Johannesburg - It wasn’t exactly the highlight of my year when I worked out that I’ve been in a 15-year-long relationship with John Robbie, the 61-year-old former host of 702’s breakfast show. He’d been there with me from the days of being driven to school, to driving myself to university, all the way to parking in the basement of my first nine-to-five job – a lot of time together with someone I’ve never even snogged before.
I really loved Robbie for a long time. I felt our relationship was real for a period, but towards the end of his show he gradually fell out of touch. If I had to hear the man talk about how “ridiculous” the black-hair-at-school argument was one more time I vowed to never tune in again.
But all that changed this week when Xolani Gwala moved into Robbie’s hallowed chair. Though still fresh in the passenger seat of my daily commute, I am really getting into his lighter touch. His ability to divert tension is like a Swedish masseuse – swift but sensitive. He uses his at-times breathtaking range of knowledge to quell even the most impassioned caller – a skill desperately necessary for surviving 702’s hectic Tony from Benoni, whose Zuma rants have made me consider driving myself into a tree many a Monday.
We’ve got a long road to go together, but it feels smooth thus far.
Tune in to the 702 Breakfast Show with Xolani Gwala on 92.7FM.