,Future Nyoni was nominated in five of the six categories during the preliminaries. He was however awarded two medals during the pageant,Best Suit Gentleman and the 1st runner up title.
Last week Saturday,Nyoni was nominated at the Bulawayo Models Awards in at least three categories. These being: Outstanding Runway Model,Best Pageant Model and Model of the year Award.
Future Nyoni became the first model from the Victoria Falls City to be nominated in the awards, since they were introduced last year.
The multi-award winning model wears a number of hats in his modeling career aside of being,Mister Africa International first runner up. His also the reigning Mister Senior Zimbabwe.
This season he managed to cross the borders of the country where he managed to rub shoulders and network with prominent fashion players. As he participated in runway fashion shows in Malawi and South Africa (Beautiful African show and Awards and Global African Fashion Coalition)
Future is also prominently known for being an advocate for a safe and clean environment for both humans and animals.
Mister Africa International 1st runner,believes that if he wins the three gongs it will be the greatest recognition for his hometown and hard work also it will be an inspiration to both upcoming models and those who want to venture in the industry .
“Its going to be a big challenge to me as the most nominated male model,as I don’t know what will happen at the event.However I feel honoured and grateful for the nomination…,”Trevor Nhidza.
After the announcement of who was in the nominated at the Bulawayo Models Awards,it turned out that ,the multi-title holder Trevor Nhidza is the most nominated male model. He is nominated in at least four categories these being:Outstanding project of the year;Model of the year;Best Pageant Model; Outstanding Male Model.
Mr Nhidza informed that as the most nominated male model in most categories at the Bulawayo Models Awards,it has turned out to be an encouragement to him to work hard within his modeling career. Nhidza who is currently an advocate for the disability,he stated that his dedicating his nomination to those who look upon him in the disability community.
“If I will all the awards the people I advocate for will definitely be happy for my performance,”said Trevor
Trevor added,that the year 2023 has been his year.As he has managed to win a number of titles such as Mr Glamour 2023;Mister Zim International etc.
The second edition of Bulawayo Models Awards organisers have revealed their nominees.The organisers added a number of categories,these : Outstanding Performing Artist; Outstanding media House/Journalist;Most Supportive Company/Brand. Voting process will be opened on the 6th of December
*BYO MODELS AWARDS* 2023 NOMINEES LIST
1.Outstanding Performing Artist -Elbee -Major Prodi -Noluntu Jay -Bashupi -Ras Taken -Megatronz
2.Outstanding videographer -Pasha Cardinal -George shot it -king media -Cnc media
3.Outstanding pageant director -lshmael Murangandi (Mr Zim international) -Pamela (Miss Teen Universe) -Jemmima Mandemwa (Miss Teen intellect) -Joanna Mandemwa (Planet pageants and Miss Super globe) -Petronella Peresu Moyo (Miss Ecoutorism)
4.Outstanding MC -Tafadzwa -Caleb Slay Pastor -Roselyn Musekiwa -Tanaka Moyo
5.Most supportive company -Fazak -Turnonbrooke -Gold and Globe
6.Outstanding influencer -Prudence Ndlovu (Prue) -Tyflyn -Lyra Botsi Noko -Brayden
With at least few hours left for the Bulawayo Models Awards to reveal who this year’s nominees are.
The pageant sector of the province, this year was well represented both local,regional and international by the provinces’ models. With some of them managed to break records by winning titles on behalf of the Matabeleland region. Our top four of some of the pageant kings who made it to our line up for this year’s season 2023/24:
•Zibusiso Gatsha (Little Mr Zim 23/Junior Model Zim 2022)
•Sasha Donovan(Mr Exceptional International 2022)
•Future Nyoni (Mister Africa International 1st runner up)
•Trevor Nhidza (Mister Zimbabwe International 2023/Mr Glamour Zim 1st runner up
WORLD OF FASHION & MODELLING 