He is a slasher of note, dabbling in more than the art scene. He is not only a poet but a medical doctor, playwright and occasional soccer player. I am talking about the one and only, Linda Masilela. He was introduced into the art scene by his brother and has never looked back, “It’s been a pleasant journey to say the least”, he shares. He adds that the road is not always smooth, but the highs are always worth it, texture is everything after all.
“God is the creator of the universe. He created humans with His likeness. And from that we have some God in us. So, we can infer that we are also creators”, he says. He shares that that is where his love for creation sprouts from, from God being a creator and him being made like God. He shares that people inspire his art, “I think there are so many stories to be told and I feel the urge to tell these stories”. He passionately shares that he finds it special that he gets to make archives of what is happening now so that future generations will have stories of our fears, aspirations, struggles and victories to reflect on.
He says his greatest highlight of his art career to date has to be when he performed in front of 500 high school students at Unisa for the Tshwane Youth Leadership. He shares that it was the response from the students that made the performance special for him, “Those kids were so inspired and it was a humbling experience”. He also shares with us his view on culture and how it is a foundation to the people we are today. “Everyone has a past or a story and everyone comes from a particular lineage and that is what culture is. But sadly, people only reduce it to ancestral worship”, he shares. He says that he took it upon himself to learn his clan praises and sometimes even incorporates it in his poetry, “it grounds me and reminds me where I come from”. He shares that he is a Christian and therefore takes his inspiration from King David.

“Everyone has a past or a story and everyone comes from a particular lineage and that is what culture is. But sadly, people only reduce it to ancestral worship”,
He excitedly says that we can expect more poetry and hopefully a book too, “the future looks bright”. You can find his work on his blog, Ismthegreat, and on YouTube. You can also keep up with him on social media, he is @lindamasilela2 on Twitter and Linda Masilela Jr on Facebook.