Mandi Vundla is a recording artist, poet, creative entrepreneur, educator and co-editor of Home Is Where The Mic Is. She founded Africa Is A Poem: A Literature Marketplace, translating African literature into handcrafted gifts and interactive literary experiences to promote and preserve African literature in a fun and meaningful way. She rose to critical acclaim through the Word N Sound slam poetry movement, becoming the only two-time undefeated slam champion to ever hold the title.

Sabelo Soko is a poet, performer and creative entrepreneur from Mkhondo in Mpumalanga. With over 23 years of experience, his catalogue includes studio records, books, theatre productions, films, live event curation, curriculum development, advertising and community development. In 2020, he founded the Heroes Creative Joint, an independent arts centre that serves as a cultural hub for local artists in his hometown. Soko is passionate about original African stories and the preservation thereof.

Nomashenge Dlamini is a poet, vocalist, musician and cultural worker in the performing arts industry with a career spanning just over 2 decades. Dlamini was born a poet, having a distinct and memorable creative curiosity from a very early age. This distinction saw her increasingly going inward, an isolation in which she depended on her imagination as a refuge, driving further her fascination with words, metaphors and rhythm. Her literary world is rooted in and inspired by her faith, in which the “word” is the firstborn of all creation that gave birth to all matter.

Bopha Blackman AFM is not just a rapper, but a living, breathing movement. Born and raised in Zola, Soweto, he is a drum-beating storyteller carving out a sound that is raw, electric, and unapologetically African. His music is where fierce vernacular rap meets the heartbeat of live percussion, a powerful fusion that honours his roots while boldly challenging the norm. His journey began in 2006 with the Deep Soweto rap collective, a space that shaped his voice and sharpened his craft. It was there he learned to speak truth through rhythm, cutting through silence with lyrics grounded in kasi life.