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balance looks like for you – and some days you manage it better than others.”
But her biggest teacher is Luca, reminding her to be present.“ Life moves so fast, especially in this industry. But there’ s so much beauty in slowing down and appreciating where you are.”
“ Does Luca know you are kind of a big deal?” we ask.“ Not at first,” she answers. But now that he’ s older, his friends recognise her and tell him.
“ He doesn’ t necessarily think I’ m cool, but he does tell people,‘ Don’ t worry, my mom can get you on the radio’.”
Mama Domburg
Jamie-Lee admits she always gets emotional talking about her mom.“ If I wanted to become a heart surgeon, she’ d probably give her own heart to help me achieve it. She’ s my biggest cheerleader.”
In an industry marked by travel, long hours and constant moving, she says her mother has always encouraged her to keep going.
“ Knowing my son is with her gives me complete peace of mind. If I’ m on a 12-hour shoot, I know she’ ll help with school runs and everything else.”
Despite their different parenting styles, Jamie and her mom respect each other’ s roles. Jamie deeply values her mother’ s help, noting,“ The biggest gift she gives me is peace of mind”.
Jamie 2.0
In 2020, Jamie started on a body transformation journey. Her then co-presenter, Katlego Maboe, dared her to join the # GoFetchYourBody on air. The competitor in her said yes, and she hasn’ t looked back.
For her, it was never just about losing weight. It was about her health and becoming a better version of herself, for her friends, family, but mostly for Luca.
In an age of Ozempic, where everyone is coy about their weight loss, Jamie-Lee has chosen to present her transformation openly – documenting her journey on her socials.
“ I simply wanted to show people that there’ s another way. You don’ t have to follow whatever is trending. You can find something sustainable that works for your body and your lifestyle. Yes, it takes hard work, but I think you appreciate the results so much more when you’ ve put in that work yourself.”
Life post-Expresso
Expresso was always meant to lead to better things and so, after three years of a gruelling morning routine,“ and with Luca starting school and me working
14- to 15-hour days … something had to give. That was TV”, says Jamie-Lee.
She’ s clear though: this isn’ t a goodbye; it’ s just a detour.“ I’ m definitely not done with television – I just don’ t have the time for it right now.”
For now, Jamie is enjoying getting to sleep in, though she is still up at 5.30am at least three times a week to work out. Her days now revolve around school runs, training, brand campaigns, radio, and the occasional evening event.
So, we asked: if we were having this conversation a year from now, what would she hope we’ d be celebrating? Hopefully another year of consistency, she answers.“ This has been one of the best years of my career. I’ ve worked with incredible brands, including G-Star, and I’ ve continued building relationships with brands like FNB and Takealot.”
But above all else, she hopes that she will still love her life.“ The day I stop enjoying it is the day I’ ll walk away.” �
18 www. babysandbeyond. co. za