Born in Johannesburg, Noah began his career in South Africa in 2002. He had several hosting roles with the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) and was the runner-up in the fourth season of South Africa's iteration of ''Strictly Come Dancing'' in 2008. From 2010 to 2011, he hosted the late-night talk show ''Tonight with Trevor Noah'', which he created and aired on M-Net and DStv.