Latest news with #SAStyleAwards
News24
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- News24
‘It's life': Enhle Mbali Mlotshwa on ‘non-negotiable' behind her split from Black Coffee
Enhle Mbali Mlotshwa has cited 'two children by two different women' as the straw that broke the camel's back in her marriage to Black Coffee. Despite the hurt, she said she has forgiven her estranged husband, even without receiving an apology. She urged the public to separate their artist identities from personal matters, calling for respect amid an ongoing divorce. Fresh from her recent win at the SA Style Awards as the Most Stylish Performing Artist on TV and Film, actor and fashion designer Enhle Mbali Mlotshwa has once again found herself in the spotlight over her marriage to internationally acclaimed DJ and producer Black Coffee. In a snippet that went viral from her recent interview with seasoned broadcaster and producer Relebogile Mabotja on Radio 702, Mlotshwa reflected on the highs and lows of her life, diving deep into her marriage and eventual split. 'I'm proud of how I handled my marriage. I never cheated in my marriage, not once, till the day I decided to leave because I could no longer take the punishment to myself,' she said in the interview. Exploring the 'multi-layered' reasons behind her decision, she zoomed in on a significant dealbreaker: 'My non-negotiable were children in a marriage. Once there were two children by two different women, I said you don't love me. In fact, you're going to kill me,' she said, describing how the infidelity shattered her trust and respect. 'While I was leaving a lot of untruths. I lost a lot of respect for my partner.' Aside from forgiving her estranged husband, the actor and fashion designer said she had also forgiven herself for forgetting her inner child and her dreams. Further in the interview, Mlotshwa said she did not want people to leave the interview having picked sides. 'I love Black Coffee's music. I might not have a lot of respect for Nkosinathi Maphumulo, but Black Coffee is talented. He's extremely talented, and Enhle Mbali is out of the world talented, so I want people to be able to separate the two and let Enhle Mbali and Black Coffee be separate entities, but Mbalenhle Maphumulo and Nkosinathi Innocent Maphumulo are going through something right now, and it's a divorce, and it's not done. Allow them to get through it, you know. It's not news, it's life,' she said. Mlotshwa's confirmation that she and her estranged Grammy-winning husband, the father of her two children, are still married came as he and his current model girlfriend, Victoria Gonzales, continue to share glimpses into their relationship on social media. Most recently, Gonzales shared a side-by-side photo of her and Black Coffee on her Instagram stories with a photo from 2019 and 2025. In another, she shared a photo of her kissing Black Coffee's cheek and another of him kissing her forehead. Since the announcement of the couple's split, they have made headlines for all the wrong reasons, with there being allegations of domestic violence from Mlotshwa and a protection order. Black Coffee denied the claims of abuse. Months after the announcement of their split, Coffee said he believed he had done 'enough' to fix their marriage. 'I don't want to speak about her faults – she is the mother of my children, after all,' he said. 'Whenever I was wrong, I admitted I was wrong. We tried everything, such as seeing a therapist and a life coach, but nothing worked.' 'We have reached the point of no return. For the first time, we are understanding that we can't be together.' In another interview with Kaya 959, he attributed their growing apart and wanting different things as a contributor to their split. 'I can safely say that we both wanted different things. Then problems start. That's why today I know for a fact that I won't get married again.'
News24
5 days ago
- Business
- News24
From Khayelitsha to international runways, Mzukisi Mbane on turning passion into award-winning success
Everywhere you spot him in public, best believe he's wearing a garment or two of his own. Designed and made by him, from scratch. You will never catch Mzukisi Mbane slipping. He is the epitome of 'making the world his runway'. When spotted by Drum at the Stella Artois Nedbank International Polo marquee, he rocked a modern navy and white scotch checkered suit. As the fashion in the marquee dazzled, he too was dazzled. For him, this is a way of delivering a pertinent message about fashion to the world. 'I grew up around the concept of fashion designers and fashion consumers being a different thing, and I saw how in the South African context that didn't work in terms of making the consumer be convinced that the clothes we make are clothes that can live in our everyday lives. So, I made it my point to make clothing that people can wear, no matter how outrageous and high fashion those clothes can be. And as a result, when clients see me at the studio or people who might not necessarily love my kind of fashion, there is a sense of respect and appreciation that comes with how honest and how realistic my love for what I do is.' He adds that his brand ethos celebrates African stories. 'It is a brand that is about people, a brand that is inclusive, and a brand that helped us all see ourselves differently and inspires us every day to wear our uniqueness with pride.' All this was appreciated at the SA Style Awards, where he was honoured as the most stylish designer in fashion. This is a celebrated addition to the many awards he's received over the years, including the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture's Best Cultural/Heritage designer in South Africa. The multi-award-winning fashion designer shares with Drum how validating and confidence-boosting this particular award is. 'I remember getting the news from Zebra Square sometime in February while I was in New York for New York Fashion Week. I was so excited, but because of the time zones and the fact that it was not yet announced to the public, I couldn't even share that excitement with my family and friends. But more than anything, the news just really made me feel seen and validated. It felt like someone was saying to me; 'what you do for the South African industry matters, and you matter'.' View this post on Instagram A post shared by Mzukisi Mbane (@mzukisimbane) Read more | Connie Ferguson receives iconic honour at SA Style Awards Growing up, he used to be a typical nerd, who enjoyed his creative expressions in his private time but remained a straight A student from primary school to tertiary. Taking us back to his very first fashion piece, he says he made a graphic T-shirt for his niece and seeing her wearing it often made him confident and comfortable to explore making clothes. 