The story behind my interests.

I was first introduced to software by my elder brother, Mwiza Simbeye (0x1za). I spent a lot of time shadowing him, and that curiosity is what first pulled me into this world.

My first real hands-on experience came through HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. I used them to learn, experiment, and understand how things on the web actually came together. Even early on, code felt like the thing that kept everything alive.

Around the same time, I also found myself drawn to graphic design. I did not discover it intentionally at first. It was sparked by the people I was around during my senior secondary school years, and that environment pushed me to learn tools like Photoshop, Lightroom, and Illustrator.

After finishing high school, I went all in on graphic design for about half a year. But even then, I still loved code. Design sharpened my eye, while code kept calling me back. That combination ended up shaping how I think about products today.

Learning Figma pushed that even further. It helped me develop stronger taste for how good, professional web interfaces should look and feel. Today, I am especially passionate about frontend development, which is why I sometimes say I am lowkey a frontend engineer.

Lately, I have been paying closer attention to design systems and slowly building one of my own for MeloSpot. That process has made me even more interested in the relationship between consistency, usability, and visual identity.

Mwiza influenced more than just my introduction to software. He also shaped the music I grew up loving, and if I am being honest, he is one of the siblings who has had the deepest influence on my life. Through him, I found artists like Andy Mineo, Lecrae, Wiz Khalifa, NF, and many others. I also still vividly remember loving Teargas' Mhlobo Wami.

That probably explains why music has always meant so much to me. At one point in Grade 7, I was fully convinced I was going to become a rapper one day. I used to imagine myself on stage, performing in front of a crowd like it was already written somewhere in my future.

He also introduced me to running after I finished high school, which was funny because I was never really into sports or anything athletic when I was in school. It felt completely different from the version of me I had known before, but I ended up loving it. We would go on 10-kilometer runs in the morning or evening, and over time it became another thing I connected with deeply.

The things I enjoy most usually sit somewhere between engineering, interface design, and culture. I like building products that work well, look right, and feel like they were made with care.