From just a musical interest to an international DJ. This line speaks of Nompumelelo Thabisile Buthelezi “DJ Thabithabs”, a 33-year-old international DJ from Thembisa.
Coming from a musical family, sparked her interest in music and led to her collecting music while in school.
The hype and excitement around music are what pushed her more, and she then decided to follow her dream.
She went from learning how to DJ from a Dj society at the University of Johannesburg and polishing her skills “Ekasi” with the assistance of “ama grootman” to performing on international stages.
Dj Thabithabs says her first gig was in 2009 in a local tavern in Thembisa and it was not much of a success.
“I had my first gig in 2009 in a local tavern, it was very bad, it took me about 30 minutes to get everything in order”.
Regardless of her not doing well on her first gig, she pushed herself more. She continued practicing and started entering competitions which led to her doing bigger things.
She was then part of the top 10 Gauteng Carnival Dj Competition and was the only female Dj there, Went to Miami Music Conference and had the opportunity to showcase her skills, Won the JcLeroux Spinstress competition hosted by Moflava on Yfm and had the opportunity to be mentored by him and landed a slot at Yfm YTKO taking over after Dj Shimza.
She also did a UK/ London Tour, Was on lockdown house party that aired on Channel O and Appeared on the 21wrap up which was also aired on Channel O, Was part of the Smirnoff top 10 Makoya Dj Competition that was aired live on SABC 1 last year on New Year’s Eve.
She continues to train female Djs under a government program and host them at venues willing to accommodate female acts.
The 33-year-old says even though the industry has evolved there is so much change that needs to be done. She says this is critical to driving transformation and equality within the business in order to open the industry for more women.
“This is still a male-dominated industry and for you to make it is very tough. Female DJs are still subjected to fewer opportunities of getting paying gigs or opportunities”, she said.
“I always say that I am not just a female DJ but I am a DJ and that for me is particularly important”, she added.
Her plans this year are: to tour at least 3 countries, host female DJs on Thursdays in headquarters starting from 30th March, and work on more music.
She already has a 13-track album and dropped a single on Friday, 17 March 2023.
Platforms where you can access her music:
•Apple podcast
•YouTube
By Simphiwe Khumalo
