Siyabonga Mlungisi Shibe (born 23 February 1978) is a South African actor from Umlazi, KwaZulu-Natal.

Early life

Shibe was born and raised in

Umlazi Umlazi is a township in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, located south-west of Durban. Organisationally and administratively it forms part of the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality and its South Municipal Planning Region. It is the fourth largest ...

, Kwazulu-Natal. He attended Ganges Secondary School, where his teachers encouraged him to pursue acting. As a child, Shibe would regularly participate in community plays in Umlazi. After finishing high school, he went to study drama at

Technikon Natal Technikon Natal is located in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and has now merged with ML Sultan Technikon to form the Durban University of Technology. History Technikon Natal was founded by Dr Samuel George Campbell in 1907. In 1912, thr ...

. Shibe, along other fellow students at Technikon Natal, formed a theatre group called Amagugu. After completing his studies he went to

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

to further pursue his dream of being an actor. Siyabonga Shibe is a father of 2. Nomthandazo Ngcobo age 25 that and Yena Shibe age 11.

Career

Upon his arrival in Johannesburg, he faced various obstacles but his luck changed when he bagged an advert for

HIV/AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

awareness. He went on to land a role in a feature film called ''The Stripes of a Hero''. In 2002 to 2005, he bagged a leading role as Sifiso in the

SABC1 SABC 1 is a South African public television network operated by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC). It broadcasts programming in English and Nguni languages, Nguni languages. SABC 1 was established in 1996 following the SABC's res ...

drama series ''Gaz'lam''. The series went on to receive multiple nominations from the South African Film and Television Awards. After he finished filming the first season of ''Gaz'lam'', Shibe was cast as James in the feature film '' James' Journey to Jerusalem'', written and directed by

Ra'anan Alexandrowicz 'Ra'anan Alexandrowicz'' (; born August 29, 1969) is a director, screenwriter and editor. He was born in Jerusalem. He is known for the documentary ''The Law in These Parts'' (2011), for which he received the Grand Jury Award at the Sundance Film ...

. The film revolves around an African teenager named James who goes on a

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a travel, journey to a holy place, which can lead to a personal transformation, after which the pilgrim returns to their daily life. A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) w ...

to the Holy Land on behalf of his village. Shibe ended up winning the Best Male Actor award at the Jerusalem International Film Festival. He also landed a role in the

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

mini-series ''

Human Cargo ''Human Cargo'' is a 2004 Canadian television miniseries. The series won seven Gemini Awards and two Directors Guild of Canada Awards. It premiered on CBC Television on January 4, 2004 and starred Kate Nelligan, Cara Pifko, Bayo Akinfemi and Nic ...

''. The series won seven Gemini Awards and two Directors Guild Awards. He also starred in the British series ''Wild At Heart'' and ''Mtunzini.com''; however, Shibe resigned from the latter due to financial disputes. In 2006, he played the role of Mad Dog in the feature film ''The Trail''. In 2007, he played the role of Mandla Nyawose in the drama series ''Bay of Plenty''. In 2008, he was cast to portray the role of Thami in the drama series ''A Place Called Home''. From 2010 to 2014, Shibe portrayed the character of Kila, a smart, shrewd and violent taxi driver in the e.tv soap opera '' Scandal!''. He was awarded the Best Actor award at the Duku Duku Awards for his role as Kila. In 2015, Shibe landed a role in the e.tv telenovela '' Ashes to Ashes''; his portrayal of the character Kgosi earned him a SAFTA nomination for Best Actor. In 2017, he left Johannesburg for

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

to join the most viewed South African television show, ''

Uzalo ''Uzalo'' is a South African soap opera produced by Stained Glass Productions, which is co-owned by Kobedi "Pepsi" Pokane and Gugu Zuma-Ncube. It began airing in 2015, quickly becoming a hit due to its compelling narrative, writing, direction ...

'', where he portrays the role of Qhabanga Mhlongo.

Filmography

Television roles

* ''Ashes to Ashes'' (Kgosi) * ''Z'bondiwe'' (Bheka Shabangu) * ''A Place Called Home'' (as Thami) * ''Bay of Plenty'' (as Mandla Nyawose) * ''Doubt'' (as Captain Dube) * ''Gaz'lam'' (as Sifiso) * ''Generations'' (as Joshua) * ''Home Affairs'' (as Zakes) * ''

Isidingo ''Isidingo'' was a South African soap opera, with dialogue mostly in English and isiXhosa. The series premiered on SABC 3 in July 1998 and was broadcast evenings on SABC 3 from Monday to Friday at 19:00. Until 2001 it was titled ''Isidingo: The ...

'' (as Detective Nelson Xaba) * ''Is'thunzi'' (as Matthews) * ''Madiba'' (as Chief Jongintaba) * ''Mtunzini.com'' (as Waxy) * ''Scandal!'' (as Kila) * ''Silent Witness'' (as Maidstone) * ''Stokvel'' (as Richard) * ''Wild at Heart'' (Themba Khumalo) * ''Uzalo'' (Qhabanga Khumalo) * ''The Wife'' (Gwaza Majola) * Sibongile & The Dlamini's (Njengaye Dlamini)

Personal life

Siyabonga Shibe is a proud father of two children: a daughter, Nomthandazo Mickey Ngcobo and a son Yena Shibe. He prefers to keep his children out of the public spotlight. Shibe raised his son as a single parent, while his daughter was primarily raised by her mother's family.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shibe, Siyabonga 1978 births Living people Male actors from Durban Zulu people South African male television actors