LOYISO GOLA'S WORLD

Having spent twenty years as a stand-up comic, with sold-out shows, two Emmy nominations, a SAFTA Award and more, the sixfoot-five star made history last December, when his critically acclaimed show ‘Unlearning’ was recorded as a Netflix special in front of a live audience at the world-famous Zeitz MOCAA

- Molife Kumona

THIS MAN GETS COMEDY

I KNEW THIS DAY WOULD BE MEMORABLE. How could it not be? We were shooting our first 2021 cover, and my first as Editor in-chief, at the biggest museum of African contemporary art in the world, with an iconic yet superchilled personality. As I discussed how the day would flow with the team and conducted final checks, I wondered if Loyiso would remember me – I interviewed him a few years ago. Would he be as chilled as he’d been before? As I continued to wonder, ‘Loy’, as his close buddies call him, arrived. Super-chilled as always, he greeted everyone – and he remembered me. I’m not sure if he could place me, but because he’s that cool, he was soon vibing with everyone on set like old friends. Because he’s astoundingly tall, he was initially concerned whether we’d got stuff that’d fit him. Luckily, he was in the capable hands of the Creative Director of Styled By Boogy, Boogy Maboi, a sought-after talent who delivered. And with Aart Verrips on photography, we knew we were onto a winner.