Zolani Mahola was born on 19 July 1981 and is a South African singer, actress, storyteller and inspiration speaker, now known under the stage name The One Who Sings.
15 Facts About Zolani Mahola
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Zolani Mahola is the lead singer of the pan-African South African music group Freshlyground since 2002.
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On 15 August 2019, Mahola officially announced the launch of her solo career while the Freshlyground band went on to have their last performance after 17 years on 31 December 2019 at Kirstenbosch Gardens in Cape Town.
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Zolani Mahola was born and raised in the city of Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape, South Africa.
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Zolani Mahola grew up on Ntshekisa Street, a long and busy street in New Brighton, a township on the outskirts of Port Elizabeth.
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Zolani Mahola stayed with her dad and younger sister between 1999 and 2001.
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Zolani Mahola voiced the character of Zoe in the animated feature film Zambezia, and recorded the song "Get Up" for the original motion picture soundtrack.
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Zolani Mahola traveled to Cape Town, Durban and Pretoria with English pop singer Robbie Williams in 2006, with Freshlyground performing as Williams' supporting act.
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At the Glamour Women of the Year Awards 2011, held on 25 July in Johannesburg, Zolani Mahola was among eight women honoured by the South African division of Glamour magazine.
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Zolani Mahola opened up in 2018 about starting a solo project that would be independent of labels and major sponsors.
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On 15 August 2019, Zolani Mahola officially announced the launch of her solo career as a musician and public speaker.
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In November 2019, Zolani Mahola wrote and starred in a one woman play based on her life entitled "The One Who Sings" at the Baxter Theatre in Cape Town.
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In January 2020, Zolani Mahola performed at Kirstenbosch Gardens with multiple Grammy Award-winning cellist Yo-Yo Ma.
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Zolani Mahola released her first fully fledged solo single on the 27th of November 2020 entitled "Remember Who You Are" ahead of her planned 2021 release of her first solo album.
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Zolani Mahola released the song as part of her ambassadorship of the Give Her A Crown campaign, a female empowerment platform using storytelling to affect the Gender Based Violence pandemic in South Africa.