By Mohalenyane Phakela
MASERU — Ultimate FM’s Xtreme is fast becoming a famous name in the media industry.
Born Jeremiah Lehloka 23 years ago at Pita, Maseru, Xtreme has managed to worm his way into Ultimate FM’s star-studded list of presenters and made sure that his presence is felt.
The phenomenal growth in his listeners can be proved by the non-stop phone calls he receives whenever he is behind the microphone and the comments he gets on Facebook.
Although it was Xtreme’s desire to be on radio, he never thought of pursuing it as a career.
He always believed the world of math and accounting was the most profitable one, hence, he studied Statistics at the National University of Lesotho.
“I have always been the type of a person who enjoys socialising and hanging out with different people, that is where news gets disseminated through the grapevine.
“Friends would tease me saying that I belong in a studio because every time I opened my mouth they just listen or laugh.
“There was a time back at NUL when I was chilling with my friends discussing the show that had just aired on the schools radio station,” he said.
“I was telling them that the presenter did not have all the facts about the topic he was discussing as I went further into details of the story, it was something that had to do with American singer Beyonce.
“Fortunately (sighs), the person who overheard our conversation was from Dope FM, the school’s radio station. He asked me if I could do that on air, and that is how I became part of the media industry.”
It was in 2010 when Xtreme became a radio anchor and the listeners loved every minute of his show. His talkativeness had paved the way for a career opportunity.
He visited Ultimate FM studios during the holidays when he was in his final year at NUL (last year) and asked for a radio slot after which he started shadowing Dallas T during the Knock Off show.
He was appointed to co-host that show with Dallas T on weekdays and anchors his own show Hit Factory which airs on Saturdays from 6-9pm.
He also said that there is always room for learning when one is in the media industry as there are quite a number of challenges we faced.
“First and foremost, you have to be sure of the facts before discussing anything with the listeners to avoid feeding them the wrong information.
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“Flexibility and the voice quality play a crucial role as that captures the attention of the audience.
“I am often complimented for the accent I adopt when I speak English. The listeners say I do not sound local or African at all,” he said with a chuckle.
