Lebo Mashile's back presenting a new, second season of SABC2's talk/debate show 'Drawing The Line'.

Besides hosting the show, she's also going to featured as a special guest on SABC3's 'Journey To Core' in two weeks time.

With her being all over the place it seemed like the perfect time to catch up with her and I had the best time — she laughs so much I was hysterical by the end.

Why do you write poetry? How did it happen?

I’ve always been a lover of literature, I grew up in a family where people liked to read - even though there are no artists in my family, I started keeping a journal when I was about 8 years old.

When I became a teenager, when my family came back to South Africa from the US, my parents got divorced and there was a lot happening in my life – that’s when my journal became very important to me. That’s when I began to consciously write poetry but it wasn’t a part of my public persona – I didn’t share it with anyone.

I went off to university to study law and public relations as an undergraduate, at Wits university and after I’d finished my undergraduate I was supposed to go off to do my LLB and really focus on law. I just I knew, in the bottom of my heart, that it wasn’t what I wanted to do with my life.

Around the same time I discovered the Johannesburg underground music and arts scene - which at the time was poetry and hip hop and live music - this really interesting world that fused all these mediums.

I went to this club called Jungle Connections and saw this young girl stand on stage - she must have been about my age, about 20/21. She stood on stage and opened up her journal and read the most incredible poem and I fell absolutely in love with it - I’d never felt what I felt and I knew I had to do something with passion and purpose.

A couple of weeks later I mustered up the courage to stand on stage and say my first poem and that was it. I’ve been doing it ever since.

Can you make a living from being a poet?

Yes I do. I think South Africa is a really interesting environment. Because oral tradition is such a powerful force on the continent and because South Africa’s at a point where we’re trying to figure out our national identity and also because we’re the only country on the continent that has a first world media - all these elements create this sense of possibility where people are willing to try new things.

People are willing to give space to poets on TV and on radio, in mainstream culture - I don’t think that exists in any other part of the world. So yes I am able to make a living as a poet - I do a lot of corporate events, also quite a lot of literature festivals, both in South Africa and round the world.

Being all these things: poet, actress, presenter, producer - what core thing attracts you to them all?

The poet part is the current that runs through everything. If something doesn’t inspire me creatively, it if it doesn’t push me mentally, emotionally and spiritually.

I choose to do projects that are going to feed me as a poet - whether it’s through 'Drawing The Line', or 'L’Attitude' or connecting with women through my column in True Love, it’s got to be something that triggers the poet in me to get excited otherwise what’s the point?

How much of your poetry has been inspired by the show’s you’ve been in?

With L’Attitude, I would read a poem at the end of each show so 70-something poems came out of that show. Quite a lot of my second book 'Flying Above The Sky' — about half the poems in that book are from the show.

With 'Drawing The Line', I think its challenged me in different ways — the show itself deals with contentious issues that affect South Africans everyday, publically and personally — and it’s inspired the writer in me.

I’ve written columns for True Love about polygamy, about voting - it’s inspired another voice in me, the social commentator. We’ll see, maybe a polygamy poem will come out of this season, I’m not sure ... *laughs*

How much of an opinion do you have on the topics before each show?

It’s a wonderful team to be part of because everyone’s involved in the creative process of putting each episode together. The show only works if you’ve got a whole range of thoughts to choose from to contribute to the conversation so everyone’s involved, myself as the presenter, the actors, the producers and we really try to make it as rich and diverse as possible.

The big effort on the show really happens when the cameras are on - the main challenge for me is that so much of my persona is linked to me being opinionated and going out there and saying what I think and on Drawing The Line it’s not about that but helping everyone else figure out what all of us are thinking and drawing that out.

That’s been fun and exciting and it’s helped me as a human being to be more tolerant and to really, really listen.

I’m pouring with sweat 10 minutes into the show — it’s also such a physical thing, you have to draw your whole body and spirit into it.

