She was dupped as the jewel of the South African Afro-pop fusion genre, but it seems her talent quickly fizzled out. Bulelwa Mkutukana is a South African songbird best known as Zahara.
She made all sorts of headlines in 2011 when she was signed with TS Records and later released her debut album Loliwe. She hogged the headlines when her album went double platinum. A few years later, in 2013, she dropped her studio album, which had three hits that topped global musical charts. In the wake of her newfound fame, she went on to drop yet another album, Country Girl, in 2015.
The album became one of the most-streamed albums in Mzansi. However, in the mix of things, she parted ways with TS Records and went on to join musical records giants Warner Music.
In 2017 she released her much-anticipated album Mgodi. Like any other albums before, it was certified platinum before becoming one of the best-selling albums in Mzansi. In 2021 she won big when her fifth album Nqaba Yam became number 1 on iTunes.
Mzansi worried about Zahara after a viral video asking for donations flooded social media
Since her thrust into the limelight, she has managed to win at least 17 South African Music Awards. Apart from those accolades, she also scooped three Metro FM Awards. During her prime time, she managed to win big at the Nigeria Entertainment Awards. In 2020 she was part of the BBC’s 100 Women list.
However, this year she has been making all sorts of headlines of late for the wrong reasons. A few months ago, she was nabbed and brought before the Johannesburg Commercial Crimes Court sitting in Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court.
The multi-award-winning actress was charged with National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) for contravening South African tax laws. The state papers have it that she failed to submit her 2017 and 2018 to the South African Revenue Service (Sars).
In the wake of her arrest, she has been reported broke. Several publications have reported her alcohol addiction, which has led to her coffers running dry.
Mzansi has seen several videos of her drunk flooding social media in the mix of things. In the mix of things, she has seen herself trending of late after a viral video of her begging for money from fans she was performing for. However, Mzansi has blamed her managing team for not doing good PR for her in the wake of her salary woes.
Watch the video below: