Johannesburg - This week we feature Tik Tok and social media sensation Jernad Martin.
The 24-year-old has become a hit on social media in the past few months, with several of her videos going viral in the country
Aside from being a social media sensation, Martin is also a law graduate, a model and a gamer.
You are able to shop at only one clothing store for the rest of your life. Which store do you choose?
I would undeniably choose Shelflife. It includes a plethora of accessories, clothing and sneakers from premium lifestyle brands that have influenced me since I was a teenager. My style is dynamic and unpredictable, yet with an androdynous flair because of my upbringing and childhood living with a large number of males, cousins and uncles respectively.
The best meal to have after a hangover?
The best hangover meal might be a contentious one. It depends on the liquor that was consumed the night before (lol). Dark liquor requires a Grand Chicken Spicy from McDonald's, with extra spicy sauce on the burger and a Watermelon McFizz. Light liquor may just need a Princess Wrap and a berry smoothie from Kauai. My diet choices have been centred on fruit for five years now and that usually heals bad choices and bad skin; even a hangover.
Joburg or Cape Town? Which has the better people and is the better city?
Whoa! Easy there, I am already the most hated person in South Africa for exposing socio-political issues that plague Cape Town in this neo-colonialist dispensation. I love both cities but my opinion as a Johannesburg native will be subjective and biased.
I love Cape Town for how vibrationally attuned I feel to nature, the sea and the crisp air. Cape Town provides a sense of rejuvenation and, as a Pisces, I can be consumed by the weightlessness of the experience because it is liberating to live near a body of water, but not for too long. On the surface, Cape Town appears to be superior but it is grossly homogenised and gentrified.
Johannesburg boasts a higher standard of living and Cape Town accommodates tourism but in Johannesburg, people are more enmeshed and inclusive, constructs are not as evident. The answer is not clear cut, but I love the social culture in Johannesburg more. There's a more reluctant and demure approach to integrating with people in Cape Town and there's criteria you are assessed by that includes your class; another social construct that we buy into.
Your favourite social media platform? Why?
It would have to be TikTok. I feel so free and unapologetic. Granted, its anonymous users are toxic, energy vampires who project their insecurities and inadequacies, but the SEO of this platform is like something I have never seen before. I love connecting with people from all walks of life and all around the world because I love to expose myself to different thought processes and ways of being. TikTok is the perfect platform to just be.
The meal that most reminds you of your childhood?
Lentils, otherwise known as Dahl. I grew up in a small house with a large group of people and I was the biggest snob, according to my family members. I would investigate food by its appearance rather than its taste and, later in my life, I had realised the food I so sternly rejected was what I was missing out on this entire time. When I was growing up, it looked slimy, so I would have the roti or rice with butter and keep it moving. Oh, how wrong I was to hate on one of the hardest meals to ever exist!
Tell us about the worst date you've had
I might have to jog my memory with this one. Quite recently, I had a great date that went poorly. I spent the entire day with a guy I had known for years but never gave a chance. Right? I have been feeling charitable lately. Nevertheless, we went to a sushi bar and had two bottles of white wine with it. Later, we went to another restaurant on the other side of the city and had another bottle of wine. I was feeling bold and outlandish, so even though he was a gentleman and paid for everything, we proceeded to go to a party and my date lost his phone and I had to request an Uber for us both. He was destitute, due to his negligence and ended up walking home drunk from my house because he refused to be taken home. He took four hours to get home and still continues to pursue me to this day. That was unattractive even though he complied with my standard and how I expect to be treated.
The biggest misconception people have of you?
People think I am classist and elitist. I come from humble beginnings where I promised to take care of my family and take my education seriously. I have family members double my age who have been unemployed for years and if that's not telling enough of my upbringing, I am not sure what is.
The song that describes your life?
We Don't Luv Em, by Hoodrich Pablo Juan. The lyrics keep emphasising that he doesn't chase money; it flows naturally to him. Money is just energy that is harnessed temporarily and then exchanged for something else. It's just access and it's beautiful to know that there will always be more somehow as soon as you spend it. Holding onto something repels it, in my opinion.
What one thing that has caught your attention on social media in the past week?
My for you page has been swarmed with dating content and spirituality, but what I found interesting was that as a young woman, many are scathed and seek external validation. It's a drug more detrimental than cocaine because it always leaves you depleted. Dating is just done all wrong and social media is always somehow the reason why I struggle to wrap my head around having a harmonious relationship and also having social media. It's fun but also sheer overstimulation.
You are given one free day to do anything you like. How do you choose to spend the day?
Easy. Read, journal, meditate, pray and play video games in that order. Personal time in solace is a priority for me.