Musician donates suits to underprivileged boys to inspire them to dream big
The ‘Donate a Suit and Raise a King’ campaign was started by former
Idols contestant Mahlatse Matji, who aims to inspire underprivileged boys to
know they can become anything in life.
The pressure to look good is often placed on women, but Mahlatse Matji understands that looks play a huge role in how a person is perceived in society, regardless of their gender.
To Mahlatse, it is not a coincidence that presidents are always seen in suits. He believes a suit is one of the greatest items that a man can own.
Mahlatse, a two-time fashion award winner, says he started wearing suits when he was 16-years-old.
The award-winning musician says suits have a special place in his heart because the first suit he owned belonged to his father. The sad part is that he got to wear the suit at his father’s funeral.
He says it is his father’s suit that gave him “enough courage to sing".
Mahlatse says although he grew up a shy boy, his father’s suit made him feel like a king and it is because of that special moment that he can sing for millions of people today.
The singer, who started the Muzo Brother band, says he loved his father dearly and seeing him take his own life shattered him. This made him realise that men go through a lot of pain, but never seek help, which is why the suicide rate is the highest amongst men.
“I grew up with my father and the love I got from him was just too amazing that I feel every boy would have been brought up with that.
“Suicide took my father away and other men, which I feel there is so much men go through but we were never taught to talk and we are judged by society,” he says.
Mahlatse says after losing his dad, he devoted his life to ensuring that no other boy experiences the pain of living without a father because of suicide. He also believes that every boy needs a man to mentor him.
“All boys need to have mentors because we mostly learn from what we see and [are] taught. It’s time we get mentors to inspire these boys and build a new society of great men.”
Mahlatse says men should be taught responsibility and leadership from a young age.
“When a boy child is born from a king, he gets to be treated like a king from a young age until his time come that he gets ordained. So I believe if society starts treating young boys like kings, this will also inspire how they grow up,” says Mahlatse.
Kings dress well, which is why Mahlatse believes his suit donation campaign will make a difference and inspire boys to dream bigger.
He has donated at least ten suits of his own and is hoping to raise 90 more suits to make a difference in the lives of a hundred boys.
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Mahlatse says he has teamed up with several people for the campaign and they have received donations from retail stores and ordinary South Africans.
“People who want to donate a suit or be part of the project can reach us on 0724950450 or visit our page on social media Donate a suit and raise a king,” he concluded.
Image courtesy of Instagram/ @mahlatzevokal
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