Wilson B Nkosi was recently honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the South African Voiceover Awards.
Broadcaster Wilson B Nkosi has one of the most recognisable voices in the country.
From the mere mention of his name, most South Africans will most likely hear his husky and warm voice uttering the words “sounds and stuff like that”.
“People have a lot to say about my voice. It is only when people make all sorts of (flattering) comments that I think there must be some element of truth to what they say,” Nkosi tells The Citizen.
The Metro FM broadcaster was recently honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the South African Voiceover Awards for his contributions to the space.
“I see the South African Voiceover Lifetime Achievement Award bestowed on me is an appreciation, an acknowledgement and a recognition for the special and concerted effort I have made to achieve my highest and best and to reach my full potential in my carefully chosen path of human endeavour,” shares Nkosi.
The voiceover awards are the brainchild of Sinemivuyo Mpulu.
“With a career that has inspired generations, brought communities together, and set the standard for excellence, uBab’ Nkosi is truly a national treasure,” said Mpulu.
The awards were held this past weekend at the Indaba Hotel in Fourways, Johannesburg.
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Wislon B Nkosi not a self-made man
Nkosi says this recognition is a reminder that he is not a self-made man.
“I am community-made. Many marketing executives and people behind some of the most iconic brands in this country had enough faith in me to believe that I could be the appropriate messenger to carry their message to their target market and for that, I am eternally grateful, very thankful and most humbled,” the broadcaster says.
Reflecting on his career in the voice-over space, Nkosi says he’s been lending his voice to brands for nearly 40 years.
“I have been doing voice-over work pretty much for as long as I have been doing radio (39 long years and still counting),” he says.
His first-ever voiceover was done at the SABC shortly after his broadcasting career began. Radio Active, the advertising division of the SABC at the time, booked him.
“I have been a principal player in the voiceover space all my working life and the huge demand for me to lend my voice to big-budget advertising campaigns is enough reason to believe that I have been given ‘the gift of voice’,” he says.
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Voiceover industry
Nkosi says the voiceover industry is not easy to break into.
“…and if you are lucky to find yourself in that space, you encounter stiff competition, especially for those who do voiceover work in English,” shares Nkosi.
He says this is because the industry has an avid appetite for new talent, people with fresh voices.
“People who possess that extra something that you may not put your finger on, but you know it when you hear it. That said, you have distinctive voices that people can’t seem to get enough of. These tend to survive the constant and inevitable strong winds of change. They survive the changing seasons.”
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