WRITERS TO KNOW: ZINTLE RAMANO
ZINTLE RAMANO
#SCORPIOSZN coming in hot! Zintle Ramano is an all-around creative and mental health advocate who is lending her powerful voice and careful curation to her poetry, podcasting, music, and her own BA Global Management that is representing black and African creatives. Born and raised in Johannesburg South Africa, Zintle’s work proves to be just as unique and rich as her heritage.
SHEER: Tell us a little bit about yourself.
ZINTLE RAMANO: I turned 25 on the 25th of this month, so this year is my crown birthday. I’m from Johannesburg South Africa born and bred I spent most of my adult life in Lucerne, Switzerland where I acquired a bachelor’s degree in global business management. My mother is Pedi and her ancestors are Venda. My father‘s ancestors are from Mozambique. His father was Zulu and his wife is coloured. In this context coloured refers to a race that exists in South Africa and not the derogatory term in America. In this context you could say that I am a composition of mixed African ancestry. I’m also a Scorpio and that is important because horoscopes are everything.
SHEER: Was there a definitive moment that inspired you to begin writing or did your interest grow over time?
ZR: My earliest memory from when I had decided to call myself a writer would be when I was about 9. I was taking a walk with my Mum and I told her “Hey Mum, when I grow up I want to be a writer like Jacqueline Wilson.“ Since then I’ve known it as the only way to communicate from how I feel to my thought-provoking philosophies. Currently I have been working on my debut project as an author for what feels like all my life. The book is done but it just needs to fall into the right hands. The publishing date will be announced when it is ready.
SHEER: Where did you primarily draw inspiration from for your writing?
ZR: My life and my love. I think the first time I broke out of the formal structures of English Poetry and actually began writing was during a time when I was dating this young artist. He told me, “I want you to write about me and write about us. Tell me how you really ‘feel, ‘“ so I was like, “ Aight bet.” When we broke up, I wrote a poem called “Dust.” Since then, time has healed wounds and the floodgates have opened and I have never stopped writing about anything or anyone I loved. In that sense, you could say he was my muse. My writing serves purpose in a form of adoration, pain, lust, healing or brokenness. As I grew older I realised I couldn’t just write about men or my love life anymore because that would devalue my life’s work to being centered around them. I then began writing on something closer to home which was my experience in life and society of being black first and being a woman second.
SHEER: We love the concept of your podcast The Importance of Things. How did you get into podcasting?
ZR: Wow so podcasting is still something very new to me. I think I woke up one day from writer’s block and had all of these thoughts, concepts and ideas in my head but they were stuck and fermenting without a release. Those thoughts then needed to be developed. So in general I have this habit of which I spoke to my psychologist and it’s very normal where I talk to myself everyday but not in the sense of having a conversation rather, thinking out loud. One day I opened GarageBand on my MacBook and I hit record making sure that this time everything that I used to say out loud to myself was being documented. Since then I’ve never shut up. I currently have three episodes out that exist on a cycle of 90 days before each one expires or fades out. They're titled The Importance of Vulnerability, The Importance of Boundaries, and The Importance of Ubuntu.
Ways in which I would say the podcast is relatable is that it speaks to what people go through in their everyday lives and the essence of human nature.
You can stream the podcast on all digital platforms including Spotify and Apple Music.
SHEER: How do you approach discussing mental health especially when it is viewed as such a stigma in communities of color?
ZR: Mental health is something very close to home for me and something I advocate for because it truly has become a part of my identity in life. From being misdiagnosed with bipolar disorder to finding out that it was borderline personality disorder which can be confused with multiple personality disorder. Battling with this illness in my 20s gave me an epiphany about why I had behaved in a certain manner and I can now take accountability as well as responsibility for my past self in order for my future self to grow. If anyone wants to know more about borderline personality disorder I would recommend listening to my mixes on SoundCloud . There is a playlist titled borderline personality disorder and each track is titled after a symptom of the illness. The intention is for the listener to understand the emotions that a sufferer goes through everyday. The ideology that people don’t need to be aware of their mental health is trash. I find myself knowing more about my triggers. I definitely believe that Communities of colour need to allocate more and destroy the stigma that mental health is somehow perpendicular to spirituality and or religion. That’s just not how your body’s chemistry works. People have issues and they need someone to talk to but most importantly professional help. I’m a big fan of therapy. It has really helped me navigate my life in a positive manner where prominent figures who may have also lacked the knowledge of professional help failed me in my life.
SHEER: How do you encourage women of color to set boundaries and take care of themselves mentally and emotionally in this world?
ZR: I would like to use a quote I had spoken about in the Importance of Boundaries episode of my podcast by Oprah Winfrey which states:
“You have to be able to set boundaries otherwise the rest of the world is telling you who you are and what you should be doing. You can still be a nice person and set boundaries.”
SHEER: Tell us more about BAAB Media Group and why you started it?
ZR: BAAB aka Black African and Beautiful Media Group was started because of the lack of representation in mainstream media pertaining to black and African people. Fortunately that narrative is slowly changing. Virgil Abloh constantly reminds us in interviews that we’re living in the black Renaissance. The world has always had its eyes on Africa, the only difference now is that the desire for Africa and its people is not for self gain and self-interest instead it is merely for celebrating its people who make it a land of serendipity. BAAB Media Group in its youth has been fortunate enough to have worked for Art Basel, Afropunk, Tastemakers Africa, Musgrave Gin and many more companies. Currently BAAB Media Group is focusing on app development and talent management from music to the visual arts. This year has definitely been about music and our in-house female artist $AUCE BABY will be dropping a debut project soon. We are also in the conception phase of a publishing house.
SHEER: How do you juggle working on so many different projects but still staying true to yourself and adding your unique touch throughout them?
ZR: This is a very important question and would be the first time that someone who is not myself is asking it. To be honest if you do not stand for something you’ll fall for anything. The first and most important thing is discipline as well as the art of filtering outside influences from your system. Secondly is what Drake would define as knowing yourself. I know myself, I know who I am, I know my identity, and I don’t allow anyone else to tell me about myself. This I guess you could say is my unique touch; my authenticity is being myself and the only difference between me and everyone else is that I bring ‘ me’ to the table and no one else can do that. That is my superpower.
SHEER: What do you hope is the number one thing women of color take away from your work?
ZR: That they are beautiful. That they have a voice. That they should use it to make demands and get what they want and deserve. That they are powerful. That they need to stop seeking validation outside of self. That they need to learn to love themselves, but most importantly to find new reasons to love themselves everyday.
Check out more of Zintle’s work below:
“i think i have become so aware of my worth, and i am not taking about materialism or financial gain but, worth in presence. when i come to think of the amount of emotional labour and emotional support that i invest into relationships or friendships, i realize that it is genuine, pure and gold. because of the nature of my intensity and my character of being observant, i always wonder about reciprocity; lack of or absence. part of being conscious is becoming aware that boundaries are important. being empathetic is knowing that i am full of myself and although my cup runneth over those boundaries will not allow you to drink me dry.
— keep your cup full + set boundaries // zintle ramano”