When we first heard that Papa Penny would be getting his own reality show, a ton of assumptions came to mind, but what we got instead was a big surprise.
Not only did we instantly become fans of the man behind the music, we got to know so much about him with each and every episode that we couldn’t wait to catch each week’s new episode.
One of the things that kept us coming back was his 29-year-old son, Bafana Mdluli. “Most of my children take their mother's surname but I am their favourite. That boy, I am so happy when he comes to see me," said Papa Penny the first time Bafana appeared on the show. It is no secret that like his father, Papa Penny has quite a number of children but Bafana was a welcome surprise (just look at him).
And we at ZAlebs aren’t the only ones on Team Bafana. A number of ladies across SA have fallen hard for the brother so we caught up with him to find out more about him, his love for modelling and what qualities he wants his ideal woman to have.
One of the main things we found out about Bafana when he was first brought onto the show is that he is an aspiring model and that he had a lot of offers for work on the table. When asked how that’s going, Bafana said “it’s going well, I just told myself I’m not going to rush into anything that doesn’t look legit because there have been a lot of offers but nothing concrete yet.”
He also mentions that modelling has always been his first love and as such, fitness comes easy to him. “If I’m not in they gym then i’m playing soccer or boxing to keep fit,” explains Bafana. Once his modelling career is up and running, Bafana says he’d also like to try his hand at acting. Why not reality stardom we ask…?
“I really just want to concentrate on me and my modelling right now, not piggy backing on my dad’s fame,” explains Bafana.
We then ask if that means we won’t be seeing him on the next season of Papa Penny Ahee?
“Fans will just have to wait and see,” he replies.
So there will be a season 2 we ask?
“Eish, I don’t even know if I should be saying this but season 2 is in the pipeline.”
And as for whether or not he’ll feature on the show, Bafana repeats “they’ll just have to wait and see.”
Even though he featured on the first season of the show, we asked him what his favourite moment to watch on season 1 was and he said that it wasn’t necessarily his favourite thing to watch but he was just so surprised to watch the drama that unfolded when another one of his siblings threw a tantrum about wanting to be the first born.
“I really don’t know why he did that but it was just crazy to watch.”
Speaking of siblings, his siblings have some very interesting names like his sister, Nomi, who’s full name is actually nomination. When asked if he has an English name, Bafana says no but explains the origin of his name.
“I don’t have an english name. I don’t know who gave me that name but I think it’s from my mom’s side,” he says, before adding “I grew up in Swaziland with my mom’s side of the family, when I was born, I had curly hair and looked like a girl and everyone used to refer to me as intombazane so they gave me the name Bafana to clear all that up.”
Hmm, so he’s Swati…
We then got down to the pertinent questions starting with what kind of woman is his ideal woman.
“I like a woman who is sophisticated, knows their values, knows who they are, is respectful and religious,” said Bafana.
As for relationships, he explained that it’s the simple things that matter to him. “Just tell me everyday that you love me, that’s all. I’m a simple guy. In a relationship, it’s the simple things that matter to me.”
This provided the perfect opportunity to slide in a fan question submitted via Facebook from Ceboh Cele; are you gigantic or romantic?
“I’m a romantic… Definitely a romantic,” replied Bafana after dying from laughter by the question.
He also let us know that he loves reading motivational books and travelling. He is currently reading Beyond Talent by John C Maxwell and though he hasn’t travelled anywhere recently, he plans to soon as the only thing standing in the way of him doing more of that is money. Once it starts rolling in, he’ll be on the next plane to lord knows where, but he’ll definitely be returning home as he loves it here, especially the food.
“I think SA is diverse unique culture and you’ll rarely find that elsewhere so I miss the way we interact [when I travel] and our food. I think we’ve got the best food ever. I love pap with any type of meat. I don’t eat it much but it love it.”
So there you have it ladies. We cannot give you his number and address but we’ve equipped you with everything you need to know about Bafana. The rest is up to you. If you just so happen to be the one who wins his heart, please don’t forget to invite us to the wedding? Thanks
Main image credit: instagram.com/bafanamdluli/