The One Who Sings

Former lead singer of the critically acclaimed pan-African supergroup Freshlyground​, Zolani Mahola is The One Who Sings​.

The band was together for 17 years and produced 6 albums and most famously collaborated with Shakira on the song "Waka Waka" in 2010 and is known for uniting audiences across the world across boundaries of race, age or gender.

In 2019 she officially launched her solo career as a musician, storyteller and public speaker. In her own words: "Our world is changing. The old stories have worn thin. We are telling new stories now. We are creating new realities: ones which inspire and give us true power."

In her work with Freshlyground, Mahola has shared and opened stages for greats such as Stevie Wonder, Hugh Masekela, Shakira, Johnny Clegg, BB King and many others.

Zolani Mahola is passionate about children and youth as well as the natural world and our undeniable connection to it. As such she is an ambassador for the Seachange Project which released the groundbreaking documentary "My Octopus Teacher​". The team which produced the Oscar award-winning film is currently working on a feature film on the artist based on her connection to the ocean.

She sits on the board of Zip Zap Circus School which empowers children of all walks of life with essential life skills. She is an the ambassador for the Morris Isaacson Centre for Music in the Johannesburg township of Soweto where music education is used as a tool to foster self belief whilst creating world-class classically trained musicians in the process. She has also recently taken on ambassadorship for the Earthchild Project - an NPO which uses yoga, mindfulness and connection to nature to nurture children from under-resourced communities.

The beginning of 2020 saw her collaborate with Grammy Award-winning cellist Yo-Yo Ma at Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens.

She began working on a project called The Feminine Force - a space which celebrates the voices of women and those socialised as women. Says The One Who Sings: "I have been developing a femme group of woman called The Feminine Force since 2019 to harness the power that comes to be when women gather and tell stories and bring their voices and energy together. Creating safety within the feminine. And showing the extraordinary power we have individually and as a collective."

This act is set to release their first EP in 2024.

Mahola won the prestigious Fleur Du Cap award as "Best Actress" for her 2019 self-written critically acclaimed one woman play based on her life entitled "The One Who Sings. November 2020 saw her stage the multimedia work "You Need To Say It" at the Baxter theatre in Cape Town. The show included elements from Mahola's debut solo album entitled "Thetha Mama​" which was released in November of 2021.

The album won Best Produced Album in August 2022 at the South African Music awards.

Currently writing a musical set to be staged at the Artscape Theatre in September of 2023, The One Who Sings is also in pre-production for her debut album with The Feminine Force.

Two upcoming film projects are also set for release in 2024.

Join us and be inspired by this phenomenal woman!