This Body Works For Me S2 is now streaming on Showmax. The reality series about the South African adult entertainment industry was an instant hit when it debuted last year, topping charts on Twitter and Showmax and making its cast household names.
In the first episode of Season 2, we see the OGs – Xoli Mfeka, Bubbly, Gina, Primadonna and Wandi Ndlovu – as well as newcomers Diamond, Dione Xanthe and Lebo. Xoli brought Dione Xanthe on the show last season to shoot a scene with her and Wandi, her former bestie turned archnemesis.
Xoli, who is considered one of the pioneers of the adult entertainment industry in South Africa, explains why her role is minimised in the second season of the show. “I got a call from my brother to tell me that my mother and grandmother were in the hospital,” she says in episode 1. “So that is why I am going up and down, from here to there.”
While she wasn’t able to commit to filming full time this season as a result, she is positive about her time on This Body Works For Me. “Being on this show changed my life in many ways and I am grateful for it,” she adds. “As an adult entertainer, we hardly get these opportunities, so this is really amazing and the platform is great.”
Wandi agrees. “Ever since the first season of the show, I am now famous and people recognise me everywhere I go,” she says. “It is so weird but I like it a lot; I never thought that it would be me that is famous one day.”
In an interview with Showmax, Xoli delved into her fractured relationship with Wandi and how it makes her feel. “Wandi sued me after we shot a movie,” she says. “That broke my heart because I really did like her and I have always wanted all of us to win. It is now weird that she and I are no longer talking. It is very disappointing.”
“This Body Works For Me is a concept that seeks to shine a light on what women in the adult entertainment industry go through,” says show creator and POP24 executive producer Zinzi Velelo Alake, who is also behind the record-breaking Showmax Original The Mommy Club. “It is an all-access look into the lives of those who are often not seen and heard, it showcases women who boldly live their lives authentically and proudly.”
Gina wants audiences to see the human in them and not just their occupations. “I am a mother and a daughter who comes from a very religious family. Even though I am an exotic dancer, I have not forgotten where I come from.”
For Bubbly, adult entertainment is her business. “Being a businesswoman is not easy and I want people to see the ups and downs of it all,” she says.
Dione Xanthe hopes that her story will resonate with survivors of abuse. ”My life has not always been easy,” she says. “The things I have gone through should have broken me, but I am still standing and that should be a lesson for other people.”
Diamond is all about showing up authentically as herself. “I am going to be myself throughout,” she says. “I do not feel the pressure to change myself to fit in; I am me, and that is enough.”
Aspiring rapper Primadonna says filming the show has improved her confidence. “Before filming Season 1, I was confident but something happened to me after Season 1 that just made me even more confident in myself and my decisions.”
“People should watch this season because there is something for everyone; there is representation and I feel like audiences will be able to see themselves in each one of us,” says Lebo.
Watch the trailer:
Stream Showmax Original This Body Works For Me first and only on Showmax, with new episodes on Tuesdays:
