Kingslee ZW: Comedy As Social Commentary (2022)

The following episode was recorded on 1st April, 2022. 
 _ _

Kingsley Kaisi, better known by his stage name Kingslee ZW, is a Zimbabwean-born actor, scriptwriter, comedic skit maker, development practitioner and digital media consultant. Born 1st of February 1995, Kingsley’s parents grew up telling him African folktales that thereby sparked his creativity and love for acting and storytelling. His TikTok page features humorous short skits about daily lives of African families and his achievements from this page include that of brand endorsements from NGOs and corporate companies such as Econet, Nash Paints, Chicken Slice, just to name a few. Kingsley has 90k followers on his TikTok page @kingsleezw. In 2021, Kingslee starred in a JAC short film entitled ‘The Voices’ as its main protagonist.

Website: 

Instagram: www.instagram.com/kingslee_zw

Facebook: www.facebook.com/kingsleezw

YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/KingsleeZW

Book mentioned:
https://mudiwahood.net/shut-up-and-make-money/

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Chapters

• 3:57 Kingsley’s Origin Story
• 17:26 Favourite Childhood Memories
• 22:32 Being nominated for the NAMA Awards
• 26:27 Supporting Zimbabwean Arts

Transcript

Vongai: [00:00:00] Welcome to another episode of ZimExcellence today, my guest is an actor writer, comedic skit maker, development practitioner, and digital media consultant based in Harare. Growing up, his parents told him African folktales that sparked his creativity and love for acting and storytelling. His TikTok and Instagram accounts feature humorous yet sometimes educational short skits about the everyday lives of Zimbabwe families.

His rise in popularity on TikTok has led to brand endorsements and paid partnerships from NGOs and corporate companies, such as EcoNet, Nash Paints and Chicken Slice. At the time of recording this. He is currently over 100 K followers on the TikTok platform. So y'all he got all the tips. Most recently our [00:01:00] guests starred in the JAC short film titled 'The Voices' as the lead Beau. And he was nominated for a NAMA Award for the Best Social Media Skit. I got the real deal on the show today. Everyone please welcome Kingsley Kaisi AKA Kingslee ZW..

Kingsley: I so wish I really wish you were here to say that in front of my mom. Haha. She would've said what that's are you really explaining my son? Because this is too good to be true.

Vongai: Kingsley. It is so great to have you on the show. Y'all he is so hilarious. I don't find many Zimbabwean comedians funny, but I don't even know how I came across Kingsley. I think maybe I was like down a rabbit hole or I clicked one hashtag that led to some, I don't even know, but I just saw his skits and they [00:02:00] are so funny.

They have such a specificity about the characters so I can see my own relatives in the skits and the stuff that he does. And he also does this really interesting thing of then linking them to social justice causes in a way that's like educational. But anyway, we'll get into that in a bit. So Kingsley, you are ZimExcellence superhero and every superhero has their own origin story. So I'd like to know your origin story of how you started from point A to point B.

Kingsley: Yo, if we start, I don't think we'll finish, we might end up having to get pillows, pop corn and all those, because yo, the story is literally long, but I guess for a start, I'll just say that I have always been fascinated by storytelling. Storytelling has been something that I have been so fascinated by and I've also been [00:03:00] fascinated by just the aspect of showcasing, what I can do, especially when it comes to acting. So for me It all started in preschool. That's when I found my love for acting. 

 I was born in Chiredzi and then I grew up in Mutare, that's where I did my primary and I then finished my primary in Harare And then I went and I did my further studies in Bulawayo. So I'll say that I've lived basically in like different cities and I've had to interact with a different just different people, just being able to see vanhu and being able to interact with them. I actually can speak a little bit of ndebele. It's such a great thing to be able to speak another language, especially in your own country apart from just the Shona that I normally So yeah. That's just me in a nutshell. Yeah.

