South African comedian, author, political pundit, and television broadcaster Trevor Noah. He is the current host of Comedy Central’s well-liked American satire news show The Daily Show.
Due to his extensive international touring, Trevor is among the most well-known stand-up comedians in his native country. He has hosted numerous prestigious events both inside and outside of South Africa and received numerous prestigious accolades.
Early Life and Education
Noah was born on February 20th, 1984 in the Soweto neighborhood of South Africa to a Black Xhosa mother and a White Swiss-German father. Because of the apartheid system in place at the time, his parents’ union was unlawful. Their union was more of a taboo because the system supported and encouraged racial injustice and segregation.
Trevor’s parents kept their connection private, but a child cannot remain concealed invisibly forever. When Trevor was born, his mother repeatedly served brief sentences in prison, and the young Trevor was routinely hidden from law enforcement.
Being half-cast, Trevor faced many unfortunate circumstances, some of which included his family’s extreme poverty, segregation, and other restrictions. Because of this, Trevor’s hilarious creations are often based on his personal experiences.
Trevor received his primary and senior education at Maryvale College, a private Roman Catholic elementary and high school in Johannesburg.
Trevor, however, has never been found to have graduated from a university.
Career
In 2002, Trevor made his acting debut in a minor role on an episode of the South African soap opera Isidingo. Later, he held his own radio program called Noah’s Ark on YFM, the top radio station in Gauteng. Trevor, who enjoys comedy, left his position as an on-air presenter to concentrate on his comedy.
He shared the stage with well-known comics in the beginning of his career, including Darren Simpson, Marc Lottering, Kagiso Lediga, Barry Hilton, and David Kau. In addition to South African comedians, he has shared the stage with international comics like Carl Barron, Dan Ilic, Paul Rodriguez, and others.
Trevor was making a name for himself as he investigated the comedy business. He toured South Africa in 2007 as an opening act for American comic Gabriel Iglesias and Canadian comedian Russell Peters.
After a long absence, Trevor made a comeback to presenting and took over “Run the Adventure,” a SABC 2 educational television program. Additionally, he served as the anchor of “The Real Goboza,” a well-liked gossip program on SABC 2. Siyadlala participated in the television program he presented as well. Following his shift, Trevor co-hosted The Amazing Dates, a dating game program, with Pabi Moloi. He made an appearance as a host on Strictly Come Dancing.
He co-hosted Eugene Khoze on the reality series The Axe Sweet life in 2009, the same year he hosted the third annual South African Music Awards. As the host of the 6th Annual South African Music Awards, Trevor continually put up a show for his fans.
Due to the size of his fan base, he launched Tonight with Trevor Noah on MNet with DSTV. Eventually, the show was switched to DStv’s Mzansi Magic, which increased its audience.
Other Trevor comedies include the Jozi Comedy Festival, the Vodacom Campus Comedy Tour, and Bafunny Bafunny, to name a few. Among his notable stand-up comedy are Crazy Normal (2011), That’s Racist (2012), and Daywalker (2009).
Trevor afterwards worked as a consumer protection agent for Cell C, the third-largest mobile phone network provider in South Africa. Trevor moved to the United States in 2011, and in the first month of the following year, he made history by being the first South African stand-up comic to appear on The Tonight Show.
You Laugh But It’s True, a documentary released in 2012, provided an authoritative account of Trevor’s life.
Additionally, he made his Late Show debut in 2013 and served as the roastmaster for South African Afrikaans musician Steve Hofmeyr in a Comedy Central roast.
He collaborated closely with The Daily Show in 2014 as a regular contributor. But he replaced John Stewart as host of the Daily program in March 2015, and he took over on September 28, 2015.
Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood, Trevor’s debut book, was published in November 2016 and quickly shot to New York bestseller status. In 2016, it also rose to prominence as an audiobook.
The next year, Comedy Central renewed his contract for an additional five years through 2022 after claiming that The Daily Show with Trevor Noah had been the top program for decades.
In September, 2022, Trevor announced he’s leaving The Daily Show on Comedy Central, after hosting it for seven years, indicating he wanted to dedicate more time to stand-up comedy.
Being one of the best, Trevor uses his humorous deliveries to address contemporary issues in society and the reality the people of American society face on a daily basis. He also uses the platform to engage with some prominent and influential people such as Oprah, Kevin Hart, Ellen, Bill gates and other most influential figures.
Philanthropy
In 2018, Trevor Noah started a foundation which was established with the aim of helping vulnerable youth and orphanages in South Africa. The foundation is a non-profit organization that is based in Johannesburg but works across all neighbouring places.
The organization also helps to empower youths with the relevant skills they need to scale through life. It provides educational background and grooms youths with sufficient skills and capacity to pursue their dreams.
