Send us a text In this episode, I reflect on a key tension in men's healing work: empathy vs. judgment, and whether my voice as an African man should only be directed toward African men. While firmly committed to centering African stories, I explores what it means to be a bridge—not an apologist—by creating space for honest conversations with men from all backgrounds. From mental health and father wounds to shame and invisibility, these struggles don’t ask for skin tone or nationality. I had to ...
Jun 04, 2025•16 min
Send us a text Tune into this deeply personal conversation with Alex Abraham, author of Trauma and Ecstasy . Alex shares his deeply personal journey through repressed childhood trauma, including sexual abuse and its physical manifestations. He candidly discusses the limitations of traditional healing methods like talk therapy in addressing deep-seated issues and how guided experiences with psychedelics (MDMA and psilocybin) facilitated the uncovering of memories and a profound path toward healin...
May 14, 2025•36 min•Season 5Ep. 7
Send us a text In this deeply personal interview, Police Captain, Adam Meyers bravely shares his journey following a critical shooting incident in 2016, the subsequent struggles with trauma, depression, and unhealthy coping mechanisms, and his eventual path to recovery and mental health advocacy. This powerful conversation cuts through the often stoic exterior of law enforcement to reveal the emotional and psychological toll that high-stress professions can take. Captain Meyers opens up about th...
Apr 30, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Season 5Ep. 6
Send us a text In this episode Kgaugelo Habyane engages in an insightful discussion with Chelepe Mocwana. We explore the complexities of positive masculinities as a vital tool for achieving gender equity . Chelepe shares his experiences and perspectives on redefining masculinity beyond patriarchal norms, emphasising the importance of empathy, self-awareness, and accountability for men . Our conversation tackles challenging issues such as gender-based violence, consent, the impact of societal exp...
Apr 16, 2025•1 hr 17 min•Season 5Ep. 5
Send us a text Join Kgaugelo Habyane in this insightful conversation with Charles Achampong as they explore the importance of family time, the transformative power of travel, and the necessity of creating moments of pause in our busy lives. Charles shares his experiences from taking a year-long trip around the world with his family and the profound lessons he learned about presence, intentionality, and redefining success beyond traditional societal norms. Discover practical steps towards designi...
Mar 30, 2025•49 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Send us a text "What are you trying to take care of?" – a simple yet powerful question that shifts the way we engage in conversations. In a world where men are often told to suppress emotions, solve problems alone, and dominate rather than dialog, how do we create space for deeper, more meaningful connections? Rooken Podesta is the perfect man to explore this question. A facilitator and expert in generative dialog , Rooken helps individuals and organizations transform the way they communicate. H...
Mar 20, 2025•46 min•Season 5Ep. 3
Send us a text In a world where violence, disconnection, and individualism seem to overshadow compassion, we ask: Where’s the love? In this episode of Manned Up Conversations , we explore the concept of communal love a love that affirms, nurtures, and holds space for men to express care, support, and connection. We dive into African philosophies like Botho / Ubuntu , insights from thought leaders like Prof. Mogobe Ramose, Nyasha Mboti, and Kopano Ratele, and the realities that shape men’s abilit...
Feb 20, 2025•21 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Send us a text Shoutout to you if you're joining us for the first time, and thank you for coming back to listen; your support is greatly appreciated. The first episode for 2025 is inspired by Ms Lauryn Hill's Motives and Thoughts, The Trial of Socrates and some of Carl Jung's shadow work. As we go into this transition period (our last pefect square year was 89 years ago in 1939) with a sense of newness about ourselves and the world around us, it's important to check in with ourselves and explore...
Feb 03, 2025•16 min•Season 5Ep. 1
Send us a text Shoutout to you if you're joining us for the first time, and thank you for coming back to listen; your support is greatly appreciated. In this episode, I speak former 6x boxing champ Cassius Hitman Baloyi about his glory days in the ring. The name named after Muhammad Ali by his father after the classic, Rumble in Jumgle fight between George Foreman and Muhammad Ali shares stories of his upbringing in Manamulele, Limpopo in South Africa. We talk about his father's influence on his...
Nov 23, 2024•1 hr 8 min•Season 4Ep. 15
Send us a text Shoutout to you if you're joining us for the first time, and thank you for coming back to listen; your support is greatly appreciated. In this episode, I speak with artist extraordinaire Batsile "BOY Wonder" Ramasodi on his artistic path and growth as a man. We talk about growing up in Atteridgeville, Pretoria, and how he pursued his creative talents and developed them into numerous careers. As a father of four, we also discuss his perspectives on fatherhood. and the complexities ...
