‘South African music is poorer without Zahara’ – Lesley Mofokeng, RISA

Bulelwa Mkutukana, known by her stage name Zahara, passed away at a Johannesburg hospital late on Monday evening.

Details surrounding the cause of her death are still sketchy. The singer and songwriter was admitted to hospital last month. Her family released a statement on 27 November saying that the Loliwe hitmaker was admitted to hospital after complaining about physical pains.

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Speaking to eNCA on Tuesday morning, spokesperson for the South African Music Awards (Sama) and the Recording Industry of South Africa (RISA), Lesley Mofokeng could also not provide the news channel with any more clarity surrounding the circumstances of the singer’s untimely passing.

Zahara’s family is yet to release a statement about their daughter’s passing.

ALSO READ: Zahara: My late night calls with a musical healer

‘She really was a special talent’

“As an industry, as the South African Music Awards, we really regret this loss and we send our condolences to her friends, family and fans,” Mofokeng said.

In 2012, Zahara made history when she walked away with 5 Sama statuettes at the 18^th Annual South African Music Awards, held in Sun City.

Her album Loliwe won in the Best Smooth Urban Music Album, Special Award: Best Selling Album and Album of the Year categories.

She was also named Newcomer of the Year as well as Female Artist of the Year. She was also awarded the Best Collaboration Sama featuring Georgy for Incwad’Encane.

‘Zahara’s rise to fame’

Zahara’s story is a typical South African story, says Mofokeng. “She was a girl from the rural Eastern Cape who really reached the height of fame in Johannesburg using her God-given talent.”

“She called this her calling and that was true. When you listen to her voice, when you listen to how she plays that guitar, it could only be a calling. She was not just doing it for the fame or the money, she was really responding to a calling.”

Mofokeng added Zahara’s death is really a monumental loss and that South African music is poorer with her gone.

Taking a trip down memory lane, Mofokeng remembers his first interview with Zahara before her single Loliwe became a hit.

“She was a great person to interview. She was very genuine. She was authentic, she was herself. There was no pretense with Zahara. If she liked you, she would show you, if she didn’t she would also show you.

“I remember her very fondly. I remember the conversations that we had over the years, even after I stopped being a journalist. She still called me for advice. We still spoke about where her career was going and what she was going to do next, and all her dreams.

‘Healing through music’

Commenting on how Zahara’s music helped heal women and the nation, Mofokeng said the songstress talked about her music as a journey of her own life.

“She wrote about her own experiences. She wrote about where she was in life. She used that as a tonic to the nation, as something that someone else can use to heal, to progress in life, to be inspired. She challenged how we looked at music, how we perceived musicians and the role musicians play.”

He added that when you listen to her voice and her story, and when you listen to that combination of the guitar and her voice, it is actually a spiritual encounter that you come across.

Mofokeng says the words of Zahara’s songs really resonates with the soul and that she touched people’s souls because of her authenticity, and because of the person that she was.

“I think most of the time when you come across musicians, there is this manufactured reality that we encounter. They are polished, they are prepared. That was not the case with Zahara. What you saw, was what you got. She kept it real and she was honest about her challenges in life and the challenges she faced in the industry, and the lessons that she had learnt and how she was going to change her life. She was really exemplary and a shining light in this industry,” he concluded.

ALSO SEE: ‘Her music was loud and brave’ – South Africa reacts to Zahara’s death