Actor and singer Joseph Mitchell, 61, is among three “ordinary people” who made the final cut of a reality programme called Wat dit Vat, in which music producer Loki Rothman aims to make them pop stars.
The programme takes KykNet viewers on a “musical journey” every Monday evening, where the three pop star hopefuls are given advice on the industry, given a make-over and have a song written for them by popular artists.
Mr Mitchell, from Welcome Estate, as well as Michelle Joy and Edo du Plessis, are the top three who will each release a single and music video on Monday December 27. He is an actor known for his role as uncle Johnny in the popular telenovela, Arendsvlei, who says he always wanted to sing, and has performed in a few theatrical musicals, but that his music career never took off.
“I am excited, because at my age, I might be a pop star.
“I could never make a breakthrough with my music. I have entered many competitions over the years, including the Shell Road to Fame, but I just never made the cut. When this opportunity came along, I did not hesitate to sign up for the auditions. I am very happy that I made it to be among the top three.
“On the last episode on Monday December 27, our music videos will be released. Early B wrote a rap song for me, called Ek en my hond likes nie die laatie nie,” Mr Mitchell said.
The programme came about after Mr Rothman shared a video on social media, asking his followers if they thought he could turn his friend Pieter-Niel Muller into a pop star. According to a KykNet media release, this social experiment was the seed that was planted and led to this national television programme.
If his age were anything to go by, said Mr Mitchell, he was proof that you should never give up on your dreams.
“Young people of today should not feel too discouraged if things didn’t work out for them initially. You must just try and try again. It might look like nothing is happening, but you must just push ahead,” he said.
