Why I took umbrage at Kelly Khumalo’s ‘I don’t like journalists’ comment

The disdain that she displayed towards the media in episode two, was disturbing, writes Debashine Thangevelo

I DIDN’T plan on writing anything beyond what has already been written about the third season of Kelly Khumalo’s reality show on Showmax. I think the timing of it – with the interest around the Senzo Meyiwa trial – heightened its appeal.

But the boredom of load-shedding saw me stream the first two episodes of Life with Kelly Khumalo.

I find the Safta award-winning reality show entertaining.

After all, being a fly on the wall in the life of a celebrity can be therapeutic.

So what changed my mind? Well, I took umbrage at her comment about journalists, to be honest.

The disdain that she displayed towards the media in episode two was disturbing.

Having followed several of her reality shows, I understand that Life with Kelly Khumalo is about her revealing who she is as a person.

As she’s pointed out in several interviews we’ve done so far that she’s not looking to set any record straight – even though she inadvertently does so.

Now, as a woman, I respect her standpoint. That she is unapologetic about all she does is no secret.

In my last interview with her, for season 2, she said: “I’m not here to please anyone. It is my life and my journey. If you don’t like it, look away.”

Back to the new show. In the second episode, Khumalo attended an exclusive French affair at a private residence.

Throughout the commentary for the show, she made it clear that air kisses and fake conversations are not for her. Nor is posing for the camera.

She clearly didn’t get the brief about what being a public figure entails.

Of course, with the media at the event, she was grabbed for a quick comment. And the young host made the cardinal mistake of asking her how she is dealing with the drama.

Kudos to her for not rolling her eyes. Her response was something we’ve come to expect.

She fobbed it off as it was not hers to deal with. It’s theirs. End of story.

Towards the end of the episode, there was a luncheon and Khumalo found herself seated at a table of journalists.

Now such a set-up is not uncommon when a PR wants to get maximum coverage for an artist.

However, Khumalo perhaps wasn’t briefed on what this would entail as you could see her struggle to contain her fury when she was bombarded with questions.

But isn’t that why she was there? To promote her work, to get coverage for it.

And awkward questions are bound to come up.

In her feedback commentary on the reality show, she said: “I am not a fan of journalists.”

Again, that is okay. When you live under public scrutiny, you will have a jaded view of anyone who calls you out.

That said, she had no qualms when the media wrote about her launching Controversy Gin or releasing her eighth studio album, Voice of Africa, or its success.

The next time she decides to shade the media, she needs to remember that they were the ones that helped her with publicity after she won a gospel talent show and was finding her foot in this cutthroat industry.

She also needs to acknowledge that as a celebrity, what you say and do matters. So the next time she has something to say, she might want to choose her words more wisely.

“Life with Kelly Khumalo 3” is streaming on Showmax.

Kelly Khumalo is back with season 3 of Life with Kelly Khumalo. Picture: Supplied