Vhembe's own African Queen, Ndivhudzannyi Ralivhona, famously known as Makhadzi, has added yet another accolade to her host of accolades after she won the Metro FM 2023 Best Female Artist award at the Mbombela Stadium in Mpumalanga on Saturday, 5 May.
Over the years, Makhadzi has won numerous awards and travelled to several countries because of her popularity. She has come into her own as the queen of dance and has shown dynamism, skill and unrivalled passion with her performances.
She thanked her loyal fans from home, in Limpopo and abroad, for voting for her. "I am very happy. I was hoping to win this [award], and of course God answered my prayer, so you know, I am speechless. It has not been an easy journey for me, but I learned it is important not to give up on yourself. This award gives me hope yet again to continue dishing out only the best music as a singer who gets so much support and love from so many people who love my music. I appreciate you very much. Metro FM, thank you for recognising my hard work. To everyone out there who is pushing hard, please keep praying and keep working hard ... God will do the rest. I love you all," she said.
The Limpopo Premier, Stan Mathabatha, said he was proud of Makhadzi and all the other artists from the province, including Pastor Lungi Ndala, who won the Best Gospel Album award, and Musa Keys, who won the Best Styled Artist award. "These artists have been influential aspects of the national cultural sphere, embodying the spirit of resilience and showcasing the good talent that Limpopo has come to be associated with," he said.
According to Mathabatha, winning an award on a national radio station with more than 6 million listeners shows that, with great support, the people from Limpopo continue to mark their presence on national platforms. "This achievement is indeed a source of inspiration to the young ones, motivating them to become better artists and earn their rightful place in the national music industry," he said.
Makhadzi is presently embroiled in a legal battle with her (former) record label, Open Mic Productions. After she announced on Monday, 1 May, that she was cutting ties with the record label, they removed her new song from YouTube. She said that her three-year contract with Open Mic had ended end she had no intention of renewing it.
Spokesperson for Open Mic Productions Nkateko Maluleke said they could not comment on the issue as they were contractually bound by confidentiality provisions in the agreement entered into with Makhadzi.