DJ Zinhle fiercely defends Pearl Thusi against claims that her light skin bags her those jobs

Pearl Thusi has once again had to come out and defend herself from critics who believe she only gets gigs because of her skin colour.

The star launched into a lengthy rant on social media on Wednesday after someone name-dropped her in a conversation about Sho Madjozi winning a BET.

One of the comments claimed that Sho had only won the award because of her light skin and then pointed to Pearl as an example of another celeb who had attained success only because she had a light complexion.

"If she (Sho) were dark, no one would entertain her talent, which is not really there to begin with if you think about it. Just like my homegirl Pearl Thusi = no talent," wrote the user.

Pearl was alerted to the post and lost it, giving the man a piece of her mind.

"And 15 years of hard work I've put in means jack sh*t here. It's incredible how your entire being can all come down to your skin colour. I dare them to say this about the likes of Beyonce, Diana Ross, Angela Davis. As if there wasn't an Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone or Miriam Makeba"

She added that anyone who had a problem with her skin colour could "go and suck it".

"Everyone who thinks the only merit I have in my career is skin colour can all go suck it. Keep using my skin colour as a comfort for your own failures. Niyanya. Tsek.

"When people want what you have, and have no idea how you got it, they'll find a ridiculous reason to justify their lack through something that is beyond their and your control. When you have what people want, they'll find any reason to comfort themselves by disregarding your merit to success."

The star claimed her entire life had been spent defending her skin colour and, as a child, she sometimes hated how she looked.

She said she loved going to America because she wasn't judged for her skin tone and was simply seen as black.

Pearl said she had lost out to darker-skinned women, but refused to be bullied to make others "comfortable" about their own failures.

He comments sparked a massive conversation on social media about colourism, with many defending Pearl.

Among those was her BFF, DJ Zinhle, who said Pearl's success came from her hard work and not her skin tone.

"I don't think I know anyone who works as hard as Pearl Thusi does. Say whatever you need to say about her success but the girl works damn hard. Also, this tweet is not a debate, miss me with your opinions. People can be so mean man. Stop."

Sho also weighed in, claiming colonialism had given people the idea that beauty was found in lighter skin. She challenged that belief and said she would always stand against discrimination based on skin tone.

"I’m great at what I do, I’m smart as hell, and I work harder than anyone I know. I’m unique and I represent a culture that continues to be mocked.

"I can't be expected to stop being great because colorism exists. But I can try to use my platform to speak out against colorism, I MUST speak out when I see people being treated unfairly because of color and I can try to amplify the voices of talented dark skinned women."