DJ Zinhle graces the December cover of True Love magazine.

Having made Mail & Guardian’s list of 200 young South Africans you must take to lunch, it’s not hard to see why Ntombezinhle Jiyane or better known as DJ Zinhle has become house music royalty.

From a small town in KwaZulu-Natal Zinhle reveals how she never had any ambitions to become an ‘it girl’, “I wish I could have the success minus the popularity,” she says in her proudly KZN isiZulu accent. “I’m just a grounded Zulu girl who’s in love with clothes, shoes and my boyfriend.”

Zinhle joined the DJing scene in 2004, a time when it was still very much a man’s world. She managed to grab the attention of Mzansi’s most respected DJ’s; DJ Oskido who today thinks of her as a little sister. “I told her to carry on the way she has been – keep away from drugs, alcohol and the wrong crowds,” says Oskido. “If she keeps respecting her fans and everyone she comes into contact with, the way she’s always done, she’ll be fine.”

Today Zinhle spends her days at Fuse Academy, a female-only DJing school she co-owns with her best friend of 15 years, Nomndeni Mdakhi. Although she refuses to reveal who the mysterious guy in her life is, Zinhle blushes with a glow on her face as she mentions how falling in love has been the best thing to have happened to her this year.

With December being her birthday month, DJ Zinhle explains how she has no idea how she will be celebrating the big 30. The festive season is usually a busy time for DJ’s which means she will only be home for Christmas lunch and then jet off to an annual gig.

Read the full story in the December issue of True Love magazine.

Images via Facebook/TrueLoveMag