Based: Cape Town

Nina was born and bred in Gugulethu Township in Cape Town. This is the same township that has produced music stalwarts such as the late Jazz legend Winston Mankunku Ngozi. Nina’s talent and passion as a performer was evident from an early age when she would pick up a stick and used it as a microphone to sing, imitating her favourite musicians including the likes of Brenda Fassie, much to the delight of her enthusiastic neighbours and friends. Little did she know then she would one day be pursuing this as a career as she’s always viewed her singing as just a hobby. However, her appetite for singing grew even stronger with time. The strong desire to sing prompted Nina to quit her job and relocate from Cape Town to Johannesburg in pursuit of her music dream.

Upon arrival in Johannesburg, Nina enrolled for vocal training classes. However, circumstances forced her to come back to Cape Town. It didn’t take long for Nina to find a job and she immediately started saving money to record a “professional demo”, which later progressed into a 13 track album.

Nina’s first single, “Moya” play listed on a number of radio stations throughout the country and has been well received. Her second single, “Simple” received even more positive response from the public such that it play listed on Metro FM as well as other radio stations.

Nina is rapidly establishing herself and has discovered a hidden talent of writing. She’s written all the songs on her album (except for the nursery rhyme Sing a song of sixpence), and this propelled her to develop her writing skills. She acquired a UCT certificate in Feature Writing. Following on that, she writes a column for a local news paper which is distributed to townships in Cape Town, including her own township of Gugulethu. Through her columns, she encourages people to chase their dreams with everything they have.

Nina’s music can at best be described as global – which combines a variety of different styles and influences. She fuses afro soul, jazz, pop and even house music. She demonstrates flexibility and versatility usually associated with seasoned musicians. Nina believes that confining herself into a certain music genre limits her creativity.

Nina’s music reflects her journey through life and aspirations of becoming a musician. She shares her lessons through her songs and hopes to capture her audience through her thought provoking lyrical content and melodies. Nina aims is to inspire people who want to live their passions to push hard and not be bound by any limitations imposed by the society.

Achievements and key highlights
Nina has made great strides in promoting her Brand and creating opportunities for herself. Some of Nina’s achievements to date include:

• • Released self-funded album titled “Unleashed” in 2012
  • Her second single “Simple” was featured on Bush Radio’s Top 5 hits for 3 consecutive weeks and made it to number one on the week of 21 Feb – 27 Feb 2013
  • Nina is a regular guest on Bush Radio’s “Everyday People” on Mondays where she discusses issues related to youth and community upliftment – things she’s passionate about
  • Nina is a Brand Ambassador and serves on the panel of the “Name your hood” campaign in Gugulethu
  • An article profiling Nina as a rising music star was published on the Sowetan newspaper