Anele Mdoda shines as the host of Real Talk
|||BY MUNYA VOMO
WHEN we interviewed Anele Mdoda a few weeks ago about her show, Real Talk with Anele, we established that she was nervous about it. It is not because she didn’t know what she was doing, but because she was stepping into tough territory.
The talk show business might look easy when Oprah does it, but when you have to run your own show, it is another beast altogether. Think of Trevor Noah’s late night show, Tonight with Trevor Noah, before he moved to the US, or Gareth Cliff’s The Gareth Cliff Talk Show. Both men are good at what they do, but their talk shows did not fly, understandably so because the game does not seem to be that easy.
To begin with, South African audiences are extremely diverse, so you need to decide who you want target before you even pitch the idea. Back in the day, Eric Miyeni had Zooming in on Men, which was exactly what the name suggested, so if you were not reading Men’s Health, you could catch an episode and pick up on what was cool in the world of men. Real Talk with Anele has managed just that.
The radio personality has shown so much promise over the years that she is now a household name. Not limiting herself to radio, Mdoda has taken a few TV jobs that include SA’s Got Talent. She did well on that show and many people hinted that Mdoda could, in fact, host her own television programme.
With 3Talk now out of the way, Mdoda’s show airs in the afternoon slot and she is doing well. She has so much passion for her guests and it shows. If she invites an author, Mdoda reads the entire book and that becomes evident in the questions she puts to her guest. Another career she could easily go into is comedy, as she is gifted with making up funny things that lighten the mood. Guests differ in the interviewing game, so you need to know how to make them feel comfortable enough to open up and give you great answers. Mdoda has that skill. The one thing that comes with experience and that few people have when it comes to interviewing, is taking charge. If you get some strong personalities you might struggle to get the direct answers you are looking for. Mdoda interjects when she needs to and directs the conversations in a respectful and informative way.
Real Talk with Anele airs weekdays at 4pm on SABC3.