Vongai: [00:04:00] That's really dope. Like you probably know Zimbabwe more than the average Zimbabwean from living in those parts, like Eastern Highlands, Southern part of the country, Bulawayo Like that's amazing. .

Kingsley: Exactly. It has groomed me to understand the lives that people live in different areas of Zimbabwe. And I actually like appreciate the lifestyles that people actually live and the way that people interact together. And I guess that's where my love for just using my day to day life as my platform for my comedy comes from, so I'm really that observant. I can sit down and just observe people just interacting together and just it, it fascinates me. Yeah.

Vongai: Yeah, that's a whole talent. I feel like you're great at that. Someone that I could you'd be like the Zimbabwe version of Seinfeld. I guess because Seinfeld really nails that like [00:05:00] observational comedy. I have two questions for you. So one, you are actually in development that was, you're still doing it, but that was what you, the field you were in before being in digital consulting and these social media skits, what led you to development? And then what led you to say, oh, I'm gonna do these skits and post them on TikTok. We'll start with the development question first, if that's easier.

Kingsley: Okay. So I'd say initially I had intended to do accounting. That's something that I had wanted to do initially before I had chosen development then I got a little bit of experience in the accounting field through some friends and some family members who gave me a little bit of experience. And I just came to a point where I was like I think this is not really something that I would want to pursue as a career. [00:06:00] I would want something that would have meaning and something that would give hope to other people. And so that's where development came through, where I then said, no, I would want to do something that would give positive change in other people's lives. Whether it be it's me by my own initiative or is by working for an organization that strives towards that. So that's where I then went. And I did my my degree in development studies at Lupane state university. So in that whole studying and all that stuff, I got linked with different organizations that sought to bring change in people's lives. The first organization that I worked for was Active youth Zimbabwe, which was doing initiatives that tried to alleviate the aspect of drug abuse within Bulwayo so that whole experience and getting to meet children who are taking drugs youth who are [00:07:00] taking drugs and watching them recover through some of the initiatives that active youth brought about it actually cemented my love for the development field.

And I am now working with an organization called Mavambo Orphan Care, they have a lot of programs that they do to help children and to help you know, their caregivers. And it's such a great thing to be able to be part of an organization that tries to bring positive change in people's lives. And you actually see people's lives change. It's such a great thing to be able to be part of that change. Even though you're not the one who's forking out the money, but you're the one who is actually assisting in facilitating that change. It's such a great thing for me. That's one of the things that I have taken into my process and of course, skits now are now like my other side of it at the end of the day, that's something that I have always had a passion for. So it's something that I'm now using, of course, because a lot of young people watch my videos. [00:08:00] So it's now something that I'm now using to then bring light to some of the things that are bedeviling young people and even older people as well. So yeah, that's just it in a nutshell. Yeah.

Vongai: It is just so lovely to hear that side of you, because someone could easily find your videos and just assume oh, this is just, this guy's does like madrama.. Maskits like, he's not serious, but you actually have this big heart and this passion for helping people, which is wonderful.

 How did you come across tikTok. Was it like most other people in the middle of the pandemic? Or was it earlier around like 2018,2019 for when it first hit the scene? 

Kingsley: Truth be told TikTok came through but I never was so interested in TikTok before, but then what happened is I had been creating my own content on other platforms like Facebook YouTube, Instagram. [00:09:00] And some of my friends and some of the people that I knew were like you could actually do better on TikTok. Cause TikTok is now a growing platform. Why not try it? So I just created an account and then I started posting videos. And then what actually happened is I then thought what would be the best way for me to make engaging content on TikTok. So I just decided to upgrade the content that I was making and to be told, like people actually started enjoying it. And before long I started seeing positive change in the followers and I was now really shocked cause I wasn't expecting that much cuz come on. Are you enjoying this? But people were like, literally like people were like on their bellies were laughing and I was like, guys, are

