Volume 65 December 2026-January 2026 : Entertainment
The lawyer that never was
Author : Pako Lebanna
As the nation ponders Zen`s 10 good acts, the veracity of the Chinese proverb that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, gets a deeper meaning. For here is a young woman, born into an ordinary family – sometime in the early 1980s – who once believed she was going to be a lawyer but now a philanthropist. And little words of encouragement, such as those from her loving parents and in particular an adjudicator in an essay writing competition in the 1990s, steered her ship in the direction it is sailing now.
The adjudicator, a certain Mokgweetsi Masisi, left a particular impression on the young Zen.
“He said to me, ‘I have read your essay, I think you will go far, you are a special child,” Zenzele recalls. The words were not only a prediction of Zen`s own future but also that of the foreteller, for Masisi who was a UNICEF country officer, would years later become the Minister for Presidential Affairs and Public Administration.
Many people would participate in fulfilling the prediction. One of them was Tebogo Sekgoma aka Chillies, a great music promoter in Botswana then and a neighbour to the Hirschfelds.
It is the same Chillies, who brought international artistes who included Maxi Priest and Shabba Ranks to perform in the country, and promoted the once popular annual ‘Togetherness` festival.
“Uncle Chillie became a major influence,” recalls Zen. “Yea, there are other people like ‘Uncle` Shima Monageng and Tops Masole who inspired me. But Chillie was a major influence for the direction I chose in life,” she says.
Inspired by Chillies, Zenzele would as a student at St Joseph`s College arrange school shows. She was assisted by peers, especially Mpho Podiephatshwa, who would later be instrumental when Zen Promotions was set up.
While Zenzele was inspired by the glamour associated with Chillies` job, of top quality South African and international musicians interacting regularly with her neighbour, neither her parents nor their neighbour were initially interested in her taking up her chosen career path.
“I told my parents once I finished school that I wanted to set up my business. My mom was against it initially, only finally relenting saying I should follow my dream. My father also relented, assisting me set up Zen Promotions, though sadly he passed away soon after, before seeing the success,” says Zenzele.
Chillies also warned Zenzele about the industry, saying it was ruthless. But eventually, upon seeing how committed Zenzele was, he lent a helping hand. Zen Promotions would become one of the foremost promoters of Botswana`s music industry.The new company worked with the likes of Maxy, Vee, Stagga, Scar and others.
She also worked on bringing foreign artistes to the country, including the likes of Bongo Maffin and Jabu Khanyile. She developed a good working relationship with Mafikizolo and the legendary Hugh Masekela.
Ten years later, Zen Promotions is a fully fledged company, engaged in artist management, events management, and Zenzele now wants to focus on developing more of her entrepreneurial knack; she looks forward to launching a range of products under her company.
Zen is also making herself a name as a peacemaker. During the album launch by Nnunu Ramogotsi, which coincided with her birthday, Zen asked Nono Siile, Puna Gabasiane and Kearoma Rantao, the original Ladies of Jazz to go on stage to sing together.
The four happily sung together, the disagreements between them which led to Nono quitting the group, forgotten. This was testament to Zen as a mother figure in the industry, a unifying factor, a lady who came into a male dominated industry and took things to another level, and still never lost her maternal instincts.ENDS