IDIDTHAT and Heineken Beverages present I SAID THAT, the Q&A series featuring South Africa’s top creative talent.

Sibuyiselwe Nhlangwini has packed quite a lot into her career in advertising. The former graphic design lecturer is now an Integrated Art Director at The Odd Number, ranked No. 21 globally by The One Club, and one half of the creative duo behind the award-winning ‘Show Ghana Love’ campaign. She’s also chairperson of the Loeries Youth Committee, a Creative LIAisons mentee and a big believer in opening doors for the next generation. Her reaction to all this success? “Ok, shap, what’s next?”

Q: You started your career as a lecturer. How has that academic background shaped the creative you are today?

Sibu: My academic background has made me particularly curious about the relationship between information and creativity. Right now, I'm literally obsessed with the idea of winning in Creative Use of Data. I think that fascination comes from my ability to interrogate datasets, recognise patterns and work with frameworks to uncover creative possibilities. So for the most part, academia has been the backbone to my creativity, which might sound counterintuitive because it's often associated with structure, theory and frameworks. But I think the two have a really symbiotic relationship. 

Q: ‘Art Director’… for those that don’t know what exactly do you do?

Sibu: I make work look sexy-as-hell. Lol. 

On the real, I make ideas visible and transcendent. ADs take cerebral things like strategy, insights and human truths and translate them into something people can see, feel and experience. That could be designing a social post, storyboarding a film, a visual identity, a digital experience or something that hasn't been done before. At my core, I'm a visual problem solver and communicator. I use imagery, design, composition, typography and layouts to give ideas a visual language.

Q: What’s harder; coming up with the idea or protecting it all the way through production?

Sibu: Defs the latter. There are so many moving parts when ideas leave the safe confines of your brain, and anything can make or break an idea. I draw so much from my own point of view, life experiences and culture. I put my heart and soul into the ideas I put forward, so it's tough not to want to fight tooth and nail for them, but I've also learnt not to be too precious about the original idea. I believe ideas shapeshift, and sometimes the right one finds you at the perfect moment in time but you need the right people to help you bring it to life. The onus is then on you to recognise its potential, give it room to evolve and have the conviction to see it through.  

Q: Let's talk about the award-winning 'Show Ghana Love' campaign. Where did the idea come from, and what was the biggest challenge in making it happen? 

Sibu: My creative partner and I share a belief that advertising can change the world. The conversation started through one of my best friends, who worked closely with a human rights NGO in this space. We then began exploring how we could use media platforms through a visual protest to challenge what was happening in Ghana, stand in solidarity with queer communities and create positive visibility. It felt like a natural conversation to have as The Odd Number because our ethos is Liberation, which means freeing brands from complacency, breaking category conventions, and connecting authentically with culture. 

The biggest challenge was safety and security. We had to be incredibly intentional about protecting everyone involved. But perhaps the hardest part was navigating the psychological impact of government officials calling for our arrest and Lue and Rue receiving death threats. That's when you realise that brave work has very real consequences for the people behind it. 

Q: ‘Show Ghana Love’ tackles a pretty sensitive issue. How do you balance making brave creative work with the responsibility of telling real people’s stories?

Sibu: We knew the work would have a visceral impact and that people would have a lot to say. But we intended to create positive visibility, shift perceptions and lead with love. From the thousands of comments, this stuck one stuck with me: 

Sibu: For me, it comes down to empathy, research and intention. You have to interrogate whose perspective you’re representing, who benefits from the story and whether the work is contributing something meaningful to the conversation. In understanding this, we consulted with activists and worked with a Ghanaian queer NGO. You can make brave work, challenge people and spark difficult conversations without losing sight of the humanity of the people at the centre of the story. 

Q: You’ve done some brilliant work with copywriter Tebogo Kgapola. What makes your creative partnership work so well?

