Bhut Malumz Publications

Unathi Debese, a professional nurse makes her way in the entertainment industry and is not looking any back. She is a musician, a poet, an entrepreneur and a model.

Debese grew up in Unifound, Komani as a girl child who familiarised herself with art. She used art as her hobby after school hours and as a coping mechanism during bad times at school. Art displayed a great line of imagination as she visualised herself amounting to be greats like Rn’B star, Beyoncé. “For me, I always explored. I think it hit me after high school at 18 that this music and poetry thing is real. The confidence started building up. For instance, if there was an event hosted nearby I would go and perform. It was during that time that I realised that I’ve got the power to do this and I am a King of my own world.” Debese said. Rastafarians music sessions were the IT thing at the time. They were hosted in Nomzamo, Newvale, and Unifound respectively. It was with these sessions that Debese had her first ever live performance at Unifound where she lived. She recited a poem that was loved and applauded accordingly. “It was an imaginary thing when growing up but it made sense after that performance that I am a superstar.” Debese said with a warm heart. After that day, her journey continued. She is lastly been featured in Saturday Freestyle Chronicles where she recited a poem about gender based violence. Her personal best live performance has to be the one she did at Vuyisani Hans’s Motivation ZA event that was held in Queen’s Casino. “When people are responding like that to something you jotted on a paper. That’s beauty.” that’s how heartwarming the feeling was for Debese after her all-time best performance. Debese is a professional nurse. She wasn’t passionate about nursing but her lack of financial assistance and hoping to put food on the table. Is the reason why she applied for funding via Lilitha College of Nursing where she enrolled for her tertiary studies. She enrolled for nursing with hope of pursuing music and poetry when she’s financially secured. It still saddens Debese, the fact that the lack of knowledge made her choose the wrong occupation. She said that the misinformation about how artists make money is one contributing factor in instilling the stance of taking art as a hobby and nothing more in parents.

The birth of Buhle Bendalo Beauty Pageant comes after Debese entered for East London Fashion Week in East London. The experience she had was mind-blowing. “Creating such a platform for the people of my own area would be an ideal thing.” she thought to herself in brainstorming this crawling baby pageant of hers. The authenticity of her pageant lies in having different local designers dressing her pageant’s contestants. The local designers she approached are the CEO and founder of BAU IN STYLE, Luyolo Dlikilili, CEO and founder of El Tawii Woolen and Knitwear Designs and CEO and founder of Eleglam Lifestyle, Siyamthanda Hlobo. Debese has been working alone in curating this baby but it takes a village to raise a child. As she’s part of Komani Creatives Industry, her colleagues from the organisation have been assisting and guiding her. The pageant has started with doing photoshoots that are for model’s profiles and practicing professionalism. Buhle Bendalo Beauty Pageant is a sisterhood, a family and ideas of innovation are shared amongst themselves to create a better awareness of what dreaming black child is to do. Debese wishes for the audience that will be partaking in Buhle Bendalo Beauty Pageant event as guests to take home with them inspiration. For the demotivated to extract motivation. The event date haven’t been announced yet.

Debese is also owning her own company, Nutty Kasi Productions that deals with everything arts. The brand’s construction is to push a black child to build their own brands and platform because it is possible to start their own thing. A lot of challenges though are faced by Debese although she might be this heavily driven. The most gigantic challenge is with sponsors and investors with their empty promises. The underestimation suffered from potential sponsors because she comes from the hood. The municipality adds on too as it is not supportive at all of creatives that bring optimism to the take. She has built all this dream from her own pockets. The last but not least challenge is marketing. Marketing has been a fail for a long time as parents have always abandoned their child’s craft because of misinformation. Debese is striving to change the standard of art in Komani and a lot of work awaits her.