Vongai: Literally like you have me cackling and it is so difficult for people to make me cackle the way you do that. I was like in his DMS, like [00:10:00] Kingsley, I need Kingsley on the podcast. And then his assistant was like, you can reach Kingsley here. And I was like, ah, he's an assistant. Ah, everyone's probably one and wanting Kingsley. Ah, I'm not gonna get Kingsley I wanted to. Ask about when you said you upgraded the content, what was the content that you were posting before

Kingsley: so before I would literally just post anything that was on my mind. It doesn't matter whether it has be a skit or just me sitting in front of a camera and just saying whatever's on my mind. But then when I went on TikTok, I then thought I would want to have a proper base of if I have characters, if I have the kind of angles that I'm using in posting and the way I'm editing has to change. And that's exactly what happened. I just changed the whole thing. And then I started putting out that content consistently and before long. Yeah. That's when people started chipping in and coming in and commenting and liking and sharing and yeah, that was [00:11:00] just about it.

Vongai: Mm That's really dope for people who are unfamiliar with his content, what y'all doing head to his Instagram or his TikTok right now. But the main kind of format is Kingsley, bases it on the home and the family. So you'll have there's the mother character. There's the first born. There's the last born. There's the middle child. There's the uncle who came from diaspora, came from the UK with the present. You can do better at. Explaining, but it's just so specific, which is what makes it so funny again, that observational 

Kingsley: and you know what, they are like a lot of other characters that I'm still keeping in the box. Like I haven't put them out yet. Like I have literally some really funny characters and some really funny videos that I have, but I'm still waiting for a proper time to then put them out. One of the characters that I brought out was the one called billion. The one from UK, that was the, it was a test. It was just a test to see how people would embrace that character. And I saw that people are actually like [00:12:00] over the moon, over their character, so definitely a lot of other characters coming out.

Vongai: that was one of the videos that I saw because I discovered him on Instagram and I remember watching one video thinking this is hilarious then watching another . One of my favorite skits that you have is the one where you're playing the radio DJ. So there's like this skit where Kingsley is playing a Radio DJ and you know how like those Zimbabwe DJs, just they just be talking over the song the whole time that you can't even hear the song.

Kingsley: Exactly.

Vongai: And it was just like, I felt so triggered. I was like, this is so accurate. And like the DJs giving commentary, I sent it to like my friend, Mike Hove over at Voice of America. I sent it to Sibongile I was like, yo, this dude is so funny.

Kingsley: That video what really happened was there was this song that was playing. I think it was Winky D there was a song, I think it was area. Yeah. Area 51 area, 51. When it came out, they started playing it on radio [00:13:00] stations. But then the problem was the guy who was DJ was enjoying more than playing the song.

 Can you hear it? Ah, and then he play, he cuts the song ah, song you don't like is the, and like guys come, like, all I just want to do is just to hear the

Vongai: that is literally not gonna name radio stations because we don't want enemies. Yes. We'd rather have more friends. But there are so many, like every time I'm in Zimbabwe where I'm in Harare and when we have the radio on that is literally what DJs do. And I'm like I didn't even get to the best part of the song. And then the song switches and what was so funny is like you had that Winky D song play. And then I think. Afterwards you had Handiperi Power. it was just like, it sent me because that's when it was the peak of the song being so popular that it just sent me so

Kingsley: It's so boring to, to play a song and then you [00:14:00] start pausing and playing and pausing and dropping the volume and people all, just all that. People want to do songs, that's it. And they're they good? Like they feel that they've heard the song, but then if there's commentary like so I just had to make that video.

I just had to like to show people that this is how I feel when these guys are doing whatever they're doing. 

Vongai: I love that. That's like you being upset, translating into such great comedy. Do you have any favorite childhood memories from growing up in Zimbabwe? Do you have any things that come to mind where you're like, oh wow. That time when we went to tuck shop and ta tenga mafreezit

Kingsley: Yeah.

Vongai: I don't I'm making up examples.

