"I'm Mr. International," Gaddafi the Poet

Gaddafi's brass confidence makes a lot of people uncomfortable. He's somewhat of a social deviant, you see. So society expects him to be sorry about it. Apologise for being different. Not Gaddafi. He commands his universe.

Born Boitumelo Mainganya in Vhenda ha Mulima, and later raised in Soweto, he learnt early that society is not equipped to deal with people with special needs. "I wasn't enjoying myself, the social prejudice was on another level and I was just finding it hard to manoeuvre," recalls Gaddafi. After struggling for a few years at a mainstream local primary school, he later went onto complete his schooling in environments that were better suited for his needs: Polokwane based Siloe School for the Blind and Filadelfia Secondary School for the Physically Disabled in Pretoria. 

Making a name for himself 

Being in a nurturing environment prepared him for a life at the University of Limpopo. "I was mature, could think for myself and make my own decisions...that's actually where I began to also make a name for myself,"declared Gaddafi. "Understanding that people are not learned about albinism, I used unconventional ways to attract attention to myself so that I can spread my message,"he added. It started with loud, bright fashion, then music as DJ and dancer and ultimately poet today.

Looking for a platform or a partner?
Gaddafi was tasting his first international performance in Bahrain early July, when the now infamous Date My Family episode he featured in, was aired on Mzansi Magic. Black Twitter was immediately obsessed with him, albeit for different reasons. Some Tweeps where calling him out for using the platform for publicity and not for its intended objective, which is to find a romantic partner.

He oscillates between a philosophical and vague answer when I directly ask him "did you use the show for publicity?"

"People might take it how they want to take it...you know what I'm saying... I told myself that I'm going to give it to the people; it's not for me to decide. That's for me to know and for people to find out. If people are going to come out and say that I was doing it for the platform, hey! That's still okay, it worked! "

Reading between the lines, I dare say that he did it for the publicity. He seemed pretty satisfied with having set Twitter alight, albeit for a while. An acknowledgement by Black Twitter, can do wonders for one's online brand equity, after all.

Smashing labels
It seems to have worked for him. Gaddafi has been a busy body of late, hosting and performing at various shows. He was also recently a panelist on Castle's anti prejudice campaign, #SmashTheLabel. It is aimed at bringing South Africans closer together by creating conversations around labelling and stereotyping; an issue Gaddafi is intimately familiar with.  

Mr. International

Gaddafi says that "I’ve always told people that I'm Mr. International and they thought I was kidding. When it finally buzzes to their minds that I'm actually travelling the world, they'll realise that anything is possible." He's also working on a two man theatrical production due for release at all major theatres plus putting in work for his first anthology, Art from My Heart. Add ambassador duties for The Albinism Society of South Africa to all of that, and you have a schedule that has him constantly in transit. 

It can be a trepidus game of mind control, this life thing. But at the ripe age of 24, Gaddafi's seemingly unwavering self belief will see him go far. Even Simphiwe Dana attested to his promising prospects when she Tweeted "Doing good work. I wish you all the best in your career Gaddafi. Your future is bright."

Have you ever interacted with Gaddafi the Poet? What are your thoughts about his larger than life personality? Maybe you have an experience that you want to share about a person living with albinism? Or it could just be a message of encouragement. Please, drop it in the comments section.

Oh, and before I forget, Gaddafi specifically asked me to plug in his social media handles, I suppose it's protocol for any new age personality. Click and follow or like: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to stay up to date with all that he'll be cooking.