As Johannesburg gears up to host the G20 Summit in November 2025, the city is getting its moment in the global spotlight, and a powerful new campaign is making sure the world sees the real Jozi.
Launched last week on Main Street in the heart of the inner city, Babize Bonke (which means “call everyone”) is the latest initiative from Jozi My Jozi, a collaborative movement aimed at reimagining and revitalising Johannesburg’s inner city. As someone who grew up here, I couldn’t be more excited. This is exactly the kind of energy, storytelling, and creativity that shows the world what makes Joburg unlike anywhere else.
A call to see the city differently
The campaign’s goal is simple but powerful: to make the invisible visible and give the voiceless a voice. Through films, storytelling, and urban interventions, Babize Bonke celebrates the resilience, hustle, and creativity of Johannesburg’s residents, the very heartbeat of the city. It’s about sparking curiosity, challenging tired perceptions, and inviting the world to experience Jozi through the eyes of the people who live and shape it every day.
Jozi’s champions take centre stage
The first wave of Babize Bonke shines a spotlight on extraordinary Joburgers who are reshaping the city from the ground up:
- James Delaney – multidisciplinary artist and owner of Delaney Studio
- Kenneth Nzama (DJ Kenzhero) – DJ, cultural catalyst and curator
- Osmic Menoe – hip-hop guardian and cultural pioneer
- Mama Yumna – community activist and urban gardener
- Nandi Dlepu – creative force, community builder, and founder of Mamakashaka
- Julian Ribeiro – culinary visionary breathing life into the inner city
- Grant Ngcobo – CEO of Dlala Nje, transforming Ponte and its community
- Dr. Taddy Blecher – education pioneer and CEO of the Maharishi Invincibility Institute
Each of these champions embodies the soul of Johannesburg: dreamers, doers, and believers who are driving change, creating opportunity, and building a city that’s vibrant, inclusive, and alive with possibility.
The creative force behind it
The creative force behind the Jozi My Jozi brand is Melusi Mhlungu and his agency We Are Bizarre, who returned home from the US to help reimagine his city at the request of Nando’s co-founder Robbie Brozin. Working with filmmaker Justice Mukheli, the campaign’s launch videos are both visually striking and emotionally charged. It is a love letter to Jozi’s grit and beauty, crafted with care and heart.
“I can honestly say that the eight videos that launch this campaign are among the most special and inspiring pieces I have had the privilege of working on. We started this journey to showcase the invisible and the unheard, and it has been both humbling and energising to shine a light on the dreamers, the believers and the achievers who keep this city alive – they are imbued with a resilience, a push, and a passion to keep working and creating,” explains Mhlungu.
Why now matters
With the G20 Summit bringing the world’s attention to Johannesburg later this year, Babize Bonke is both a showcase and a call to action. It’s about proving that this city is not just a stopover but a world-class African metropolis brimming with culture, creativity, and resilience. As CEO Bea Swanepoel put it at the launch: “This is Jozi’s moment to shine and to show the world who we are: a city that is alive, ready, and rising.”
For me, Johannesburg has always been about its pulse, the raw, beautiful energy that I first felt working in the CBD at my very first job. Babize Bonke captures that feeling and shares it with the world. It’s a reminder of why Jozi is more than a city; it’s a heartbeat, and it’s alive.
This campaign invites locals to reclaim pride in their city and visitors (G20 delegates included) to come and experience Johannesburg’s real story: one of hustle, creativity, and community spirit. As the world looks our way, Jozi is ready to step into the spotlight.
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