Kingsley: no, yeah. I have quite a lot but I'll just say that the aspect of being Zimbabwean is an experience on its own. There's just so many experiences. Like when I was in primary, we used to have this thing where if you brought food that is [00:15:00] tasty or that looks good, everyone would want to come and ask for that food.

So as time went along, people started knowing

Vongai: That is so real that happened at Alex Park.

Kingsley: exactly. It's crazy. It's really crazy. We used to have this thing where like the fancy food that people would bring at school were like things like rice and chicken or Chicken Inn at the time Nandos restaurants. Exactly. And at the time like for me, for instance, there would be moments where I wouldn't bring food maybe because I wouldn't have packed it at home.

Or maybe I wasn't feeling like packing it at home and then I just come to school and then I'm now I'm feeling hungry and then I go to the tuck shop, I buy chips. At the time there were these chips called madoing and the freezits and stuff like that. So it was just that experience of having to see other people eating their fancy food. And you just feel like, ah, let's go and ask and you go, [00:16:00] you like don't do. Ndipo ndipo ndipo chikafu

Vongai: Yeah. It was always like the little kids with their hands up like ndipo which means I want, or give me . I just remember this one kid had ma things there're these little like corn snacks.

Kingsley: Yeah.

Vongai: in their mouth and they were just like eating them and someone came up to them like, and that person pushed them away.

Kingsley: Yeah.

Vongai: And these are both like, maybe like my grade one, like first graders just being like, leave me alone. Mm.

Kingsley: Like, oh, my word, like right now I'm literally getting like memories coming, like flooding back, oh man, there's this time when people would just start fighting. There's this thing where people would just say do, and everyone just comes around, like watching people beat each other up, like yo, now that I think about it is crazy. Like it's what, and yeah, it was [00:17:00] crazy. It was really crazy. Like I have literally so many childhood memories, one big one that I still remember. This one is a bit of an embarrassing one, but I guess it's funny . I was staying with my aunt and uncle in Mutare I had come back from school. I was in grade, I think grade two. So I come back from school and then I went to sleep. That was in the afternoon. I went to sleep. So when I went to sleep, I slept at around three there about, and then I woke up around six o'clock, six 30. So at that time, the sun had not set, but it was a bit slightly dark. So I didn't know, like when I woke up I woke up in slightly in a little bit of confusion. So when I woke up, I was like, oh my word, it's time to go to school. And I was like, oh man, Hey, I'm late. Cause I normally wake up at five. So I was now like six 30. I was like six 30, yo. And then I went to bath. [00:18:00] After bathing. I go and I

Vongai: went to bath!

Kingsley: Imagine I'm thinking like it's in the morning and it's now in the evening and I go to bath

Vongai: just imagining your mom.

Kingsley: now at this time I was living with my aunt.

I was living my aunt and my uncle, my parents were in, in Harare at the time

Vongai: Oh, okay.

Kingsley: So I go in bath, I come back and I change my clothes and I wear my uniform, like the full uniform with the tie. And I literally do fast. Like I'm like thinking like I'm so late. And I rush to go and tell my aunt, say I'm leaving to go to school. As I get into the dining room, everyone like looks at me like "Ko mufana ari kuita chi ,mufana vaka pfeka uniform chi chiri kunetsa mufana?

And I'm like, I'm late, fana enda ku chikoro, my word, the people they started laugh. Aye. Yeah. Yeah. They're like it's

Vongai: Yo I had to mute myself. I'm laughing so hard. My [00:19:00] cheeks hurt. Kingsley. You are so funny

Kingsley: CRA like people laughed at me.

Vongai: I'm gonna need you to put out a comedy album or something, please. I'm literally crying.

Kingsley: It's crazy. It's crazy.

Vongai: My goodness. What did it feel like to be nominated for the NAMA awards? For people who aren't familiar, they are like the national arts awards for Zimbabwe. So it's if the Grammys, the Oscars and the Emmys and all the other arts awards had a baby for a national country, that's the awards, and he was nominated for Best social media skits. How was that feeling one to be nominated and two your experience attending the event and getting to see all your peers in the industry.