Nov 07, 2024•1 hr 16 min•Season 4Ep. 14
Send us a text Shoutout to you if you're joining us for the first time, and thank you for coming back to listen; your support is greatly appreciated. In this episode we expand on a conversation we had with Tshegofatso Sephula on a mental health awareness campaign we did with John Craig to discuss some highlights from his book, Mental Decay. Tshegofatso talks about identity issues, navigating family dynamics with mental health challenges, the inspiration behind sharing his story and letting go of...
Oct 11, 2024•57 min•Season 4Ep. 13
Send us a text Shoutout to you if you're joining us for the first time, and thank you for coming back to listen; your support is greatly appreciated. We've covered many conversations over the last three years, while going through some books, research and conversations with friends and listening to the online community, I've been reflecting on the idea of male privilege or to be more specific, black male privilege. I know this is an extremely contentious topic in the gender discourse but I want t...
Sep 13, 2024•32 min•Season 4Ep. 12
Send us a text Shoutout to you if you're joining us for the first time, and thank you for coming back to listen; your support is greatly appreciated. I was intrigued by an article shared by Ground Up and the Daily Maverick titled, “Battered woman syndrome”: law to be challenged." The Centre for Applied Legal Studies has laid out a strong argument for women who kill in self defence arguing that the courts don't empathise or consider the psychological effects of abuse when sentencing "battered wom...
Sep 03, 2024•11 min•Season 4Ep. 11
Send us a text Shoutout to you if you're joining us for the first time, and thank you for coming back to listen; your support is greatly appreciated. In this episode we explore an uncommon but interesting story of a US Army conscientious objector and social work graduate student, Kyle Toon to talk about his decision to leave the army after serving for 10 years where he enrolled at 17 years old. Kyle shares how going against family lineage caused an internal conflict and mental heath issues resul...
Jul 18, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Season 4Ep. 10
Send us a text Shoutout to you if you're joining us for the first time, and thank you for coming back to listen; your support is greatly appreciated. We talk about men's coping mechanisms and how seeking help—or not—can lead to mental health issues and suicidal thoughts in this courageous interview with Leon De Beer, the deputy director of the South African Federation of Mental Health. After his divorce, Leon experienced suicide ideation. By sharing his story, he emphasizes the value of reaching...
Jul 04, 2024•52 min•Season 4Ep. 9
Send us a text Shoutout to you if you're joining us for the first time, and thank you for coming back to listen; your support is greatly appreciated. In this exciting talk with the quantum leaping physicist, we discuss knowing thyself from several of viewpoints, including history, education, and tools to aid you on your own journey. We also discuss some challenging issues regarding the representation of African culture and its impact on identity. Met_a_morphosis also discusses how he balances hi...
Jun 20, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Season 4Ep. 8
Send us a text Thanks for listening if you are joining for the first time, hope you enjoy the conversation and peace and love to you for coming back to listen. Although the term "safe spaces" is frequently used in casual conversations, what does it actually mean? We explore the impportance and quality of conversations held in such spaces and highlight some essential elements of designing safe spaces, we then question if our own and others efforts in reaching and working with men are effective in...
May 23, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Season 4Ep. 7
Send us a text Thanks for listening if you are joining for the first time, hope you enjoy the conversation and peace and love to you for coming back to listen. Many males avoid using the word patriarchy because they perceive it as an attack on their gender. Some activists have even asserted that men of African origin are not entitled to privilege or patriarchy. Despite this, many people are still unaware of the influence of patriarchal structures. During a conference in November 2023, my guest K...
May 09, 2024•52 min•Season 4Ep. 6
Send us a text Thanks for listening if you are joining for the first time, hope you enjoy the conversation and peace and love to you for coming back to listen. On episode 60 we explore men's emotional language with Clinical Psychologist, Matthew Steele. We discuss the impact of testosterone and men’s emotions. Looking at family as a space for teaching emotional literacy, we also discuss how parents play a part in helping boys develop emotional awareness. Matthew share some tips on creating male ...
Apr 25, 2024•53 min•Season 4Ep. 5
Send us a text Thanks for listening if you are joining for the first time, hope you enjoy the conversation and peace and love to you for coming back to listen. On episode 59 I met with Malose Langa at The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg to discuss his insights and reflections on working with men and boys. We discuss the impact of father wounds, why many men and boys feel the pressure to perform a certain type of masculinity to either fit in or protect their masciline identity and t...
