Jerome “Slim” Du Plooy talks life, cars and Kasi culture

It’s not very often that you get to meet a young man that has accomplished so much in such a relatively short time. Jerome Du Plooy, better known as Slim, has done just that. Brand ambassador, soapie star and philanthropist, Slim has done much to give back to the people and communities that have supported him on his journey. We recently caught up with him and talked about cars, culture and what his plans are for the future of Slim.

 AutoTrader SA: Welcome Slim! How are you doing?

Slim: I am OK man, glad to be here.

AutoTrader SA: Glad to have you! So tell us a bit about Slim?

Slim:  Well, I am an actor, an event MC, and also a brand ambassador. I like to give back to the community - it’s important to give back so that you don’t forget where you came from.

 AutoTrader SA: You were recently chosen by Peugeot SA to test the new 2008 SUV before launch. Tell us a bit about that?

Slim: Man that Peugeot was sick. Funny story actually - I had the car for maybe 2 days and I was driving through town one night really late, and I pulled up to the robots, and saw this guy standing there. Next thing he is showing me to wind the window down, looking all aggressive, and I was thinking, man, this guy’s gonna jack me! Anyways, he’s being really insistent so I wind the window down a bit and he comes over and he’s like “Hey man, how did you get this car!? This is the new Peugeot and it’s not even launched yet!!” Man, I was so surprised, here’s this guy on a street corner in the middle of the night looking like a gangster and he was totally into the car! Very weird, you know.

AutoTrader SA: Yes, our SA car culture is weird like that. So if money was not an issue, what kind of car would you drive?

Slim: Wow, that’s a tough one! Plenty of good ones out there but I also got to drive the new Peugeot 207 GT Line and that car was pretty tight, a lot like a VW Polo. I really like the Audi R8, as well as the Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupé, or a Bentley Continental GT!

AutoTrader SA: That is a pretty cool dream-car garage, we like it! So what are you currently driving?

Slim: At the moment? Chevro-legs! (laughs). Nah, no car at the moment - I am using Uber to get where I need to go.

AutoTrader SA: Can’t go wrong there - we dig Uber. Speaking of taxis, what kind of drivers really annoy you?

Slim: It would be so easy to say taxi drivers neh? But you know what… it’s really anyone that drives inconsiderately - the type of people that cut you off, or drive on your bumper, or flash lights at you to move out of their way - not always taxi drivers but they do do that a lot. Drivers who don’t focus and are on their phones.

AutoTrader SA: We really hate that! Put your dang phone down, the text message can wait!

Slim: Exactly! You know, I was doing a gig down in Kasi, in the hood where I am from, and this fool just came across the robot and nearly hit a bunch of kids because he was on his phone!

AutoTrader SA: Well, we’re glad nothing bad happened, but speaking of bad, do you have any bad driving habits?

 Slim: (laughs) Ja, I do actually! I like to get my lean on you know…We call it “vlerkie” – it looks like this (cocks out elbow): you rest your arm on the door,     all laid-back, holding the steering wheel like this, and then you hold your chin like this, and you roll…cool music playing because you know you have to look cool. And then when you go over speed bumps, you go over sideways and you turn the steering wheel with the palm of your hand - first left, then right, in this fluid motion…

 AutoTrader SA: (laughing) Yep, we know that move all too well! You spoke about looking cool while driving like that, and you mentioned music. What do you like to listen to while you drive?

Slim: My driving music? Well, I like my music to hype me up, you know, so I like anything by Bryson Tiller. I really dig hip-hop so it has to be hip-hop…I also really like DJ Ganyani and I’m digging Emtee’s ‘Hustler’ and ‘Roll Up’.

AutoTrader SA: You are also a spokesperson for the DriveDry campaign. Can you tell us a little bit about that, and how drunk driving has affected you, personally?

Slim: Ja, so it’s pretty hard for me to understand why people still drive drunk when you have things like Uber. If you know you’re gonna go out and party and get drunk, let someone else drive or take another way home. I was doing an MC gig with a soccer club and there was this kid in a wheelchair that was hit by a drunk driver, and he was a very talented soccer player before the accident - all he wanted to do was play, but he can’t because some fool thought it was okay to drive drunk. It’s very sad, and I want to get the message out there that you really should think how your actions can ruin someone else’s life!

AutoTrader SA: We couldn’t agree more! So what is in the future for Slim?

Slim: We’re really working hard on the SlimCares project and I am hoping that the next season of NBA Game happens. I am also going to be MC’ing a launch event for Nike soon where we’ll be giving away some soccer jerseys to underprivileged kids. It’s really close to my heart helping out disadvantaged kids, you know? I am also working a few projects with AMPed as well to give back to those kids.

AutoTrader SA: Thank you so much for your time and sharing a bit of your life.