Simphiwe Ngema is known as the fan-favourite Phindile on the popular SABC 3 soapie ‘Isidingo’ but while acting has always been a passion for the star, she has also found an outlet in music. As a musician, Simphiwe is affectionately known by her alter ego Quing Simz and after dropping her popular debut single ‘Thola Khona’ earlier this year, the star teams up with Global Decaphfe for her most emotional single to date – a track titled ‘Thanda Ngempela’.
In 2017, Simphiwe’s husband Dumisani Masilela was murdered after a hijacking incident went wrong which ultimately changed her life forever. ‘Thanda Ngempela’ is a tribute to the star’s late husband and was written by Simphiwe alongside her late husband’s best friend Bongani – who was with him in the car when he was murdered.
While the last few years have been difficult for Simphiwe, she has finally found peace after her late husband’s death and is excited about what the future holds for her. “It has been a difficult journey and I feel it is time to let go, holding on hurts more,” Simphiwe says as she opens up about the song. “Losing Dumi two months after our wedding was worse than my worst nightmare and after he passed away I was afraid that people would forget him. So I did everything I could to keep his memory alive. But, at some point, I realized that holding on hurts so much more. It felt like I had a memorial service every time I did something to keep his memory alive and I went through all the emotions all over again. It’s time to let go and this is my final goodbye. Eternal crush forever and always. It was such an amazing opportunity to put my feelings into a song with Bongani. We’ve both been grieving over the past few years and this has been the ultimate tribute to Dumisani. I am so proud of the song we have created.”
As she looks to the future, the next few months promise to be incredibly exciting for Simphiwe. She is looking forward to promoting the song while seeing her character on Isidingo grow over the next few months. She is also excited about taking part in the next season of Tropika Island Of Treasure where she will star as a celebrity contestant. In the show’s upcoming ninth season, Simphiwe will be joined by fellow celebrity contestants Kay Sibaya, Nadia Jaftha, Bouwer Bosch, Siphesile Vazi and Ntando Duma as they jet off to the beautiful island of Curaçao where they will be teamed up with a member of the public as they battle it out for their share of the R1 million grand prize.
‘Thanda Ngempela’ is now available on all major digital music platforms now. Listen to it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrTAgp_sXqo
