We sat down with Melusi Mhlungu, Founder and Chief Creative Officer of We Are Bizarre and founding partner of Jozi My Jozi, for a conversation on what it takes to create the most interesting brand in the room.
Melusi’s talks us through a decade of bold moves, from being named the Loeries Young Creative of the Year in 2015, to working in Miami, Chicago and New York. His work includes global campaigns for Adidas, Uber, Instagram and the NBA. We also discuss how he followed his instincts, going against data, to create one of his hugely successful Super Bowl commercials.
Now back home, he’s leading his agency into some of the most exciting brand partnerships, including winning Nando’s as lead agency.
For him, the answer to standing out isn’t complex: it’s trust and instinct. When clients fully back creatives, brave ideas thrive. Melusi also points to the rise of independent agencies, fuelled not by big budgets but by passion, care and commitment to the work.
He challenges the industry to rethink risk, bring back the “magic” often lost to logic, and back smaller agencies with big ideas.
Key discussion points:
- Building the most interesting brand in the room
- Lessons from global brands and Super Bowl campaigns
- The importance of trust in client–creative partnerships
- Why instinct can outperform data
- The rise of independent agencies in South Africa
Watch the conversation:
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Our podcast audio editing and audio production are done by: Maishe Rakgoale.