Cape Town - TikTok has become part of many people’s daily schedule. The short-form content makes it so much easier to both consume and become addicted to.
It’s so easy to spend hours on the app because watching short videos makes you think you’ve only spent a few minutes. We’ve rounded up our top five local creators who grew to fame and gained the love, and sometimes ire, of many followers this year.
Cedric Laguma (@cedriclaguma)
Known as Uncle Cedric to many, Laguma’s videos started out reminiscing on his childhood days. Laguma, who now has 137 000 followers, with his content gaining 2.4 million likes, has been a fan favourite since day one. He’s known for keeping it real with advice only an uncle can give. In more recent months, he has started sharing small businesses that the public can support, along with job and studying opportunities. Laguma’s wife, Viona, and their three sons often feature in his videos and his followers gain an insight into his family life. His followers have always been able to rely on him for keeping it real about anything and everything. Many have said that they appreciate Uncle Cedric because they've always been able to relate to him and his stories about his life. He’s motivated many and hundreds of thousands wait in anticipation each day for his new video. In learning how to monetise his digital platforms in his personal life, he’s started paying it forward by teaching other creatives to do the same. Laguma coaches a media team of creatives and teaches them how to monetise their viewership.
Jessica Mashaba (@jessicamashaba20)
This dancer blew up on TikTok this year for her slick moves that she pulls off with ease. Whether it’s following a dance challenge on the app, or creating her own, Mashaba has always made it look effortless. She grew to fame and reached 2.3 million followers on the app this year, with her content gaining 60.9 million likes. Mashaba’s online presence has landed her multiple brand deals. Her success has sky-rocketed and in October, Mashaba opened up her own nightclub in Long Street, Cape Town, called Infinity Lounge. The venue has since hosted events and birthday parties for many of Cape Town’s influencers and celebrities. Before opening the nightclub, Mashaba also started a small business called Versatile Thrifting, where she would up-cycle blazers into two-piece sets with a top and a skirt. Even though her nightclub keeps her busy, the small business and her TikTok account are still things she makes time for.
Wade Cloete (@wade.cloete)
Wade Cloete has dedicated most of his TikTok account to acting out various scenarios using real-life sound clips from Parliament officials in South Africa. His name and account have since become synonymous with the term “honourable member”. Cloete’s acting skills have led to him growing his following to 127 000 with his content gaining 2.6 million likes. Known for always enjoying an alcoholic beverage in some of his videos, Cloete has also tapped into stories and memories many South Africans share around drinking at parties and gatherings. Cloete’s luxe lifestyle, seen driving fancy cars and living it up, has gained admiration from many women, often trying to find out if he’s single or taken. Lastly, his peak caps and bucket hats always effortlessly match his outfit for the day. Cloete has always engaged with his followers on the app and often meets up with other creators too.
Ismaeel Bagus (@ismaeel.bagus)
Ismaeel Bagus’ fashion sense is so elevated that if he were to walk into a room, you wouldn’t be able to stop yourself from doing a double-take. Everything about how Bagus dresses looks and feels luxe. At only 19, this fashion creator has already bagged brand deals with big companies like H&M, Superbalist and LG. Aside from sharing his outfit of the day, he also shares tips and tricks for how to elevate your wardrobe. Bagus has also put many of his followers on to where he shops and how they can recreate his style. Although he is an intern at a travel agency in the daytime, working on fashion campaigns comes naturally. Not being shy of talents, Bagus also does photography in his spare time and often goes for a more editorial format of shooting others or even himself. With the style and photography duo, we cannot wait to see what he has in store for us in 2022.
Mishkah van der Schyff (@mishkahv)
Mishkah is a South African woman who married an Italian man and now resides in Italy. She met her husband as a flight attendant for Qatar Airways. A lot of her content is about nostalgia she has relating to growing up as a Muslim in Cape Town. The other part of her content looks at her life in Italy and what that is like for her as a coloured person in a foreign country. Van Der Schyff also touches on the coloured-isms she grew up with and how she misses using them in Italy. Many of her followers have often asked her to ask her husband to announce South African profanities, some of which he happily obliged to. Her content on the app has gained 152 000 followers and 2.3 million likes. When Van der Schyff is in Cape Town, she films videos featuring her family and shares her encounters with her followers.
Weekend Argus