Personal Life
Trevor is a multilingual person who speaks English, Afrikaans, Zulu, Tswana, and Sotho with ease. Additionally, he is fluent in Tsonga, German, and Xhosa.
Patricia Nombuyiselo, the mother of Trevor, wed Ngisaveni Abel Shingange in 1992. They were blessed with two boys, Andrew and Isaac. The two separated in 1996, and Trevor’s mother later remarried. Sfiso Khoza was the person she wed.
She was shot by Shingange when he found out about her marriage, but she only suffered minor wounds. When Trevor challenged Shingange about his behavior, he threatened him instead, which prompted Trevor to fly from Johannesburg to Los Angeles. Shingange was found guilty of attempted murder in 2011 and given a three-year prison term.
Trevor belongs to the group of individuals who frequently describe themselves as progressive and having a global outlook. He did clarify that he does not participate in US politics, therefore the progressive he refers to does not necessarily mean a political progressive.
Trevor is currently single. Prior to it, Trevor was dating Minks Kelly, and their relationship began in 2020. However, the partnership was peacefully ended in May 2021. Trevor dated Jordyn Taylor from 2015 to 2018 while dating Dani Gabriel from 2014 to 2015.
Despite the fact that Trevor lives in New York City at the moment, sources indicate that he has ADHD.
Controversies
When Trevor made a joke against Jewish women in 2015, it nearly cost him his job on The Daily Show. He was hauled off for making what was perceived as a disrespectful statement. The station did, however, forgive him since Comedy Central saw the joke as being in the spirit of comedy. He was also permitted to keep hosting the program.
Later, he became involved in a contentious conspiracy, but this was disguised as a danger to his life. Following the Covid-19 outbreak, people began disseminating rumors and theories about the virus. After a while, many people began to question whether Bill Gates really meant it when he declared he would create a vaccine.
This was following an interview Trevor had with Bill Gates. During the interview, Bill Gates said that he wanted to try the vaccine for the pandemic in Africa but the news doesn’t sit well with Africans. Later, Trevor Noah started receiving death threats as people labelled him a sell-out but he responded by saying he was only doing his job.
Awards and Nominations
Trevor is one of the most awarded creatives in Africa. He has earned himself 62 Grammy Nominations and has become South Africa’s most decorated creative and comedian.
Below are some of his awards and Nominations;
- 2012 – South African Comics’ Choice Award for Comic of the Year
- 2014 – MTV Africa Music Awards for Personality of the Year
- 2016 – NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Talk Series, Outstanding Variety,
- Outstanding Host in a News, Talk, Reality, or Variety
- 2016 – Critics’ Choice Television Award for Best Talk Show
- 2017 – Zora Neale Hurston Award for Born a Crime
- 2017 – NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Literary Work – Biography / Autobiography, Outstanding Literary Work – Debut Author
- 2017 – Guild of America Award for Comedy/Variety with Trevor Noah
- 2017 – Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Award for favourite African Star
- 2017 – GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Talk Show Episode
- 2018 – MTV Movie & TV Awards for Best Host
- 2018 – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Short Form Variety Series
- Thurber House
- 2018 – NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Talk Series
- 2018 – Outstanding Host in a Talk or News/Information Writers Guild of America Award
- 2018 – GLAAD Media Award | Outstanding Talk Show EpisodeThe Opposition with Jordan Klepper
- 2018 – Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Variety Talk Series, Outstanding Interactive Program
- 2018 – Outstanding Short Form Variety Series at People’s Choice Awards
- 2019 – Dorian Awards for TV Current Affairs Show of the Year
- 2019 – Producers Guild of America Award for Outstanding Producer of Live Entertainment & Talk Television
- 2019 – NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Talk Series
- 2019 – Outstanding Host in a Talk or News/Information (Series or Special) – Individual or Ensemble
- 2019 – Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series
- 2019 – Outstanding Variety (Series or Special)
- 2019 – Critics’ Choice Real TV Awards for Best Late-Night Talk Show
- 2019 – MTV Movie & TV Awards for Best Host
- 2019 – Primetime Emmy Award for Variety Talk Series
- 2019 – Outstanding Interactive Program
- 2019 – People’s Choice Awards
- 2020 – Critics’ Choice Television Award for Best Comedy Special
- 2020 – Producers Guild of America Awards for Outstanding Producer of Live Entertainment & Talk Television
- 2020 – Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album
- 2020 – NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Talk Series
- 2020 – Outstanding Host in a Talk or News/Information (Series or Special) – Individual or Ensemble
- 2020 – Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series
- 2020 – GLAAD Media Award | Outstanding Talk Show Episode
Net Worth
Throughout his contribution as one of the best comedians in the South African entertainment industry, coupled with his shows and book; Born A Crime, Trevor is estimated to be $100 million.