“From Trent to Thabo”: SA Stunned as Man Quickly Changes From Scouse to Xhosa Accent

• A South African man in Liverpool, England, shared how he switched from a Scouse accent to his Xhosa accent
• He switched to his Xhosa accent after speaking to a man in the area, and later told the online community that he was late for an event
• Many social media users shared that they didn't expect the young man to switch accents the way he did
• Briefly News spoke to the Xhosa gent, who shared why he was in Liverpool and gave more information about his interaction with the Liverpudlian

The gift of the gab! South African TikTok content creator Gift Nongwe shocked people on the internet when he switched from a Scouse accent to his Xhosa accent.

Scouse is an English dialect spoken in and around Liverpool.

On 9 August, 2025, Gift, who was in England, uploaded a video on his account to show how he communicated with a Liverpudlian man who asked him about pizza (or so it sounded, as the accent was quite thick to a South African ear).

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After their banter, Gift, who shared that he was recording for his safety, parted ways with the man and immediately spoke in isiXhosa to online viewers.

He said in the video:

"I'm late, I'm late, but they must wait for me. Even I would have waited for myself."

Xhosa man elaborates on interaction

When asked what he and the man were actually saying in the video, Gift, who went to England to be with his mother after matriculating in 2022, told Briefly News with a laugh:

"Honestly speaking, I do not have a clue what he was on about. I thought he was asking me about a pizza place, hence why I said in the video clip, 'I do not know where that lad.'

"Then he started laughing as if what he was saying in the first place was non-existent and a joke, which is why we could not understand what he was saying. Nevertheless, he did say something clear in his accent shortly after that, which was 'yes, brother, yes.' I asked other natives, but they said they didn't have a clue what he was on about."

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Briefly News also asked Gift what he was late for. He stated that he was on his way to a football game as he is part of a football club in the area.

He said of the interaction:

"It happened on my way there. I passed by Anfield Stadium, then I decided to make a video for TikTok."

Xhosa man stuns SA with Scouse accent

The viral video had several social media users dashing to the comment section to share how surprised they were to hear the switch in accents. People jokingly referred to the young man as Trent Alexander-Arnold, a Real Madrid player from Liverpool who has a similar Scouse accent.

@zam_okuhle, who found humour in the post, shared:

"To say I was shocked at the accent switch is an understatement."

@kaizokucpt stated with a laugh:

"From Trent to Thabo."

@sindintshele asked Gift in the comments:

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"Manje will the accent switch back to our South African English accent? I'm genuinely curious if it's still possible, or if it's gone-gone."

Gift responded to the TikTok user under the post:

"Nah, I still have my Xhosa accent when speaking English."

@underconstrunction2half wrote to the public:

"I don't know how to explain this, but I thought you looked South African until you started speaking. I was like, 'Yeah, no, maybe not.' Kanti."

@sandamditshwa told people on the internet:

"You can’t convince me Xhosa people aren’t elite."

@tshegokale.za confessed in the comment section:

"I’ve watched this so many times, and I didn’t hear a thing you guys said in the beginning."

Take a look at the TikTok video below:

3 Other Briefly News stories about accents

• In another article, a Congolese man shared his experience growing up in the Cape Flats. Many social media users stated that he already had a Capetonian accent.
• An Afrikaner content creator who teaches isiXhosa to English speakers shared a funny video of herself messing up the accent. Her honesty about the mistake resonated with South Africans.
• An American woman showed that she fully embraced the South African life when she travelled in a taxi and nailed the local accent after shouting where she needed to get off.

Proofreading by Kelly Lippke, copy editor at Briefly.co.za.

Source: Briefly News