He came from humble beginnings and now he is not only starring in one of SA’s hottest soapies, but he also released two brand new singles.
We first met Ernest St Clair aka Ernie B 15 years ago as one of the finalists of the Coca-Cola Popstars and since then the singer/actor has gone from strength to strength.
Ernie is one of the lead actors in the popular new telenovela Arendsvlei on kykNET & Kie.
He plays Christopher, the secretary to the school’s deputy principal, and who smaaks her stukkend.
Born and raised in Lotus River, the 37-year-old says after working on 2017 locally made movie Krotoa, his acting career really took off.
“I was working on Krotoa and I told the producer what my acting goals are, and she called me up earlier this year and said she had something for me,” Ernie says.
“She surprised me with the role of Christopher in Arendsvlei.
“My character has loads of similarities to myself especially the part where he is ambitious and a hard worker, trying to better himself for his community.
GIANT LEAP: Ernie stars as Christopher in the new telenovela Arendsvlei. Photo: SUPPLIED
“The difference is that I don’t make out with a married woman,” he jokes.
Ernie has a nine-year-old son, Miyoko.
The singer broke onto the music scene in 2003 as a fresh-faced teen on the then-popular singing competition and later broke away from Afro-Z to become a solo act.
“Long before Pop Stars, I studied arts, drama, dance and music at Wynberg Senior Secondary also known as Abby Hall,” he says.
Ernie recently released two singles internationally.
“I’ve been studying the new music industry business model with a company overseas and signed an international digital distribution deal which led me to sell albums in the USA as well as in Bali,” he explains.
Ernie says he has managed to juggle both his music and film career demands successfully.
In 2017, he was a stuntman in the Hollywood action thriller 24 Hours to Live, starring Ethan Hawke.
Part of the film’s storyline takes place in South Africa.
“I’m working on both plus doing my stunt performing in movies and I’m currently busy on a big South Africa production, which I can’t talk about at this point,” he teases.
Arendsvlei airs on kykNET & Kie at 8 pm Mondays to Wednesdays.