Leendert Breedt – A mogul in the making

Leendert Breedt is on the fast track to success!

The 20-year-old moved to Newcastle at the beginning of the year, hoping to find solace in a small town.

“I lived in Durban and Bloemfontein previously, so Newcastle seemed a lot smaller at first.”

After a nudge in the right direction from his father, Jacques Breedt, Leendert made his start at a restaurant.

Just three months later, he was offered a position at another local establishment.

His employer received positive feedback from the public, prompting him to promote the youngster to junior manager of the eatery.

“I enjoy working with people. I don’t know what the future holds, but for now, I’m happy where I am,” he said.

Away from the hustle and bustle of his job, Leendert turns to music for inspiration.

“Every time I listen to a song, I hear something that inspires me to do what I do best, even better. I enjoy listening to all types of music.”

As a teenager, Leendert found peace as a performer. Proof thereof is the number of compliments he has received to date.

“I’ve received a lot of compliments about my music and song writing. I wrote a song once, and asked my best friend to listen to it. She actually starting crying, and the song wasn’t even about her. I took that as a major compliment!” he exclaimed.

Since moving to Newcastle, Leendert is yet to perform on stage, but is considering going local.

“When I lived in Bloemfontein, I performed a lot. I was lucky enough to perform on stage with Afrikaans singer, Brendan Peyper, which was kind of cool.”

Spoiler alert! Leendert is currently writing a song about Newcastle; a hit the youngster cannot wait to record.

“I think it’s actually quite a good song. I hope on the day I perform it, people will enjoy it.”

Music isn’t just a hobby for the youngster. He envisions himself making it big time one day.

“I see myself going places. I don’t only sing, I rap as well; I’m versatile in that sense and consider myself a modern musician,” he said.

In the coming months, Leendert is determined to create a YouTube channel to get his name and music out there.

He wrote a song recently and is currently planning to shoot a music video for it.

“I want that to be the first video I upload. I’m really looking forward to it.”

Leendert goes by the stage name, DJ Leo, but admitted it seemed a bit cliché.

“Nowadays, everyone is DJ something, so I’m thinking of just going by Leo.”

On a more serious note, Leendert said there are often misconceptions about him.

“The first thought people usually have is that I’m a player, which I’m totally not. I consider myself a gentleman, who treats women with the utmost respect,” he explained.

People assume Leendert is judgemental, but he said the assumption could not be further from the truth.

“Maybe it’s the way I dress,” he said, cracking a smile.

Aside from his budding career, Leendert enjoys mountain biking, swimming and going to the gym.

“I work long hours, but when I have time to get everything done, I give it my all.”

On balancing work and his personal life, Leendert said the best thing to do was to make work your personal life.

Instead of taking a gap year or going on a matric holiday, he made the commitment to make a life for himself; an endeavour he has been prosperous in.

“I think I’m doing quite well for myself. One of the quotes I live by is, to reach success you must work like a slave.”

Leendert’s advice to those looking to following in his footsteps is to not hesitate. “When you hesitate, you lose focus on what you want to accomplish. If you see an opportunity, take it. That’s the best advice I could ever give,” he concluded.

Leendert’s career, talent and boyish charm make him a triple threat. All that’s left to say is: “Watch out world!”