Since releasing her sprawling debut album "Zandisile" almost 20 years ago, Simphiwe Dana has crafted an impressive career.
Armed with one of the most distinct voices around, Dana's music has consistently been rich in meaning, diverse in sound and singular in its impact on the South African music landscape.
On May 27 and 28, she will be exploring this unique repertoire, which consists of many songs she has not performed in a long time, in her upcoming concert “Isipaji sika Simphiwe Dana“.
The two date concert is presented by The South African State Theatre on the Opera stage.
The multi award-winning singer and songwriter points to her vocal evolution as tangible proof of her growth over the past two decades.
“Being consistent with anything for 18 years is a celebration and success is a celebration, too.
"The creation of ‘Isipaji sika Simphiwe Dana’ comes at the tail-end of a whole tumultuous era in my life, but it’s still a nice thing to point at as something to celebrate.
"Fulfilment is not the right word, but it’s the best word I can think of right now. I feel this really grounded sense of accomplishment," she said.
Dana plans to showcase songs from all her albums in these upcoming performances as she continues to expand the canvas of her spiritual and lifestyle mission.
“I knew I was something different for the industry, I knew I looked different, I sounded different and the songs I wanted to sing were different.
"I thought I was telling people, ‘make way, something different is coming,’ but in hindsight, I was telling all of our stories about what it means to affirm yourself because the world will always tell you that you’re supposed to be something different,” Dana said.