'Imma do the best I can with what I got!'

By: Faiza Stone

You may know her from a play called "Mixed Metaphors" or from a theatre piece, however, we know her as Cecil Whittaker who played Christopher's mom and Vince's ex on 7de Laan.

Born, bread and buttered in Strandfontein. Chantal Stanfield is a South African singer, actress, dancer, puppeteer and is best know for the role she played on 7de Laan, SABC 2.

The 38-year-old Stanfield whose father was in the Navy, was born at 2 Military Hospital which is located in Wynberg in Cape Town. Growing up, Chantal's parents allowed her to join a drama club as a way to keep her busy in the afternoons while she would wait for her dad to pick her up from junior school.

Nevertheless, the bug bit and she found herself falling dangerously in love with drama and has been performing ever since. Her very first theatre piece was a tribute show which proved to her parents that performing was the career path she wanted to pursue. "My parents have always been super supportive but wanted me to get the degree too."

The singer said that she usually calls herself a performer, as it encompasses everything she does but feels 'creative artist' might work better as she ventures into new creative nonperforming avenues.

She is the wife of creative genius, RJ Benjamin and the couple have a very "talkative" toddler together, the actress said. She also have a younger sister called Megan. "We often joke that we're twins because people get us mixed up sometimes as she gets mistaken for me by fans in malls."

"I have been in the public eye since 2005 with a BA in Theatre and Performance."

Chantal's first proper acting gig in 2006 was a theatre piece called "Mixed Metaphors", a two persons play which toured to the State Theatre, Artscape and the National Arts Festival. The performer added on to say: "It was incredible being a young graduate, learning the ropes of travelling with a show."

The artist currently has a dance single coming out soon called J'adore. It's a collective project with Chocolate Hut, produced by hubby RJ Benjamin and it features French rapper MARZ. "It's a catchy dance track and I can't wait for people to hear it," she added.

When asked why acting and signing, the pretty face simply smiled and said that she loves the rawness and honesty of acting on stage. With signing she said, "I love using my voice differently to tell the story."

Seychelles, Turkey and Spain, you name it. Chantal has seen it all. "I've been very fortunate to perform in these cool places. I have too many highlights in my career and one was winning a spot in UK." Not only did she spend ten days in London but she also learned a lot from other practitioners.

"Performing one of my own monologues in front of the audience after spending time with a mentor director while getting a glimpse of how the industry work there."

Chantal said that her favourite colour changes a lot depending on her mood or activity vibe. But she likes pink, green, yellow and most definitely black. The answer to the question, what's your favourite food? was sushi. There's a huge list of favourites but sushi tops the list.

For her, the most challenging aspect of her career is when no work is happening. "There was a whole year in Cape town where I did not book any work."

In spite of all the glorious moments in her career, there is still one more thing she would like to achieve and that is to be a director for film, stage, and TV in order to expand her skills and to put all the experience she gathered as an actress behind the camera on the other side of the camera.

"I do not think I look up to people, but I do admire those individuals within our industry, who are steadfast, honest, focused and disciplined."

Her quote for 2022 is from a clip of Mariah Carey: "Imma do the best I can with what I got!"

The advice this witty head had for those who want to follow her footsteps was for them to forge their own path and not to emulate somebody else's journey. "It is easy to feel envious of what somebody else is doing but keep your head down and focus on where you are and what you want to achieve."

She further added on to say that this industry is not easy, so if you are thinking of making it your career, make sure it's an absolute passion of yours because that's what will be keeping you going during the rainy days.

Follow Chantal, she's available on Facebook @ (chantalstanfieldperformer), on Twitter (@chantalstan) and IG (@chantal.Stanfield)

Edited By Flep Sebitsi Marako