By Noko Mashilo
At just 28, Edwin Masoane is already living several careers that most people spend a lifetime chasing. He is an executive radio producer at CUT FM 105.8, a national award-winning content producer, a former student CFO, a live television production crew member for SuperSport Schools and a fast-rising DJ.
But behind the achievements lies a story of resilience, reinvention and refusing to be boxed into one identity.
Born and raised in Sebokeng Zone 14 in the Vaal Triangle, Masoane says the streets that shaped him also taught him how to fight for his future. “I was always the odd one out because I had crazy ideas and I wanted to execute them,” he told Vula Vala.
“People thought I was too active, too ambitious and sometimes too difficult, but I always wanted to be at the top.”
His teenage years were marked by hardship after the death of his father in 2007. Bullying pushed him into a gang, but he later walked away and formed a learner protection group called Sdala with four friends.
What began as a response to intimidation grew into a 20-member organisation that helped protect bullied pupils across Hoërskool Drie Riviere.
Financial struggles later forced him to leave the Central University of Technology after NSFAS funding fell through. Instead of giving up, he enrolled at PasMedia College to study radio production. His break came when CUT FM heard his WokeCandy podcast and recruited him. Within the same year, he was promoted to Executive Radio Producer.
Today he oversees some of the station’s flagship programmes, including Y’ellow Mornings, CampusHangout, Midday Experience and NXT LVL Drive.
Masoane says radio production is far more than pressing buttons. “The presenter is the voice people hear, but the producer is the mastermind behind the scenes. Before a show goes on air, we find the stories, book guests, prepare scripts, plan the music and manage the timing. Once the microphones open, we direct the entire broadcast from the control room.”
His work has earned national recognition. Speaking about winning a national daytime radio award, Masoane remained focused on teamwork rather than individual glory. “Taking home a national award felt incredible and unreal,” he said.
“I always say we won. When you work behind the scenes, you don’t always feel seen, so that recognition meant a lot for the entire team.”
Away from radio, Masoane also served as Chief Financial Officer of Enactus at CUT. He says the experience taught him discipline that still guides his media career. “Balancing creativity and finance comes down to treating creativity like a business and business like a creative challenge. The budgeting, planning and structure I learned as a CFO now help me run productions and events professionally.”
Music has always been part of his DNA. Raised in a family of singers, DJs and music lovers, Masoane remembers listening to his late father’s cassettes every Sunday. In 2025 he fell in love with DJ equipment at the radio station and began spending nights teaching himself how to mix.
“I would leave the station at one in the morning, five or six days a week, until I finally understood the craft,” he said.
One of his most memorable performances came at Die Mystic Boer, where he was initially uncertain about being the only black DJ in the venue. “I thought of quitting, but I played anyway. Some people walked out when they saw me, but when the music started they came back. The support I received changed everything.”
His growing resume includes collaborations with brands such as Red Bull and Starbucks, live television work with SuperSport Schools and a national finance award won during the 2021 Summer Action Ideation Challenge. Yet Masoane says his proudest achievements are more personal: helping feed more than 300 homeless people during a winter drive, inspiring his younger sisters and seeing his mother smile when he became the first in his immediate household to attend university.
For young people chasing careers in media, finance or entertainment, his advice is simple and direct. “Whatever idea sounds crazy, do it with full force. Regret is the most everlasting pain. Don’t let people tell you your dream is impossible.”
As he prepares for upcoming performances at Red Bull Agri-Grit(23 Jul 2026), Die Mystic Boer (31 July 2026), and other events, Masoane believes the future belongs to people who refuse to choose between logic and passion.
“Your analytical mind does not have to silence your creative heart, you are allowed to be both the structure and the energy, the anchor and the sail,” said the young man.
