User:Cuerius

Cuerius Chai Mosalah (born Mosala Nyawusa Chele, 26 August 1996) is a South African portrait, documentary and street photographer.

Early life
Mosala Nyawusa Chele was born on August 26, 1996, in Sebokeng, South Africa, the son of Nomvula Johanna Nyawusa & Mathe Martin Chele.

Mosala grew up in poverty and her mother died when he was thirteen years. Cuerius’s father also passed on two years after his matriculation. After his father’s death, Mosala continued with his journey to fulfill the City Of Gold dream, where he lived in a three-bedroom apartment on Hlobane Street in Sebokeng with his siblings. Their financial condition was poor and he started cutting grass, doing general maintenance jobs, and working as a street pharmacist in order to support his family. At home, Mosalah was shy and rarely spoke. As a kid, he became acquainted with one of his street brothers, who under the name MHz was a pioneering disc jockey (DJ) in the late-2010s Ghetto Jazz Bar Sunday Sessions scene and influenced artists P-Star Master and Gento Bareto.

Cuerius Mosalah’s interest in Digital Media grew as a result of being a photographer for these early influences. He was also influenced by Grammy Award winner Black Coffee, independent artists Okmalumkoolkat and Zakes Bantwini, whom he learned to emulate by watching their DVDs for music photography inspiration.

During his early teenage years, Mosalah often associated himself with artists in and around Braamfontein. He often stayed up well past midnight filling notebooks with places and historical sites that he later visited to capture encouraging friends to pose as his models.

When he was 19, while walking to a corner store, Cuerius was arrested for possessing marijuana and was beaten up by the police. He was released with no charge and later asked to attend a community addictions session with other members for rehabilitation.

Business career
Cuerius has established himself as a successful entrepreneur with a business empire spanning a variety of industries from clothing lines, beverages, real estate, record labels, sports and cultural art teams.

Cuerius Chai Mosala also founded his first recording studio and artist management agency in 2015 named Cuerius Entertainment and accommodated men, women and children.

In July 2016, Mosala made a significant investment to Awethu Project, an app helping entrepreneurs manage their startup opportunities and financial literacy. The app was built by Awethu Project Director Yusuf Randera-Rees in collaboration with ABSA Group to launch this application for android.

Cuerius Chai Mosalah appeared in a 2017 Awethu Project incubator advertisement for an entrepreneurial application launch.

In an interview, he stated that "my brands are an extension of me. They're close to me, emotionally and physically”.

In March 2018, Mosalah sold the rights to the Umswenko Wase Vaal brand to P-STAR MASTER, for R1,3 million. He retains his stake in the company and continues to oversee the marketing, licensing and product development. He also co-owns the Cuerius Clouds, an upscale sports bar that started in Ficksburg and plans to expand to Vanderbjilpark and Soweto.

In February 2019, it was announced that Cuerius would partner with Edward Snell & Co.’s Firstwatch Whisky to establish the Firstwatch Entrepreneurs Challenge.

Cuerius Chai Mosalah serves as co-brand director for Firstwatch Whisky and collaborates with the company on strategic marketing programs and creative ad development. He provides direction on brand programs and ads that appear on TV, radio, print, and high-profile events.

In 2020, he signed a two-year exclusive film and TV Deal with Backyard Productions and with the deal gives them first-look options to create scripted and unscripted TV projects and film projects, and those projects were in works.

In 2022 Mosalah Nyawusa Chele plans to launch a newly formed cannabis products company in the role of "Chief Visionary Officer".