S’fiso Ncwane wins 20th award at Mzansi Gospel Awards

Ncwane, who initially had 19 awards from previous events, won the best male artist award, but says he was not expecting to win. “I thought my supporters would be tired of voting for me, because of the awards that I won at the beginning of the year,” said Ncwane.

After the launch of the MzansiGospel awards in March, Ncwane was afraid to encourage his supporters to vote for him, but when he realised that they were campaigning for him on social networks, he then saw it as opportunity to ask them to vote for him.

Being a gospel musician, Ncwane said it is not about winning awards but winning souls.

“I have made a covenant with God to pray every Tuesday for people who buy my CDs. I also pray for marriages, journalists who write good stories about me and those journalists who write… I don’t send fire on them (journalists) but I pray for them,” chuckled Ncwane who referred to recent negative media publicity about him.

Gospel musician Lebo Sekgobela, who was featured on yesterday’s Saturday edition of The Citizen, walked away with the best praise and worship album of the year, Lilly Million, best female artist and Neville D, best album.

Sekgobela said: “I’m excited, shocked and I’m surprised. I won the praise and worship album which is great.”

Sekgobela was shocked because she was competing for the praise and worship album with top gospel musicians such as Ncwane, Benjamin Dube, Spirit of Praise, Duislig 2 and We Will Worship.

The first annual MzansiGospel Awards were launched in March this year and the founder, Eezy Raaloeto said in a statement that the purpose is to honour excellence, creativity, authenticity and diligence within the contemporary gospel music genre.

Raaloeto also said it is to endorse the rise of contemporary gospel as a steadfast and pioneering niche to secure a stable future for the long standing gospel genre.