From grassroots open mics in township halls to pop-up sets on the Gautrain, stand-up is meeting its audience wherever it lives. The awards reflect that momentum – celebrating legends, platforming newcomers and pointing to a scene where the next great South African comedian could be building a following in a language, a space, or a train carriage you didn’t see coming.
South African stand-up was never just about laughs. It’s about survival, identity and the particular absurdity of living here – politics, infrastructure and culture all in the mix. Comedians like Trevor Noah built global careers on this, while Tumi Morake, Celeste Ntuli and Loyiso Gola have shown that the sharpest version of the story is told from inside it, in the specific textures and languages that make this place unlike anywhere else. Code-switching mid-punchline isn't a stylistic choice here – it’s just how people speak, and the comedy reflects that.
Funny business on the Gautrain
On Wed, Apr 29, Johannesburg In Your Pocket joined forces with OnPointPR Agency to bring comedy to the Gautrain commute, running a pop-up stand-up activation from Rosebank to Midrand ahead of the 13th annual Savanna Comics' Choice Comedy Awards on Sat, May 2, 2026.
Joining us were Shanray (Best Friend of Comedy Award nominee), Thabiso Mhlongo and rising newcomers Sjika Da Thirdborn and Rae du Plooy, both up for Best Newcomer of the Year.
Gautrain commuters are a purposeful crowd; they're heads-down, homeward or work bound and not particularly primed for surprise comedy. Pair that with material that leaned toward the drier end of the spectrum, and it was always going to be a tough ask to pull riders out of their routines.
Yet some commuters swapped headphones for front-row seats, and for a moment, the carriage shifted into something else entirely. The Gautrain wasn't built for mid-afternoon stand-up – but that was precisely the point.
Arriving at the 2026 Savanna Comics' Choice Comedy Awards
Upon arrival at Gold Reef City's Lyric Theatre, the first thing you notice is that the red carpet is yellow. This is a serious event – just not in the way you’d expect.
The celebrity sighting has largely been replaced by the influencer moment, with TikTok and Instagram faces drawing just as much attention. Among them: Banele Ndaba aka @moghelingz, who presented the Comedic Content Award, and Savanna content creator Bheki Ndamase. The closest thing to a traditional celebrity sighting was Trevor Gumbi, recognisable from Netflix's How to Ruin Christmas.
Joburg’s fashion did what it always does – arrived with intention. Savanna’s yellow was woven into outfit after outfit, and nobody looked like they hadn’t thought about it.
Before the show: a photo booth queue, a complimentary Savanna and a bucket of popcorn – essential for what was billed as a two-hour show and ran happily to three.
The show opened with Mbali Gudazi, whose energy cracked the room open. The stereotype humour arrived quickly – a reminder that South African stand-up, at its best, is gloriously unhinged. Hosted by Goliath and Goliath (read our interview with Donovan Goliath) this year’s theme – Family Affair – leaned into the community spirit that’s defined the awards for 13 years. Grassroots comedy remains the foundation.
The 2026 Savanna Comics' Choice Comedy winners:
Breakthrough Award – Linde Sibande
Best Comedy Festival or Show – Ground Culture Comedy
Best Friend of Comedy – Yaaseen Barnes
Comedic Content Award – Vafa Naraghi
Savanna Newcomer Award – Rae du Plooy (40 entries, 20 made the Newcomer Showcase in February 2026)
Beyond the Mic – Kagiso Ladiga for the voice of young Rafiki, The Lion King
Legacy Award – David Kau
Best Solo Show – Dillan Oliphant for Masekind
Joe Mafela Award – Siya Seya
Innovative Comedy Performance – Conrad Koch and Chester Missing
Headliner of the Year – Celeste Ntuli
Comedian of the Year – Dillan Oliphant
New vs established talent
What looks like an “old vs new” divide is more deliberate than it appears. Established acts bring polish earned from road-testing material across every dingy venue and festival stage until it's practically bulletproof. They’re proof of what’s possible.
At the same time, the awards actively platform newer voices – comedians shaped by comment sections, voice notes and audiences who consume content between meetings and on minibus taxis. A nomination here isn’t a consolation prize. It’s a signal boost that can fast-track a career.
And that’s really the story: every name on that stage was once the new one. The system only works if that cycle keeps moving – less a handover, more a long table with space for more chairs.
Grassroots comedy gets it flowers
South Africa’s grassroots comedy scene is one of its most vibrant and underreported creative spaces. It lives in small clubs, community halls, campus open mics and online – where comedians build followings in isiZulu, Sesotho, or fluid code-switching long before the mainstream catches up. That’s where the sharpest material lives – and where many emerging voices are doing their most interesting work.
The gap has always been the bridge: how do you move from a township open mic to a festival line-up or streaming special? This is where the Savanna Comics' Choice Comedy Awards matter. A nomination carries industry weight, turning visibility into opportunity. The risk is that awards can reflect existing gatekeeping. But when they reach deeply enough into grassroots spaces, they do something more valuable – they connect the circuit to the industry.
Highlights from the experience: Our comics to watch
Seeing Rae du Plooy take home Newcomer of the Year landed with extra weight – especially after sharing a Gautrain carriage just days earlier. Out of 40 entries, only 20 made it to the newcomer showcase in February, which makes the win feel properly earned.
Conrad Koch and Chester Missing were another clear standout. Making people laugh is one thing – doing it through a puppet while delivering sharp, unflinching political commentary is something else. Koch’s work sits in that very South African space where satire and reality blur. It’s biting, absurd and exactly the kind of comedy that thrives here.
Sometimes laughter is just the most accurate response to the country’s contradictions.
By the end of the night, the takeaway was simple: stand-up might not be everyone’s natural habitat, but in Joburg right now, it’s impossible to ignore.
In photos: The Savanna x Gautrain activation
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