SIBU MPANZA, 22

WHAT does a social mediatrending YouTuber do?

He creates content and videos about current affairs and social issues, picking some of the most controversial topics around.

From rape culture to racism and cultural identity, to dating across races, Sibu Mpanza has talked about it and created not only a buzz, but also a platform for others to engage.

“I have been creating YouTube content and videos since August 2014,” he said.

Mpanza, who was born in Mpumalanga and studied in Cape Town, now lives in Johannesburg and is considered one of the country’s leading online content creators.

His work has won him several awards, including the Samsung Social Star competition in 2015, runnerup for the African Blogger Award for Top Youtube channel in Africa, and he’s made the #Kellman20 list of influential millennials to look out for in 2017.

Mpanza says he is inspired by changes in representation of people of colour in various fields.

“I hope South Africa can heal by recognising the differences among its people. So many people are trying change and to sweep these differences and injustices under the rug of ignorance and apathy,” Mpanza said.

“People are trying to forget our past, but only when we can actively recognise that we are different and why we are different can we start the healing process.”

Youth Day for the vlogger is “a day to celebrate the future of our country while commemorating the significance of the events in 1976”.

“The biggest issue we are having right now as YouTubers is that people are unable to watch because of how high data prices are. Given the power, I would make it easier for people to have access to online video content,” he said.