Kingsley: was to be honest, like when I was even told that you've been nominated, it felt surreal. Cause this [00:20:00] was something that I never would've thought. Like literally at the back of my mind that this would be something that people would actually recognize me for what I was doing, like my content and my skits and stuff. Like I never thought that people would take me seriously. And just knowing that I'd been nominated was. Oh man. Like I remember telling my, my, my family and everyone was like serious. You've been nominated for like your skits

it was really that serious. Like people were so happy for me and I was literally happy for myself. I began to think about the time when I started making skits back in 2017 with my cousin DJ Munya it was that moment when I realized that dreams do come true. Like at some point in my life, I was like I would want to [00:21:00] be nominated for an award. And that was in 2017 when I was literally starting out. And I was like, I want to be nominated for something, and that process getting there. and getting to hear your name being called out to say, we are nominating Kingsley Kaisi in this category and not just a category with just random people like we are talking people that I've literally looked up to from the moment I started making my own content.

Like you're looking at Madam boss, you're looking at Comic Pastor these are not like small people. You can't just walk past them in the, in, in the town and just say, ah, it's Madam boss, or, ah, it's Comic Pastor. Like literally I've met both these people and when you see them, they're like an energy and just rubbing shoulders with other people and other artists at the award show was even a greater, a much greater experience because [00:22:00] I got to see that people actually do watch my content. To be honest, I never thought people watched my con like, okay. When I say people I mean, like I never thought certain artists would consider my content. 

Vongai: Kingsley. I was gonna say, am I not people? Am I not

Kingsley: You are more than people. You are literally more than people

Vongai: I am 

Kingsley: you

Vongai: ZimExcellence 

Kingsley: You're cut above the list, but yeah. You know, It was such an amazing feeling being around big names at the NAMA Awards. I remember when I was sitting down like just a few meters or not even a few meters just behind me was Feli Nandi. Can you imagine, like behind me, like Feli Nandi was sitting next to me and then just across.

Minister Kirsty Coventry was there. And then you're looking at Tamy Moyo was just on the other side, KVG miss red was on the other side. Other business people like Shaky Timbura was there. [00:23:00] And I was like, yo I'm in the presence of greatness and just being able to be here, I feel great.

And I'd want to elevate myself to a point where people can actually recognize me without having to say who's that guy , but it was a really great experience. It actually gave me the boost that I needed to continue doing my skits and to actually do better in improving what I do.

So it's the reason why I'm really taking my time and really putting. A lot into my craft to try and make it match not just like the national appeal, but now international. So it's crazy.

Vongai: That is absolutely wonderful. What would you say is your hope for the arts industry in Zimbabwe and what do you think that we can do to encourage our community to be more supportive of our endeavors? Whether it's the arts, art creation, or these skits that are going online, [00:24:00] especially because you find that some of these skits or these web series, or these shows are being fully put on YouTube, but there isn't like a monetization behind it. So it's like artists could be profiting more from the creation of like their content, especially in Zimbabwe.

Kingsley: One thing that I've always wanted to see in the industry is collaboration. I've even told myself that this year in as much as, yeah. People are used to me posting content on my own and things like that, I would want to just bring other people on board and collaborate with other big names out there to see how far I can push myself in the industry.

But at the same time I feel like there hasn't been a lot of support financially to fund the initiatives brought by artists and even creatives. We're looking at films, we're looking at movies all those things they need funding and they need financing [00:25:00] but I guess people would want to believe that this is something that can be pulled off for them to actually put something in there. So yeah, I guess that's the other issue, but at the same time, collaboration is really important. We can never get anywhere without doing it together and as much as there's a saying that goes if you want to go, I don't know, say if you want to go, if you want to travel a journey, you can go alone. But if you want to go far, you need to go as a collective as a group. Yeah. I don't have anything bad to say about anyone, but to say that I'm really interested in collaborating with other content creators and to see how far our craft can go together regardless of where we are.