Sibu: Our CEO, Mr X [Xola Nouse], always makes fun of the fact that Tebs and I are like two peas in a pod. We work together, grab coffee together, party together, shop together, FaceTime after work, blurt out the same TikTok sounds  – so at our core we're genuine mates. BUT our magic is in how different we are. Our brainstorms turn into spirited debates about how fascism is taking over fashion trends, the space-time continuum (thanks to Nolan), how kimchi and atchaar are distant cousins, hybrid identities and and and… 

We're not afraid to say the most outlandish thing to one another, mainly because we have a friendship based NDA. I think that breeds a mutual trust. I also think our non-traditional advertising background (she studied Journalism, and lived in Korea for years) and I was in academia, has made us have a very counter approach to advertising norms. We don't want the 'standard things' or haven't been conditioned to. 

Q: You've been ranked No. 21 Art Director globally in The One Club's 2026 rankings. Does that kind of recognition add pressure, or just make you hungrier? 

Sibu: Hungrier for sure. My toxic trait is that nothing is ever good enough and the goal post is always moving in terms of my own achievements. So the enjoyment only lasts in the moment I hear the good news, and then I’m like – “Ok, shap, what’s next?”

Q: You went to Cannes Lions with Open Chair this year and said the experience changed your brain chemistry! What was your biggest takeaway?

Sibu: Ok ok, hear me out. Cannes is an obvious pool of inspiration and big names. So I was on a mission to find Anselmo Ramos [GUT Founder], because I was convinced he would give me a one-liner like Rafiki did to Simba, which made him change his whole life. Throughout the week, I met some of the most incredible people, I had conversations with the likes Sajo Ruiz Founder of Sajo McCann in Puerto Rico, London International Awards  President Barbara Levy and industry legend Susan Credle who took the time to pour into me and had beautiful words of encouragement. But I had an unspoken expectation for all these brilliantly phenomenal people to have answers to all my creative conundrums. One night after the chaos of Gutter Bar, I caught a glimpse of a perfect combover and black eyeglass frames and zoned in on the figure. I was like, there he is… ANSELMO. I didn't even think twice (thanks to the Rosé) and walked up to him and had the most normal conversations. Normal isn't bad – he was so gracious and dope. But I expected him to solve the Rubik's Cube in my head. I thought about it some more, I suppose because I'm at the point in my career where I'm learning exponentially and sometimes the least experienced in the room, I keep expecting people to fill in the gaps in the knowledge I don't have. But so much of what we do is learning on the job. You learn by doing (I mean, duh)  but I had focused my energy on trying to manage the knowledge gaps instead of sitting in the discomfort of not knowing. This is the epiphany I had at Cannes. 

Q: You’re part of the 2026 Creative LIAisons mentorship programme. What’s the best piece of advice you’ve received from a mentor?

Sibu: I'm lucky enough to have two phenomenal mentors as part of this programme: Shauna Serin, a Co-Founder of Minerva based in the States, and Ali Rez, Regional CCO at IMPACT BBDO. Both are absolute forces in their own right, and they've given me incredibly different, but equally valuable, perspectives. 

With Shauna, it's a lot about how she moves through the world. I had the pleasure of spending time with her at Cannes this year and, man, what a force. Beyond what she does professionally, I've been struck by how she shows up for people. She's incredibly generous, fiercely protective of the people around her and such a passionate champion of diversity, equity and inclusion. How you treat people, how you advocate for them and the kind of opportunities you create for others are just as important as the work you put into the world. 

From Ali, one of the biggest lessons has been about the importance of aligning your personal values with the values of the agency you choose to work with. Being intentional about the environments you place yourself in, what you stand for and what you're willing to compromise on. 

Q: You’ve gone from winning a Student Loerie to chairing the Loeries Youth Committee and judging young creatives. What do you think our industry still gets wrong about nurturing young talent?

Sibu: I think a lot of us genuinely want to get this right. But in wanting to get everything right, you become so afraid of making mistakes that you stop taking the risks that actually help you grow. *Enters existential dread* When you're a young creative, you're supposed to make mistakes. You're supposed to screw up, add the mentos into the coke bottle and occasionally let shit hit the fan. That's part of figuring out who you are creatively. But your leaders should shield you from the impact, create room for you to learn, and make sure mistakes aren't used against you.  

We want young creatives to be bold, but we don't always give them the psychological safety or the structural protection to actually be bold. You cannot ask someone to be fearless in an environment that punishes every mistake. 

