'I thought why is this happening?'- Marah Louw heartbroken by Sibongile Khumalo's death

28 January 2021 - 19:22

By kyle zeeman AND Kyle Zeeman

Veteran musician Marah Louw has been left devastated by the death of jazz icon Sibongile Khumalo (63), hailing her as one of the greatest talents to come out of SA.

News of the jazz icon's death broke on Thursday evening, with condolence messages and tributes flooding social media.

The star's family confirmed that she had died of stroke related complications.

Marah told TshisaLIVE she heard about Sibongile's passing from a group she shared with the star and other musicians from the 1970s.

“I thought why is this happening? I was just shocked. It is difficult when you hear such news. Even words of condolences don't seem to have meaning any more. It is just shock. When ever you hear the phone ring, you fear the worst,” she said.

Khumalo began her career as a music teacher before going on to win the hearts of Mzansi with her hits such as Mayihlome and Thula Mama.

Her music saw her perform for distinguished audiences at late president Nelson Mandela's 75th birthday and at the historic 1995 World Cup rugby final.

On social media, mourners used the hashtag #RIPSibongileKhumalo to remember the star and pay tribute to her talent, topping the Twitter trends list.

Celebs, fans and politicians alike added their messages of condolences.