Vongai: Yeah, I just pulled it up. I think it's an African proverb or it's been cited as an African proverb. If you want to go fast, go alone. But if you want to go far go together. Yeah, definitely. I definitely [00:26:00] believe in that. I know we, we talked about that when Joe was on the show. 

Kingsley: Oh, I love Joe. 

Vongai: Joe is so great. You and I should be in a movie together or some sort of something together and Joe should film it 

Kingsley: He should like, zvichamanifesta , like that's what I feel like people should like literally put more time. If you look at other countries like Nigeria or Kenya or South Africa

you know, they, they do like literally everything together. Like you see one actor and another one just doing things together. And they don't mind sharing followers or pulling each other up they don't have a problem. Like If you're better than me, you're better than me. There's nothing wrong with that. 

Vongai: There isn't even a thing as better than I don't think. I think it's just like different 

Kingsley: we all have our different colors. We have our different stripes.

So

Vongai: and different audiences, different ways of communicating yeah.

Kingsley: So at the end of the day, we all have a chance at the pie. There's no such thing as [00:27:00] if he eats the pie, there won't be anything left for me. So it is better. The better I steal it from him, or it's rather better, I do this to him. Cause at the end of the day, the pie will always be there.

Vongai: Yes the scarcity 

Kingsley: Like they it's enough for everyone. There's no point to try and say, ah, I dunno, I there's no need there's like we can literally grow together and be better together and rub ideas off each other and become the best version of our own selves. Yeah. Amen.

Vongai: Okay.

Kingsley: Yes. Can I go deeper?,

Vongai: It's tracking 

 I wanted to ask you about, so you got to star in a short film. It was your first as a lead. Congratulations. You played Beau in the movie, The Voices, which was part of the Jac film school. So I'd like to know a little bit more about how did you get this opportunity or hear [00:28:00] about it. Did you audition for it and what drew you to the project?

Kingsley: So I was approached by the script writer and the director, Lloyd Munanga he told me he was interested in having me perform and act in the film.

I was called in for an audition and I auditioned and the panel was interested. They were happy. With the way that I had auditioned and they cast me as the lead protagonist in the film, which was a great honor, because it was my first time being in a short film that is being made by someone else. And just being able to be in that was a whole experience altogether, because it was somewhat different from what I was used to doing in my skits, because when I'm in my skits, I'm in my own zone. I do things in my own time, in my own pace. And I do things like the way I want to do it. [00:29:00] But now when I was now in this short film and we were now shooting the scenes and rehearsing and all this stuff.

Yeah. You get to realize that now I'm literally part of something big and I have to really do better than what I've been doing, because it was like a step ahead more than what I was doing. It was a really big experience for me. And I'm glad that I acted it out very well.

It was my first time. So of course people will be, ah, you're here, you're neither here nor there, but I'm glad that to some of the people who actually, in fact, quite a number of people who watched it they actually enjoyed it. And yeah, I'm hoping that in future I'll get more roles because at the end of the day that's another goal of mine to be able to act in, whether it be a film, a movie, a series, whatever it is, just being able to showcase my talent of acting in front of many people.

So yeah,

Vongai: You heard that y'all Kingsley is trying to be and [00:30:00] busy

Kingsley: you

Vongai: so hire him and cast him in

Kingsley: will love you

up 

Vongai: projects and pay him well,

Kingsley: course. Yeah.

Vongai: cause as you can see, he got a 100K followers. So you gotta pay him. Well, 

Kingsley: Soon to be a million, hopefully. Hopefully

Vongai: soon to be a million. He said could you tell us the premise of the short film and where people might be able to watch it?

