Coffee to pick Miss SA

The Miss South Africa pageant is back - and before you start scoffing and disputing its relevance, new judge DJ Black Coffee thinks we'd be worse off without it.

The appointment of the popular DJ as a judge was announced yesterday. He'll be on the panel along with Highveld Stereo's Anele Mdoda and Glamour magazine editor Pnina Fenster in the build-up to the crowning of Miss SA at Sun City on March 30.

Black Coffee, real name Nkosinathi Maphumulo, admits that the status of the pageant has waned dramatically.

He said he had been "reluctant" to join a judging panel "sitting in a room and pointing a finger and saying: 'You're beautiful and you're not'."

He revealed an almost paternal side when he explained why he had eventually signed on: "Most young girls look for validation in the wrong places and this pageant is bringing back the culture of loving yourself.

"I'm always looking for platforms from which to communicate inspiration to people. I had a talk with these girls earlier and I see them bringing back self-love."

Among other changes, the ceremony has been moved from December to March, which will allow the title holder to compete in the Miss World and Miss Universe pageants.

The 33 semifinalists announced yesterday will be whittled down to 12 finalists, their names to be announced on February 2.

The Times identified five women - purely on looks - who stood out on the crowded stage. They are business management student Mishka Patel, 21, from Stellenbosch, University of the Free State medical student Rolene Strauss, 21, Matlala Mokoko, 23, of Ga-Masemola, in Limpopo, University of Johannesburg BCom accounting student Ashleigh Burton, 22, from Cape Town, and 22-year-old Tidimalo Sehlako of Vereeniging, a Monash University journalism and marketing student.