Apr 19, 2024•47 min•Season 4Ep. 4
Send us a text Thanks for listening if you are joining for the first time, hope you enjoy the conversation and peace and love to you for coming back to listen. On episode 58 I speak to Marketing Executive, Podcast and Radio host Ratiba Mohale about his views on faith and being a man of value, he also shares why he views family as a cornerstone of leadership and the changing role of men in family and society. We also speak about the decline in marriage and the destruction of the family. While spe...
Apr 11, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Season 4Ep. 3
Send us a text Through reading his books, articles and watching Tom Golden on his YouTube channel, Men Are Good , his work opened my eyes to the misconceptions and subtle signs that go unnoticed in men’s emotional domain. I’ve reflected on how his work relates to me as a South African man and how some of the observations he shared in his books and talks still hold true, though there are some changes in society’s attitudes towards men’s emotional experiences. In this episode I share How and Why...
Feb 16, 2024•16 min•Season 4Ep. 2
Send us a text Welcome to Season 4 of Manned Up Conversations. If you are new to the platform, thank you for tuning in. I invite you to listen in with an open mind, our stories and conversations give you a refreshing perspective on manhood, reflections on issues affecting men and some suggestions on what we can do to enjoy a wholistic life experience. We do not claim to have all the answers, we share out of compassion for others and pay our stories forward so they can inspire the next man to own...
Feb 02, 2024•50 min•Season 4Ep. 1
Send us a text In our latest episode, we close off with a conversation with Anele Ndlovu, a women's leadership and mental health advocate who also runs an engaging platform "The Tea with Anele Ndlovu." We catch up after several interactions since her first men's mental health event in November 2022 to learn about her journey with mental health resulting from a job loss which led to alcohol abuse and a suicide attempt. We also discuss her family's role in her recovery, raising a son and having th...
Dec 21, 2023•1 hr 6 min•Season 3Ep. 23
Send us a text The theme for the 16 Days of Activism Campaign for 2023 is: “Accelerating actions to end gender-based violence & femicide: leaving no one behind” it is in this light that we share our first episode highlighting men's violence against women and children with Australian Professor, Michael Flood. We explore the framing of violence against women and how men interpret these messages in episode 54, as we explore his work in Engaging Men and Boys in Violence. We also look at how male...
Dec 07, 2023•57 min•Season 3Ep. 22
Send us a text In episode 53, we connect with Mesh Kekana to talk about the journey of his organization Dads In The Picture. We also explore how boys are being raised differently from girls in the home and the importance of teaching boys skills that enable them to take care of their own home and families. Mesh also questions some of the statements made about fathers involvement in their child life and how the systemic, social and cultural obstacles fathers face make it difficult for those relati...
Nov 17, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Season 3Ep. 21
Send us a text In episode 52, we connect with David Miller to explore his work on the relationship between black fathers and daughters. Some of the key talking points in this conversation include the marginalization of black fathers, creating opportunities and space for bonding through various activities for fathers to get to know their daughters likes and dislikes, the impact of absent fathers on girls and women, having courageous and age appropriate conversations around topics like sex, educat...
Nov 02, 2023•1 hr 10 min•Season 3Ep. 20
Send us a text In episode 51, we take a deep dive into the world of the masculine archetypes with Ruwan Meepagala. We unpack his journey into coaching, navigating the seemingly saturated coaching space, his learnings as a new father and how that impacts on his coaching conversations. Ruwan also shares how he ended up in a cult and highlights the good and potential dangers of heading down that path. Then we narrow in on his 21 day masculine archetype challenge where he unpacks the benefits of gro...
Oct 19, 2023•58 min•Season 3Ep. 19
Send us a text In episode 50, we celebrate another milestone episode in line with 50 years of Hip Hop. Joining me to reflect on lessons, experiences and how Hip Hop impacts it's participants and followers, I'm joined by legendary producer Nyambz. We discuss the collaborative approach to creating music, his decision to not partake in the drugs and supporting for a friend who is dealing with addiction and the dual nature of Hip Hop and much more. After winning the African Hip-Hop producer of the y...
Oct 05, 2023•1 hr 20 min•Season 3Ep. 18
Send us a text In episode 49, we reconnect with Melusi Tshabalala for a follow up episode since we covered his book Magenge, We Need To Talk . In this episode we learn about his entrepreneurial journey with Gogo Magic Family Eatery and his vision creating culturally appropriate spaces for African people to enjoy food while gathering with family, fixing yourself before fixing others, being raised by his mother, views on co-parenting, writing children's books, mentoring the youth and more... Melus...
Sep 14, 2023•1 hr 20 min•Season 3Ep. 17
