What does the “K” in your name “K Naomi” stand for?
It’s for my first name, Keitumetsi.
All Accessis back and you’re one of its new presenters alongside Lawrence Maleka and Dash,how do you feel about your new gig?
I’m excited, it’s a new venture for me and I’m ecstatic to be part of the Mzansi Magic family. Every opportunity that comes my way allows for something new and fresh and an opportunity to grow and become a better person.
What can fans expect from this new season of All Access?
They can expect a more mature me. I know that the show has changed so much – viewers can anticipate fresher and greater content. We’ll be offering you an exclusive pass to everything Mzansi.
Do you feel 2017 is finally the year for you to be recognised?
I feel it’s my year of many firsts. I don’t know if it’s my year to rise because I have so many goals and plans that I want to achieve. This isn’t to say I’m ungrateful for what’s happening now and the opportunities that I’ve already got but there’s so much more I want for myself. My dream is bigger than what’s happening now. I’ve had a great year workwise and bagged being ambassador for Reebok, Vogue Eyewear, and make-up brand Maybelline as their global IT girl and now All Access.
What do you think has changed that has resulted in you clinching these gigs?
I enjoy what I do and I’m not in [the entertainment industry] to be popular. The brands I’ve aligned myself with recognise a part of me that makes sense to them. I’ve grown a lot over the years; I started in the industry in 2012. I’m real and very open in terms of who I am and perhaps that’s the different thing I bring to the table.
What have been the highlights and challenges in the five years of your career?
There’ve been a lot of frustrations and one of them is that jobs will come to you only if you are popular and you also face a thousand rejections.
What are some of the plans you’ve set out for yourself?
I’m never vocal about my plans but rather let people see what I’m doing. I definitely want to become a bigger presenter as it’s something that I enjoy doing. I feel I haven’t had an opportunity to show what I’m really about and made of. The work that I’ve done previously has included being surrounded by a lot of other people which has sometimes overshadowed my capabilities.
What do you feel you bring into the entertainment industry?
Sometimes we don’t grow up in the best homes. I had an absent father, I’ve lost my mom, my grandmother recently passed away – she was my late mother’s mom and so I’ve lost both my moms. I used to be a problem child and I’ve derailed from the road now and then – but it’s okay to not be perfect. You can grow from that and become a better person.
Every celeb speaks of rejection within the entertainment industry, what’s your experience of it?
We all knock on doors and sometimes those doors don’t open – I always just say that if it’s not for you then learn to move on. I’m very realistic and that helps with everything I go through. It’s great also to know why you didn’t get a certain opportunity. I ask directors and producers during castings what it is that I didn’t bring, what is it that didn’t work for them. I then build on that as best as I can and try to better it so that I don’t go to the next door and be told the same thing.