'My mom used to sew, so when I wanted to make clothing, she's the one who showed me how to use the sewing machine. And she also showed me how to respect the craft and do things right. I remember I would spend hours in a garment only to have her unpick it so I could redo it and do it right. Her thing was, if I'm going to do fashion, I have to make sure that I do it right, no shortcuts.' 'I've always known that I love fashion, I studied accounting in university, even then I looked more like a fashion student than a finance student. So, when I decided to explore fashion as a career, it didn't feel like I was doing something foreign; if anything, it felt like I was right at home. Waking up one day, asking my mom to show me how to use her old sewing machine, is literally how my life in fashion was born. I remember just sitting on that machine, terrified thinking of how my life was to never be the same, and I was going to tell my mom that this is actually what I wanted to do with my life,' he tells Drum. After this, he took a leap of faith by taking business management and entrepreneurship courses from Northlink College, Gordon's Institute of Business Science, and the SABS Design Institute. He admits that his love for entrepreneurship came in handy. 'I knew from the very beginning that I wanted to treat my passion for fashion as a business. I remember putting together a business proposal and entering a competition where they were looking for a South African who had that 'special ingredient'. I won the competition, and I received a R50,000 cash prize that helped me kickstart my fashion business. And over the years, I've always looked at improving myself, always taking an opportunity to learn and grow. From getting scouted as a fashion intern during fashion week 10 years ago and being one of the designers on the runway at SA menswear week, to getting opportunities to showcase my work all over the world, I use my talent to turn my brand into a sustainable business.' Read more | Lawrence Maleka gets real about fame and hosting Friends of Amstel The 36-year-old recently launched his latest collection, Imprint's 10th anniversary collection titled 'Ndibuyile – Our roots revisited', which explores the story of Imprint and where everything began. 'It's about the brand reconnecting with patterns, silhouettes, and styles that established the Imprint DNA and presenting them from a reimagined point of view. This collection is also about celebrating iconic styles, moments, and people who have been very monumental in telling and celebrating the Imprint story over the past 10 years. Our story started at SA Menswear Week, where we showed the first collection titled 'Our Root'. We have since grown and travelled the world, and now it's time to bring it home. So basically, what makes this collection different is that, unlike other collections that we have shown in the past, this one was not about introducing newness but rather revisiting what our people have seen over the years.' 'My story has a beginning, where it all began with a single root - my mother. As her son, I walked in her shoes, as big as they were to my tiny feet, until I could stand on my own and dance to her lullaby. I find myself: strong, beautiful, empowered, and grounded. I start to sing and dance to my beat, tiptoeing in the hopes that the seed I plant will sprout into its strength as an African,' he adds. This narrative for him has become the anchor and starting blocks of all his collections. The lastborn of five seems to have cracked the code of building a fashion brand. 'Originality and consistency are the two keys to building a successful anything. I always say to young designers who have just started or are looking to start a career in fashion that the reality is that the world doesn't need new clothes, that if we were to stop making clothes today, we would still have all the clothes we need already produced. So, it becomes very important when you do decide to make clothes that you look deep down and interrogate your intentions for that new clothing brand, understanding what you are about and staying true to what that is, as that's what allows you to stand out and have a brand that gets to live longer. ' From here onwards, Mzukisi is aiming to get into retail and solidifying his brand as a household name in the African continent.
News24
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- News24
See all the 2025 SA Style Award winners
The SA Style Awards are about more than just fashion, they're a celebration of creativity, innovation and the business of style. For the 2025 awards, it has teamed up with local luxury paint brand Versus Paint for a one-of-a-kind collaboration that brings colour and personality together. The awards took place on 25 May 2025 at Hyde Park Corner in Johannesburg, South Africa. It showcases style and business innovators who continue to elevate the benchmark for excellence and race towards global success In honour of the winners, the brand has created 14 bespoke paint shades, each one inspired by the unique energy, flair and influence of a winner. It is style reimaged in colour. Most Innovative Style - Former Miss SA Shudufhadzo Musida - Fashion model Yuri Pailman View this post on Instagram A post shared by Shudu Musiḓa (@shudufhadzomusida) View this post on Instagram A post shared by YURI (@yuripailman) Most Stylish Performing Artist in Film/TV - Enhle Mbali Mlotshwa Most Stylish Media Personality - Leandie du Randt Most Stylish Fashion Designer - Mzukisi Mbane Most Stylish Model - Denetric and Lebo Malope View this post on Instagram A post shared by Lebo Malope (@lebo_malope2) Most Stylish Business Personality - Lala Tuku Most Stylish Couple - Katleho Sinivasan and Omuhle Gela Most Stylish Changemaker - Douw Steyn (posthumous) The Next Big Thing: - Actress Makoma Mohale - TV presenter Zanele Potelwa Style Icon
