A village boy with big dreams
James Shikwambana is a village boy with big dreams and an even bigger drive to succeed
POLOKWANE – James Shikwambana is a village boy with big dreams and an even bigger drive to succeed.
Shikwambana was born in rural Mulati village, outside Tzaneen and is currently based in Polokwane.
He started his career in the media at the age of 18 when he joined Munghana Lonene FM right after matric. Even though he had no formal qualifications or experience, he had passion and determination.
He slowly but surely climbed the ladder, gaining qualifications in business management, marketing management, leadership development, broadcasting courses and recently completed a law programme. He has won more than 22 awards in his broadcasting career and was the first black radio journalist to win the SAB journalist of the year award in 2005.
After working for Munghana Lonene FM for some time, he decided to spread his wings and moved over to Radio 2000 as station manager. In 2012 Shikwambana returned to Munghana Lonene FM because of the love he had for his language and his people.
“The station was bleeding in terms of listenership, we had to regain listeners by making a change by introducing exciting and educational programmes,” he says.
Shikwambana initiated the concept of the Xitsonga Music Awards when he was a junior employee at the station. The awards gained popularity and have been in existence for 13 years.
“I have been a judge at the South African Music Awards for many years and I saw how Xitsonga artists are sidelined. Their music was not taken into consideration and that is when the idea of the Xitsonga Music Awards was born,” he explains.
Shikwambana is blessed with a wife and two children. He says he is an independent thinker, and a go-getter. He is passionate and does not believe in giving up after failing. He says Rome was not built in a day, so perseverance is what a person needs to achieve their goals.
“Don’t let anything stop you from reaching your goals, work hard in everything, upgrade yourself in terms of education and support others so they can also support you,” he concludes.
