Media personality Minnie Dlamini filed a 79-page statement at the Equality Court sitting at the Johannesburg High Court claiming R2.5 million in damages from podcast host MacG after she says derogatory comments on his show in April 2025 led to the collapse of a R897,000 Nivea campaign. Image: Minnie dlamini via Instagram
Media personality Minnie Dlamini revealed the financial fallout she says resulted from comments made about her on MacG’s Podcast and Chill in April 2025. The Minnie Dlamini MacG Equality Court case involves a 79-page statement she filed at the Equality Court at the Johannesburg High Court. Furthermore, Dlamini says a signed Nivea campaign worth R897,000 collapsed after the controversy. As a result, she is claiming R2.5 million in damages from podcast host MacGyver Mukwevho, known as MacG.
Dlamini is not claiming the full R2.5 million for herself. Of that amount, R1.5 million would go to the nonprofit Women for Change. She is personally claiming R1 million. Furthermore, her statement describes a cascade of career, financial and emotional consequences from the April 2025 episode. As a result, the case goes beyond money and raises questions about the power of popular media to damage professional lives and mental health.
Dlamini’s Nivea partnership began around 2023. A Mall of Africa activation went ahead on 1 May 2025. Other campaign elements fell away after the podcast controversy broke. Her team asked Dentsu, the agency handling the account, for clarity. At a meeting on 2 June 2025, Dentsu told her team the controversy had alarmed Nivea and its parent company Beiersdorf. Furthermore, Nivea told Dlamini it would not continue with her, citing a budget change. Dlamini rejects that explanation. She says the budget had been approved and she had completed work under the agreement. As a result, she presents the Nivea deal as the clearest proof of the financial harm MacG’s comments caused.
Dlamini told the court her career depends on public trust. She says brands must feel comfortable associating their products with her name and image. The April 2025 episode featured remarks about her body that she describes as derogatory. Those comments spread rapidly across social media. Furthermore, she told the court she felt blackballed in the industry afterwards. As a result, her statement covers financial loss as well as the emotional toll she experienced.
MacG publicly apologised for the comments. However, Dlamini told the Equality Court she regards the apology as hollow. She described it as insufficient given the scale of the damage. The Equality Court hears cases involving hate speech, harassment and unfair discrimination. It can award damages and order remedial action. Furthermore, the court sits in the High Court and its decisions carry real legal weight. As a result, Dlamini’s claim is a serious legal matter before a court with real power.
The case is part of a broader debate about the responsibilities of popular podcasts in South Africa. MacG’s Podcast and Chill is one of South Africa’s most watched and most controversial programmes. It has sparked debates about statements made about public figures, particularly women. Furthermore, Julius Malema publicly told young South Africans to stop watching MacG in August 2026 and switch to Dr Mbuyiseni Ndlozi’s African Renaissance Podcast instead. As a result, Podcast and Chill faces legal, political and cultural pressure in 2026.
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