Soft-spoken Motlhokathari lauds move to RB2
Gasebalwe Seretse | Wednesday April 16, 2014 11:11
Speaking to Showbiz in an interview, Motlhokathari said that RB2 has given him a platform to showcase his presenting skills, which are being lapped up by legions of his fans.
“I really love the fact that my show is loved by people from diverse backgrounds and age brackets. It excites me that both the young and the old are ardent followers of the show,” he said.
The show which is aptly called Sunday Ballads was previously hosted by the late Kago Setshogo, who had carved a name for himself on radio.
Motlhokathari concurs that filling Setshogo’s big shoes was not an easy job, but listeners warmed up to him and today he mostly gets positive feedback.
In the show, Motlhokathari plays soothing songs and he says that he makes sure that he talks less and when he does, he speaks only inspiring words to his listeners.
“What makes it easy for me to present Sunday Ballads is the fact that I grew up listening to the kind of music I play on radio. These are the songs that I always had in my playlist at home so I always know what I want to play,” he said.
Motlhokathari said that it was not easy sailing for him to be where he is today as he was rejected two times before he made the cut. He said that he served to prove that determination eventually pays dividends.
Paying tribute to his predecessor, Motlhokathari said that he had always admired Setshogo when he presented the show and said the late presenter was good at his job. He said that he used to follow the show by Setshogo and he realised that they actually loved the same songs.
“Today, I get people posting on Facebook saying that I remind them of Setshogo as our voices sound the same and I play most of the songs he used to play,” Motlhokathari said.
He added that he felt his talent is being appreciated at RB2 as he has been given two more slots to present news headlines and full bulletins at 4:30 pm and 5:00 pm, respectively daily.
He said that the people that inspired him to be on radio are Emmanuel ‘Emmax’ Letshwiti and Gloria Kgosi. The young man said that now that he is on radio, he is determined to make him a brand that will be around for a long time.
“I am addicted to you Sunday Ballads, I can’t get out of my bed listening to this programme,” one of Motlhokathari’s 10,000 followers on Facebook said.
“I wanna tell you this, Sunday Ballads is the bomb Resego,” another said.
Motlhokathari who is also a presenter on the much-loved My Star talent search programme on Botswana Television warned that it was not easy to have a break on both radio and TV. He said his faith came in handy when things looked bleak after not making it at auditions.
“I believe God never says no, he just says not now. You must always believe that your time to succeed is coming despite facing challenges,” he said.
The young man is also a freelance model who is not tied to any modelling agency in the country.