Celebrating Jennifer Mdluli, Bonang Matheba, Sannah Thwala and Hloni Modise During Women’s Month.
Women’s Month is more than a celebration of women who have achieved personal success. It is an opportunity to recognise women who use their skills, platforms and influence to open doors for others.
Across South Africa’s media, entertainment and creative industries, a new generation of female leaders is demonstrating that success can be measured not only by visibility, awards or business growth, but also by the opportunities created for others.
Among the women who represent this spirit are Jennifer Mdluli, Bonang Matheba, Sannah Thwala and Hloni Modise four women whose journeys reflect different dimensions of leadership, entrepreneurship, media, entertainment and the empowerment of women and young people.
Jennifer Mdluli: Building Platforms for Culture and Young Creatives
Jennifer Mdluli represents the increasingly important role of women working behind the scenes to build sustainable platforms within South Africa’s creative and media landscape.
Known professionally as JennyLove, Mdluli has been involved in broadcasting, programming, journalism, project management and cultural development. Her journey with Sounds of Azania has included work as a presenter and programmes manager, while her involvement with the Choral Indigenous Music Awards has placed her at the centre of an initiative dedicated to celebrating indigenous music and cultural heritage.
Through her work, Mdluli demonstrates that media is not simply about being in front of the camera or behind a microphone. It is also about creating platforms where communities can tell their stories, artists can be recognised and young people can find opportunities to participate in the creative economy.
Her work on CIMA reflects this philosophy. The awards have developed into a platform that celebrates choirs, composers, performers and cultural ambassadors while encouraging the preservation and development of indigenous music.
For young women entering media and entertainment, Mdluli’s journey offers an important lesson: leadership can begin with service, consistency and the willingness to create opportunities for others.
Bonang Matheba: Turning Media Influence into Entrepreneurship
Few South African media personalities have demonstrated the power of personal branding quite like Bonang Matheba.
From broadcasting and television to entrepreneurship, publishing and philanthropy, Matheba has built a career that extends well beyond traditional entertainment. She has been recognised as a media personality, radio host, businesswoman and philanthropist, while her career has included major television, international media and brand opportunities.
What makes Matheba particularly significant in conversations about women’s empowerment is her ability to transform visibility into influence.
Her public career has repeatedly demonstrated the importance of women understanding the value of their own voices, skills and brands. She has also spoken publicly about gender equality and female empowerment, including participating in discussions around the responsibility of influential women to use their platforms constructively.
Matheba’s entrepreneurial journey is equally significant. Rather than remaining solely a media personality, she has expanded into business and brand building, demonstrating how women can use experience gained in entertainment to create economic opportunities.
Her story sends a powerful message to young women: being talented is important, but learning how to build, manage and protect your own brand can turn talent into a sustainable career.
Sannah Thwala: The Businesswoman Behind the Talent
While audiences often see performers at the centre of entertainment, successful creative industries depend heavily on the people working behind the scenes.
Sannah Thwala is one of those industry professionals.
Thwala is the founder and managing director of The House of Thomm, a marketing and public relations company established in 2012. The company focuses on marketing, public relations, brand awareness and customised strategies for individuals and organisations.
Her work demonstrates the entrepreneurial opportunities that exist beyond performing and broadcasting. Artist management, public relations, marketing, communications and business development are all essential components of the modern entertainment ecosystem.
Thwala’s industry profile has continued to grow, with her being recognised in the Artist Manager of the Year category at the 2026 Basadi in Music Awards.
Her journey is particularly relevant for young women because it highlights the importance of professional skills, business knowledge and strategic thinking in the creative industries.
The entertainment sector needs artists, but it also needs managers, publicists, producers, marketers, lawyers, executives and entrepreneurs. Thwala’s career is an example of how women can build businesses around these critical parts of the industry.
Hloni Modise: Creating Space for Women in Entertainment
Hloni Modise has made women’s recognition and advancement in entertainment a central part of her professional mission.
As founder and CEO of the Basadi in Music Awards, Modise created a platform specifically designed to recognise the contributions of women across the music industry. The awards celebrate women working as performers, composers, producers and in other areas of the music value chain.
Her own career demonstrates perseverance and entrepreneurship. Before establishing Basadi in Music Awards, Modise worked across different areas of the music business, including artist management and record-company environments. Her experiences helped shape her understanding of the challenges women face in a traditionally male-dominated industry.
The significance of BIMA goes beyond trophies.
Recognition can influence confidence, visibility, networking and future opportunities. By creating a platform where women’s achievements are deliberately placed at the centre, Modise has contributed to changing the conversation about who gets recognised and whose contribution matters.
The continued growth of the awards demonstrates the relevance of that mission. The 2026 edition includes women from across the African creative sector, including artists, managers, journalists, broadcasters, producers and other industry professionals.
Four Journeys, One Powerful Message
Although Mdluli, Matheba, Thwala and Modise have followed different paths, their careers share an important common thread: they have demonstrated that women can be creators, executives, entrepreneurs, media professionals, cultural leaders and builders of institutions.
Jennifer Mdluli represents the power of creating cultural and media platforms.
Bonang Matheba demonstrates how media influence can develop into entrepreneurship, brand building and social influence.
Sannah Thwala illustrates the importance of the business professionals working behind the talent and building sustainable careers within the creative economy.
Hloni Modise demonstrates how entrepreneurship can be used to create platforms that recognise and advance other women.
Together, their stories challenge the idea that empowerment is simply about individual achievement. True empowerment also involves creating space for others to grow.
A Message to the Next Generation
For young women looking towards careers in media, entertainment, entrepreneurship and communications, these four journeys offer different models of possibility.
They demonstrate that there is no single definition of success.
A young woman can become a presenter. She can become a producer. She can establish a PR company. She can manage artists. She can build a media platform. She can create an awards organisation. She can become an entrepreneur. She can use her voice to influence conversations and inspire others.
Most importantly, she can do more than occupy a space she can help create new spaces for those who come after her.
As South Africa celebrates Women’s Month, the stories of Jennifer Mdluli, Bonang Matheba, Sannah Thwala and Hloni Modise remind us that empowerment is strongest when success becomes a bridge for others.
Their journeys represent four different expressions of female leadership, but they ultimately point towards the same vision: An African creative economy where women are not merely participants, but decision-makers, entrepreneurs, creators, leaders and architects of the future.
This Women’s Month, we celebrate women who are not waiting for opportunities to arrive they are building platforms, businesses and movements that create opportunities for others.
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