Nathi, whose real name is Nkosinathi Mankayi, is one of the most popular song-writers and musicians in South Africa. His music is listened by many South Africans.
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He rose to fame after the release of his critically acclaimed song titled “Nomvula” off his triple-platinum debut studio album Buyelekhaya.
Most fans wonder why the Nomvula hit-maker never speaks English during his interviews. In a recent interview, Nathi, who speaks strictly his mother tongue, IsiXhosa, explained he explained why he does not speak English.
“I have heard people making a fuss about the fact that I only speak Xhosa in interviews. Some have said I can’t speak English, and to them that suggests I’m dumb, but what if the dumb one is the person speaking English to me?”
“Why should I have to understand the person interviewing me in English but he doesn’t understand my responses in Xhosa?”
This is not the first time Nathi explained his reasons of not speaking English, in an interview with TshisaLIVE last month, he was quoted saying: “People will never not love because they don’t understand the language you speak. They hardly ever care about that. So when I got into the industry‚ I immediately decided that I was not going to pretend to be someone I am not.”
He further added that he grew up in a place where they spoke isiXhosa. They were taught English at school but he speaks isiXhosa. It is who he is.
Image Courtesy: youthvillage.co.za