Kingsley: So initially the film was for a competition. I think in Europe, but the synopsis is that Beau who is the lead protagonist is sent out of university because of certain issues that are affecting his studies. And that, Leads the lecturer or the lead lecturer to tell him that the university cannot continue paying for your fees anymore. So you have to go. And so he then books, a flight goes back home, but then he now has [00:31:00] to somewhat face the issues that surround his life and that surround where he comes from.

And now this brings about a whole dramatic aspect of having to face the demons that are bedeviling his life and the demons that are bedeviling, whatever that he is going through. But at the end of the day, it is just a suspense of what is going to happen to Beau. With regard to everything that is affecting his life, because now that he's coming back home, he's now facing a lot of stuff and what is going to happen next.

So it's really a nice story and it has a very good background that actually brings about its uniqueness. So I would really encourage a lot of people to go and watch it. It's available on YouTube, on the JAC Film School. You can just type The Voices, JAC film school, [00:32:00] and you definitely see it popping out.

Vongai: We're gonna put the link in the show notes. So I have one final question for you before we do our lightning round it is a two in one question, which means it could be answered as one answer, or you could split it into two answers. Depends how you're feeling. So how do you. Practice self care to avoid burning out in between producing, editing, posting your skits, and also working as a digital consultant and also working in development.

And what keeps you going when times are hard? Cuz I know when I open up my Instagram to do reels, let alone TikTok, it takes a lot out of me. To just post a reel.. Think about when I'm, when I have to do like a self tape audition by the end of it. I am just drained because I do take after take.

[00:33:00] So the fact that you're able to just put out these skits and they're golden and you have all these followers, I know you must go through burnout at some 

Kingsley: Yeah. It's not really much, I wouldn't say burnout, but I would say that, of course there are moments where you get to a point where you reach. I'd say maybe you feel fatigued. Yeah. I'll say what would be the best way to say? 

Vongai: Yeah, fatigued works. I relate

Kingsley: Yeah. 

Vongai: I relate to fatigued and

Kingsley: anxious. Yeah.

Vongai: Those are my words.

Kingsley: for me, to be honest I've been doing these skits for a long time and it didn't just start in 2017.

Like it started way back when I was in high school. So I have been able to build that resilience and because I enjoy it, it's no longer something that comes very difficult to me because it's something that I literally enjoy. But of course, yeah, of course self care is very essential. What I normally do is [00:34:00] I sometimes give myself. Time off the platforms and just to reflect on myself meditate just be me but at the same time I'm a firm believer of Jesus Christ. So I normally take my time to go to church and fellowship with others and be able to be in a place with other believers where I can actually just be free to be me in the presence of the Lord.

So that whole aspect is something that just suppresses anything that might be happening whether be it like fatigue, depression and all those things. So just being able to be in that space and also being able to interact with a lot of people. I have a lot of people that I talk to, but there are certain people that I talk to much and just being able to talk to them on a regular basis it just gives you that it's gonna be, it's [00:35:00] gonna be good at the end of the day.

So yeah.

Vongai: That's really great. Are you ready for our lightning

Kingsley: know, We are really

Vongai: okay. Lightning round. What is your Zodiac sign?

Kingsley: Aquarius. 

Vongai: Are you an early bird or a night 

Kingsley: I am both I can sleep late and wake up early.

Vongai: but what would you prefer?

Kingsley: prefer waking up early.

Vongai: Okay. do you like to read books?

Kingsley: Books are my favorite. Okay.

Vongai: Okay. Last book you read. 

Kingsley: Um, shut up and make money.

Vongai: shut up and make money by 

Kingsley: Mudiwa Hood. Yeah, the musician from Zimbabwe actually.

Yeah. 

Vongai: Oh, cool. Okay. I have to look that up. I will message you afterwards. We're gonna have that in the Uh, Do you have a favorite movie or TV show from this past year that 

Kingsley: I'll say for the TV show. Peaky Blinders. Yo. I got me on my knees. [00:36:00] and then maybe a favorite movie, I would say fireproof. That's been my favorite movie that I've watched recently. Yeah.

