At just 20 years old, Karabo Masemola is already a young CEO determined to break the glass ceiling in the usually male-dominated spectrum of the entertainment industry. She has founded and hosts The Share Button show on YouTube.
The show is centred on interviewing thespians, prominent media personalities and other individuals from different industries whereby they share their experiences and journeys. Masemola is a third-year drama and theatre student at the University of Witwatersrand. She hails from Klerksdorp in the North-West and has always had a passion for the entertainment industry. The vision to create her own show was born after an audition for Craz-e did not go well.
“There was a time when Craz-e had online auditions and I auditioned two days late, and they took it. I was called for call-backs to audition at their studios and it didn’t really work out. Right after I walked out of that room, I told myself that I’ve always had the vision to do this thing and right then I believed I had a power to do it myself. So I took my phone and started a conversation with one of the judges for Craz-E. That’s how The Share Button was born.”
Masemola revealed that the reason behind the success and consistency of her show is because she is a storyteller.
“I am a storyteller, which is why I’m a drama student. I like to speak, I like to share information, so I was like let me start a talk show where I interview people from different industries not just celebrities and well-established people, but also upcoming individuals who are striving to make it on their desired industries. I use the share button a tool to combat unemployment and lack of skills through the content and also celebrating black excellence.”
The Share Button is getting a growing momentum and Masemola has interviewed many prominent figures like the renowned Dr John Kani, Camilla Waldman, Cassper Nyovest, Thabiso Cornet Mamabolo, Khulu Skenjana and some people in the activism space at Wits. She recently won a Black Entertainment Award for The Share Button. However, the journey was not as easy as it came with a lot of difficulties.
“Things like money, equipment, transport and location gave me a hard time to start up but I made it all happen,” she reminisced.
Masemola currently does not have a studio for her show but she relies on location hub and the comfort of the person she is interviewing or having a conversation with. The show has eventually grown to an extent where Masemola now collaborates with Blaxploitation for videography which gives her episodes best quality compared to when she used to film them with her phone.
Masemola is currently having conversations with potential investors and plans to have conversations with more in order to take her show further. You can follow The Share Button of Instagram @_thesharebutton.