When do you write your poetry?

It depends, I try to journal for 20 to 30 minutes in the morning. The best time for me to write is either very, very early in the morning or very, very late at night. I like the wee hours of the morning, sort of between 12am and 3am.

There’s something about the vibe of the stillness when everybody’s sleeping or when the world is just waking up that helps me go inside myself to get my thoughts out.

What’s your favourite poem of yours of all time?

Oh my God! Are you serious?! *laughs and laughs*

The poem that I’m loving right now is one called 'There Is A Me That I Could Be'. It speaks about personal change and how all of us at any given time are given the opportunity to be our best selves. It’s about believing in ourselves and defying our own fears, to defy the expectations that society places on us — if we can plug into that we can really live our dreams.

One of the topics coming up in 'Drawing The Line' is self-censorship - do you ever self-censor?

*laughs and laughs* Well, yes and no. As a writer, as an artist, no I don’t censor myself. I think it’s very, very important to be as honest as possible through one’s art — I think that people identify with that kind of honesty and I think people appreciate it when someone says something that others are too scared to say — so in that sense, no.

Then obviously as a working artist, when I have to work with government, or the SABC or with a corporate client, I have to find a way to say what I really, really, really think but with enough love and respect and compassion so that I don’t alienate people.

It’s a hard balance to find but I've learned over the years that you can pretty much say anything to anyone so long as you say it with respect and acknowledge the other person’s humanity.

You can tell the devil about his fire you know, but it’s hard, it’s hard — I think in this country we’re good at vilifying people if their views are contrary to what most people think. No-one wants to engage if they know they’re being judged so if you can challenge people without judging them, provoke them without alientating them — that makes for positive public discourse.

Where do you draw the line on these things?

*laughs* So the real me must come out now? Okay.

Men in speedo’s?

Oh no, no, no, no, no, no, — it’s never right. Unless you’re David Beckham — or you’re in the company of somebody who loves you very much — don’t do it!

Manufactured music?

No, no, no, no-no-no-no-no-no. It’s sterile, it’s corny. No.

Pretentiousness?

No, no, no, no, uh-uh, no.

A date who always forgets their wallet?

My God, no! A date who forgets their wallet and one who has no regard for the time — no!

Expecations?

Ooh, that’s a hard one — I think it depends in what has been promised. If for example government promises to deliver services to us, if they promise that they’re going to give us houses and make themselves accessible to us and then they don’t, then that’s a problem. We have a right to expect certain things from people who put themselves out there and say that they’re going to deliver.

Being a poet, you’re obviously very romantic — do you have a lover that you write for?

Oh my dear Tashi I’m so, so single, so so so single. I’ve been dating since I was 16 years old and I've spent most of that time being a girlfriend or wishing to be a girlfriend and I’ve been single now for about a year and a half and I’m kind of in a place where... Last year I got out of a very long and serious relationship and I needed time to heal and some space, but now I’m ready and say bring it on!

So you’re available and looking?

I’m available and looking and I’m meeting very interesting men. I think in this environment where we're raising a lot of questions about masculinity — with Jacob Zuma becoming president and the kind of masculinity he represents, you know — I think it’s an interesting time for men, and especially for women, to define the kinds of relationships and interactions they want.

In this society that’s so patriachial and misogynistic at the best of times I’ve been meeting really soulful, spiritual, honest, honest guys and that’s been so affirming so we’ll see where it goes...*laughs*

What’s your attitude towards these things: smoking a spliff?

Oh my! *laughs and laughs*

Yes, I’ve been to your website.

*laughs* You know, in the right place at the right time, it can be a really lovely thing.

Political correctness?

No, no,no, political correctness se voet. *laughs*

Poems that rhyme? Ah! It depends. If the strength of the poem is solely based on the rhyming then no but if the rhyme is part of the music and rhythm and flow of the poem and the poem itself is based on strong, solid articulate content, then yes.