Creators Corner!

Durban top YouTuber’s talk content creation and making it to the top! Skits by Sphe and Dawud

Phungula give us a glimpse of the life of being a creative.

YouTube has seen an influx of ‘||SA YouTuber’ uploading content on their

platform, but what sets these two channels apart from the rest is the amount of success they

have garnered in a short space of time. With Dawud sitting at just over 60k subscribers and

Sphe at a spectacular 210K subscribers, and both doing it in vernac, it is no doubt that they

deserved to be the cover stars for the Digital era.

Skits by Sphe

KwaDengezi,24-year-old Youtuber, Skits by Sphe, started creating content during college days

after drawing inspiration from a friend of his and a crush. Unluckily, he didn’t get the girl but

secured the bag by becoming an online sensation across Mzansi. His channel focuses mainly

on comedy skits and content in which he wishes to diversify in the near future. “I’ve always been

a class clown, and the skits thing were created in school, it was the easiest route to take.” It is

often rare to have content curators in SA taking it up as a full-time job. However we have seen

this change in the past couple years. With great freedom comes great responsibilities and for

Sphe, it means putting in the work and working through the challenges. “The biggest challenge

when I create content is that I can get 100 000 views on one video, the only get 10 000 on the

next. That is very demotivating. It’s very important to know which content people like to view.”

When Sphe creates content he ensures it’s something his viewers can relate to and resonate

with. “There’s a series called roomza, it’s about student living at Res. It has 25 million views, so

my content is something I’ve been through. I don’t like creating content that I have no

connection with or I can’t relate to.” Sphe has featured the likes of DJ Tira, Babes Wodumo,

Mapintsha and his favorite skits are with actor SK Khoza. Skits by Sphe urges new content

creators/youtubers to make sure to capitalize at every opportunity they may get, especially if

they go viral.

Dawud TV

Dawud Phungula aka the king of south is a graduate from the Durban University of Technology

who delivers entertainment news on his channel, focusing on local music genre, uMaskandi.

Phungula always aspired to be on TV, but due to lack of opportunity in KZN, he paved his own

way to stardom through his YouTube channel. Choosing his niche came with a lot of challenges

but Dawud has mastered his audience and gives them exactly what they want. “My niche is so

controversial! I have to make sure that the content I put out is correct and I do have proof of

what I’m informing my viewers. There’s no room for allegation stories or hearsay. My

subscribers would easily unsubscribe and furthermore tell others to unsubscribe if I’m uncertain

about my sources.” Phungula initially started his channel doing entertainment news in English

but decided to take a break. Upon his return it was harder for him to break into the market as

more YouTubers were producing the same type of content as his. This is what led him to

rebranding. “Changing my brand to focus on Maskandi and presenting in vernac is what makes

my channel stand out as there aren’t a lot of people producing this type of content for the

Maskandi market. Nabantu bayasho ukuthi sike siwabone amaYoutuber kodwa lecontent

oyenzayo nale channel ekanje, siyaqala ukuyibona le,” said Phungula. Phungula advises

content creators to market their content as much as they can. “I use social media platforms, I

have 60k subscribers but I still go to Facebook and ngiphushe into yami!”

Youtube 101 from the guys

Q: what is the YouTube channel starter kit?

Dawud: “We all have smart phones, those smartphones have editing apps. Unless you can

afford, but there’s no need to stress yourself over equipment. Your phone, Kuphelile!

Sphe: “Setting up a YouTube channel, you can do overnight. Maintaining it is expensive,

especially with shooting when you have to offer essentials for the crew. Also uploading the

video is expensive.”

Q: Can I make money on YouTube?

Dawud: “Yes, you need 1000 subscribers and 4000 hours watch time. To give you an estimate,

my first paycheck was R13 000.”

Sphe: “You get paid as much as you create. You need 1000 subscribers and 4000 hours watch

time. You need to qualify first then apply, then you can add ads because that’s how we make

money.”

Q: is there anything else you do besides Youtube?

Dawud: “There's nothing that I do besides YouTube, and I am the bread-winner at home.”

Sphe: “No, I’m a full-time content creator”

Both creators see their brands being named alongside giant media entities and corporations

from across the country.

By: Nontando Mhlongo