Durban — When Simphiwe Prince Mthiyane, known as DJ Africa, was diagnosed with kaposi sarcoma (cancer that forms lesions on the skin) a year ago, he did not believe it at first.
“I started having skin problems late in 2022, around November; my skin colour changed and became lighter. My foot got swollen. I thought it was because of work that I was doing,” he said.
Now Mthiyane is rebuilding his life and even planning a new album.
The DJ, who grew up in rural (Ngqolothi) Empangeni, said the counselling he received in hospital and from private doctors had helped him gain confidence to get up and fight for his life.
“I was not going to any gigs, I had to attend hospital for a year and a half. I had to wear clothes that would cover my skin,” he said.
He also missed out on opportunities to move his career forward.
“I lost a lot of opportunities, the biggest when I was about to sign a contract with one of the radio stations in Durban as a resident DJ,” he said.
Mthiyane said he got into the radio industry after working for South African Breweries as a DJ and promoter for two years, and that’s when he met a lot of DJs who helped him grow his career.
“My dad’s younger brother is a radio personality at Gagasi FM, but before that, I got inspired when he was working for Ukhozi FM. At that time I was still at school and I was doing Grade 10 in 2008 at Masakhane High School. That’s where everything started. I bought a sound system and I started doing gigs and playing for local radio stations,” said Mthiyane.
Now that he has survived cancer, he plans to look to radio stations for opportunities and get music gigs in and out of the province.
Fans can look forward to an album this year but first they will be served a single on June 1.
Independent on Saturday