A SNEAK PEEK…

Zonke’s Work of Heart is impressive with its meandering between bubblegum and blues as well as old school R&B and new-age motivational music.

Zonke’s first single sees her deep vocals complemented by pattering percussion. “We all have goals we want to reach and to me, I never want to see myself as someone whose place has been carved out,” she says.

Military marching band drumming meets haunting harmonies and pretty Mike Campbell strings in this song written for the Nigerian girls who were abducted.

“Not only am I a girl but I also have a girl. The world seems to have forgotten about those girls so I had to say something, to say someone’s thinking about them.”

An old-school R&Btinged ditty about a budding romance that sees Zonke sounding a little like The Supremes in the chorus with a dance-hall-inspired bridge. “Lulu was at my house, writing her next album and I played this for her and she said ‘this is one of your best songs – not on the album – in life!’ Oh gosh, I miss her.”

addition to singing Thebe’s anthemic song, Groova’s Prayer, she’s written for Mafikizolo, Winnie Khumalo and even nonKalawa artists like Black Coffee and Tshepo Tshola.

She has won multiple South African Music Awards, started her own label, Leely Music, which partners with Sony, and played a mentor role on SABC1’s X-Factor South Africa.

“Not to take away anything Kalawa did for me,” she says, “But people would say they can tell my voice is meant for other things as well. I know now what I can do and be me and people will get it… Had I been myself from the start, I would’ve been happy from the start.”

Zonke’s new album, be in stores on September 11.

will