Also to my peers,  if you don't see it – be it. This was the driving force for the Loeries Youth Committee. We were worried about the lack of community and integration amongst the youngins in the industry, so we used the LYC platform and agency relationships to throw masterclasses, parties, and showcases to get young people in the industry to connect. We created our own community instead of waiting for someone to save us. 

Q: Is there a piece of advice young creatives keep getting that you completely disagree with?

Sibu: The notion that you should just keep your head down, focus on the work and that one obscure day, magically, success will find you. There's this assumption that people will see you pulling all-nighters, staying late, will appreciate that you crafting the most gorgeous layouts and that the work will simply speak for itself. And while the work absolutely matters, you also have to learn how to self-advocate. You need to advocate for the opportunities you want, the environment you deserve, and the rooms you want to be in. We're in an industry where we're exceptionally good at selling products, brands and other people's ideas, but sometimes terrible at selling ourselves.  

Q: You’ve spoken about wanting real structural change for women in advertising. If you could change one thing about our industry tomorrow, what would it be?

Sibu: I just wish we could contend with the realities of growing our careers without having the broader issue of our safety constantly looming over our shoulders. I've really appreciated spaces and initiatives that recognise the safety and humanity of women in our industry, from the SHE DID THAT party to Open Chair Safety Allies.  

Q: What do you think South African advertising is really good at right now?

Sibu: I think we're really good at not allowing technological innovation, evolving mediums or changing trends to dilute the fundamentals of who we are as South Africans. 

Whether it's the Phillipstown Wire Car Grand Prix, which uses a tech-driven backdrop to tell a beautiful story about the resilience of a small town, or Corruption Watch's 'Bullet Direct Mailer', what excites me is how different these ideas are in their execution, but how deeply rooted they are in our context. We have this incredible ability to find creativity in our contradictions, our humour, our challenges and our everyday realities. I think our superpower is that we can be globally innovative without becoming culturally generic.

Q: What’s something everyone in advertising pretends to understand, but nobody really does?

Sibu: Influencers/Content creators. Because if we really did understand them and their role, we would not subject them to traditional media standards, and constantly blur those lines. There's a magic and authenticity that they have harnessed, and we're constantly try to package them as walking billboards. Be so for real. 

Q: Who opened a door for you early in your career, and what did that opportunity mean to you?

Sibu: Francois de Villiers gave me my first big girl job at Joe Public. He let me design layouts, write scripts, do voice overs and pretty much everything and anything in between. He would stay up with me until crazy hours of the morning making sure my layouts were crafted to precision. He was part dad, part boss and gave me lots of life advice and I'll always appreciate him for that. 

Q: Which creative leader has inspired you the most, and what have you learnt from them?

Sibu: My answer is extremely biased… but you guessed it: Sbu Sitole. I've been in the industry for around five-ish years, three of which I've spent at The Odd Number. So, in many ways, I've grown up under his leadership. I love that he encourages the unexpected, the crazy idea and even the thing you're a little afraid to say out loud. He creates an environment where you can push your thinking, challenge the obvious and explore ideas that might initially feel a little ridiculous. You always leave the room wanting to make better work. 

Q: Name and fame: Who’s doing work in South Africa right now that excites you?

Sibu: The name on everyone's lips post Loeries: Zee Ntuli and Sanaa Mothobisa 

Love the design studios Mamgobozi – and I'm obsessed with everything Sunshine Gun creates. 

This is a shameless plug. We're called 5-9 Sessions and we're using our free will outside of our 9-5 to bring the vibes and culture back. We've just dropped a zine that profiles cool and interesting young people in our industry. If you can't tell, we're obvs so cool and anti-establishment. 

Q: What’s one piece of advertising work you wish you’d come up with, and why?

Sibu: It has to be Artois – Stella Artois – The Artois Probability.  
It exists beautifully at the intersection of stellar art direction (see what I did there) and interesting use of  data  *Chefs Kiss* A dope idea housed in art, history, data? It just houses all my favourite things.   

Q: What are you obsessed with outside of advertising right now?

Sibu: Pottery. Japanese psychological thrillers. African folklore – I’m re-reading ‘Indada, my Children’ by Credo Mutwa and my mind is blown.

Q: What’s the most Sibu thing about Sibu?

Sibu: I'm a walking paradox – part gangster, part softie, in other words 'ngeke ung'confirme'.