Vongai: you could have any superpower what would 

Kingsley: So a superpower that I would want to have, would be being able to hear other people's thoughts.

Yeah. 

Vongai: Oh, okay. what's that mind re wait, there's a uh, It will come to me later and I'll be kicking myself Uh, Who is your, do you have a favorite Zimbabwean musician? This is a controversial question to ask because then the other musicians will be like, why is it 

Kingsley: for me personally I haven't yet found a favorite like like of course, yeah. Tuku, the likes of Macheso, the likes of, Baba Nicholas Zachariah James Chimombe, I like literally have a good love for all the musicians that were before and the ones that are booming now, I like love [00:37:00] just being able to feel all the kind of music that people are now bringing up and the music if you look in my music playlist, you'll find that there are like literally a lot of musicians that I listen to, but I'll say that my, my all time favorite is Bob Marley

my all time. Favorite 

Vongai: Ah, I love I did say Zimbabwean but he, he is kind question. Okay. What is your favorite Zimbabwean childhood snack?

Kingsley: this lollipop called big, boom. Have you heard of.

Vongai: Oh, I haven't heard of this lollipop. Someone will 

know it 

Kingsley: and then, there was cascade, obviously. And then the, there 

were these 

Vongai: You like cascade? Oh, Kingsley. We can't be friends. Me realizing. I just said that. And the people at cascade are going to send me an email.[00:38:00] 

Kingsley: They'll come 

Vongai: I'm just gonna say it 

is not for 

Kingsley: what are you talking about? 

Vongai: me 

Kingsley: Why have you tried it before? great 

Vongai: I grew up in Zimbabwe.

Kingsley: They're doing 

great things 

Vongai: There are new flavors. 

Kingsley: there are new flavors and like there are new 

Vongai: Wow. 

Kingsley: know,

I 

Vongai: is being sponsored by a cascade to, to to hype them up on the show. okay. Speaking of drinks, it is time for the most controversial of them all. Are you 

ready?

Kingsley: let's go.

Vongai: Mazoe versus versus Mazoe green.

Kingsley: How do tune, ah, Mazoe orange.

Ah Ah, without a doubt, without a doubt. Come on. green 

Vongai: Okay. 

Kingsley: Orange. Yes.

Vongai: so the next one is a power statement. It starts, I am ZimExcellence because blank. And you fill out the statement.

Kingsley: I am [00:39:00] ZimExcellence because I'm on my way to the top

Vongai: If you could nominate someone for the award of ZimExcellence, who would it be?

Kingsley: So for, I would say Nandi, Feli Nandi I would really say Fela Nandi and yeah.

Vongai: Cool. Cool. Cool. And if you would nominate someone to come on the show called ZimExcellence, who would it be? 

Kingsley: show. Hmm.

I would say AstroSkits. Definitely 

Vongai: Astroskits Cool. Cool, cool. Kingsley. This has been great. As we wrap up, I would love it. If you could share a message with our listeners, as well as letting them know where they can continue to follow your journey, whether that's website, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Facebook, you don't have to spell it out. We will have it in the show notes.

Kingsley: I would like to say to all the listeners out there, thank [00:40:00] you for the support that you've given me. I cannot thank you enough, but to just say that content is coming out and please do take your time to support, share, like, and comment and you can follow me on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. My handle is Kingsley ZW

Vongai: That is so awesome. Kingsley. Yo, it was a 

Kingsley: No, it was a 

Vongai: You are hilarious.

Kingsley: We need to do this 

again. 

Vongai: you had me laughing like an April fool. Sorry.

Kingsley: alright. That's a good thing. We added on April fool. Imagine if everything that I said was a lie. Yo, just imagine

Vongai: Oh my

gosh. 

Kingsley: how do you even know it's 

Vongai: you're so silly. 

Y'all thank you so much for tuning into this episode of ZimExcellence. All the links and resources mentioned in this episode will be down in the show notes, have a great week, [00:41:00] everyone.