Unathi Nkayi’s new gig at a community radio station STAR91.9FM is anything but a downgrade.
The former Idols SA judge, who previously worked for Metro FM and Kaya FM, respectively, explained to Sunday World: “I’ve done all types of radio, so it is part of me that needs to find what I can do and be what I can.
“They wouldn’t have called me if they didn’t think I could do it. I was asked to come to be part of a legacy that builds a brand-new channel. That’s a new challenge I have never had.
“The changes I’ve experienced in the past couple of years have shifted me to be who I am, every radio station I’ve gone to has given me a different challenge, so I have taken it the same way with great anticipation, the intensity with the intent to be greatest that I can be.”
Nkayi said her main goal is to give plenty of airtime to issues around mental health.
“What we’ve picked up is that people want intimate conversations, they want to be seen and heard and that’s what we are going to do.
“Radio has become very commercialised and formulaic. Here I’ll have all the freedom and independence, which is a wonderful gift to be given. I know that I am great in what I do, and I will be one of the few to represent that, it is wonderful to lend myself in a way that isn’t ordinarily expected.”
The radio veteran shared that she left Twitter in 2018 mainly because of its bad vibes, reiterating that her health is her wealth.
Nkayi also shared that she had been attending therapy for five years now, and having a father who is a clinical psychologist, therapy has become a part of her life.
“I go to therapy every Tuesday and I feel like people don’t speak out about their problems. For me, it is going to be easy to get people to talk about their problems. I want to normalise talking about problems.”
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