Singer Nomfusi lost 'more than 60 international gigs' but is still fighting!

World-travelled songstress Nomfusi has made a name for herself by staying true to who she is: a Xhosa woman with an unmatched love for music!

Nomfusi's latest song Iqaqa, which is inspired by an isiXhosa idiom “Iqaqa aliziva kunuka”, left many mesmerised but also sparked conversation. When loosely translated, the idiom means “people generally are unable to see or recognise their faults but excel in spotting the faults of others”.

In an interview with TshisaLIVE, the songstress took us into her reasons behind highlighting the beauty of her language in her music.

“isiXhosa is my home language, I definitely express myself better in it. The Qs in isiXhosa is just special and strong, I want to create a generation of strong cultural values. I am in love with my language as it has helped me to travel the world and perform. I believe I am the messenger of our language to the world. Ndiyazidla ngolwimi lwam (I am proudly Xhosa). It is in my veins and my forefather's veins. I carry the language with pride,” she said.

The musician explained that in a world where people are quick to forget their roots, she wanted to be one of the people contributing towards preserving her language for generations to come.

“A language is a communication in my understanding, full of words that are able to create. The use of language can tell you a lot about the character of a person. Because language evolves therefore preserving it becomes important so you don't forget imvelaphi yakho. Our heritage and coming from our languages.

“Today we are called the lost generation because we shifted away from our languages. I am here to shift back to the importance of languages by using current methods for today's generations. Imagine a lost future because of a lack of own language?” she asked.

Even though her intentions with music go beyond the materialistic benefits, as an artist Nomfusi is one of thousands in SA who have been almost completely crippled by Covid-19.

However, the singer said after crying about it, she finally got into a space where she wanted to make lemonade with the lemons she's been served.

“I am no longer crying, I decided to wake up, shift and make a move, created my own shows with my team to keep me moving.

“At least as artists we know that we don't matter in this country, we are that stepchild nobody says is gonna make it until, of course, you make it then everyone be like 'that's our child' ... it's a movie shame.

“I'm actually over this pandemic and threats/difficulties it poses on my music career. I choose to fight by making sure that I rise above all this and live to tell the story.  Since lockdown, I have lost more than 60 international gigs. I had to wake up dust myself off and find ways of living,” she said.