In case you’re wondering, here’s what Ben 10 means. Also, find out some of the Ben 10s in the South African music industry.
If you follow the trends on Twitter then you must have noticed how much Ben 10 has been trending. Mzansi is talking about one of the most understated occurrences in the SA music industry. It all happens in plain sight, yet somehow, Zodwa Wabantu and hers are the only ones who get well talked about.
For Starters, what’s a Ben 10?
Well, that’s simple. You know how there are sugar mummies and sugar daddies in Mzansi? There are also what’s called Ben 10s. They are young men who date older women. Simply put, in a relationship where there’s an older woman, and a younger man, the younger man is referred to as a Ben 10.
Of course, we have all watched the cartoon series where Ben is a young boy who seems to never age. That’s where the word was coined. Now, here’s a fact. Stories about Ben 10 relationships appear regularly in one of South Africa’s biggest newspapers, Daily Sun. Avid readers of the paper would know this if they pay enough attention. Readers of the paper are mostly township residents.
The stories printed by the Daily Sun newspaper portray these older women as “postfeminist”. They are also independent and a majority of them are financially secure more than the young men they’re in relationships with. The women are known to take care of the men’s every need, including showing them a good time and renting apartments for them. This, of course, is contrary to local hetero-patriarchal norms.
A common example of this is popular socialite and dancer, Zodwa Wabantu’s many relationships in the public eye. Wabantu is always the older one in the relationships and her Ben 10s are known to be younger than her, and not as financially secure as she is. Zodwa’s highly publicized relationships have brought both positive and negative reactions like similar stories published by Daily Sun.
In the South African music industry, many Ben 10 relationships do not get talked about enough. A recent post by Amapiano stars, Focalistic and DBN Gogo showing photos of their time together in Paris has got tongues wagging. The two seem to finally be going public with their relationship although no one knows when it started. DBN Gogo is older than Foca making him a Ben 10.
Social media users have listed other Ben 10 relationships in the industry. They include Priddy Ugly and his wife, Bontle Modiselle who have a child together, Bongz and DJ Zinhle, TK and Nkosi, Andile Mpisane, and his wife, and J Molley and Khanya. Unlike in the stories published in Daily Sun, the younger men are equally well to do just as much as the women.