Red crossing live to radio’s youngest stars
● When sisters Yusrah and Naseerah du Toit attended the Liberty Radio Awards last weekend, people kept asking their father which radio station he worked for.
Little did they know it was the young sisters who were up for an award.
Naseerah, 10, and Yusrah, 11, present their own radio show, Books and Breakfast with Yusrah on RX Radio in Cape Town. RX Radio is hosted at the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital in the city as a radio station for children by children.
The sisters were nominated for the Liberty Radio Awards as finalists in the Internet Radio Category in Johannesburg last weekend.
They didn’t win, but they still made history.
“We were the youngest ever to be finalists, which was really exciting and when I heard the news I shouted: ‘Is it even true!’” said Yusrah.
“And we got to dress up and flew in a plane, and it was so funny because we went with my dad and everyone kept asking him ‘What radio are you on?’ and he says, ‘No, it’s my daughters’ radio show,’” she said.
“It was my first time on a plane too,” said Naseerah. “I didn’t get to look out the window but I was also excited.”
RX Radio senior content producer Noluyolo Ngomani said: “[The radio] strives to empower all children admitted to hospital to tell and listen to their stories about issues that are important to them, like their health.”
Naseerah has Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT), a hereditary motor and sensory disorder that affects the peripheral nervous system. CMT patients have a progressive loss of muscle tissue and touch sensation across various parts of the body.
Naseerah’s legs are most affected and it was on one of her regular visits to her physiotherapist at the hospital two years ago that she was asked to interview for the radio gig. Naturally her elder sister came along. Yusrah said: “I was so shy and I didn’t want to go on radio but I went with my sister because my mom said ‘Just go and support her’ and now I love it so much. I can speak for hours and my friends and my teachers and my principal all listen to me,” she said.
The girls attend Boston Primary School in Bellville.
“I have a muscle disorder so I can’t do lots of stuff so I really like the radio too,” Naseerah said.
The girls’ show is weekdays from 4pm to 5pm and weekends from 3pm to 4pm.
“Our show is pre-recorded so we don’t go in every day. We do a live broadcast on the second and last Saturday of every month too,” said Naseerah.
Their grandmother, Sukeena Sherry, said: “We are very proud of the girls and they have grown so much from the time they started the show. It’s been amazing to see just how they’ve grown.”
Both girls said they don’t know if they will be radio presenters when they grow up, but they are having fun at the moment.
Ngomani said she had no doubt they would be stars. “The girls definitely have what it takes … They are great to work with and they are very professional at their young age,” she said.