Covid has had the entertainment industry in a knot as performers did not have gigs to support themselves and make a living from. Candy TsamaNdebele has spoken about how she has had to move home temporarily because she was struggling financially.
Aftet 25 years in Gauteng, the musician had had to make a big move to go back home and be with her granddaughter what with a low income due to Covid-19. The musician had voiced the pleas of musicians around the corner as
“I don’t want anyone to hear that the bank came for my house and I am broke. I was not broke, I just wasn’t working. Not by chance, but because of the pandemic.
My mother is sending me R600 a month for food. I am broke because the money I saved is finished. I am living on R600 groceries. My mother is 92-years-old. Instead of enjoying her money and me looking after her, she is buying mielie meal for me.”
Candy TsaMaNdebele moves back home
The artist says she applied for the relief fund but hasn’t yet had access to it.
“I have been so affected by the virus. There are no shows and we do not know when the president will announce we can perform again. There is no relief from the government. I applied for relief from the department of sports, arts and culture but haven’t received anything. It is difficult,”
The musician says this is not a permanent move as she will be back. However, the ball does not stop rollong with her being back home. The musician recently released a single and will be running her business from home.
While times have been tough for artists with the pandemic, Candy is not the only artist who has had to make the difficult decision to move home. “Indlalifa”, Sjava also spoke about the financial troubles that artists face with the banning of gigs.
“We are not getting paid, we can’t work … so this is a very difficult time for artists right now. Truly speaking, we don’t know what we’re going to do now – our things have stopped. I’m even back home because I can’t make money. We’ve been suffering, we’re from the bottom – the ghetto – I’m sure we’ll survive”, he said.