His rise to fame came when he was cast for the 1990’s drama series Yizo Yizo, paralleled by the release of his album uMdlwembe which saw his career rise to great heights. Philanthropist and kwaito musician Zola 7,real name Bonginkosi Dlamini, is set to share his two-decade musical journey with South Africans in his new documentary titled Zola:uMdlwembe (undisciplined person) on SABC 1, which takes viewers on a trail ride of how he gave birth to his career. Zola 7 tells ZiMoja that he is happy to be able to tell his own story while still alive. "Not many people get the opportunity to narrate and share their journey while they are still alive," he says.

 

HIS STORY

 

The 48-minute-long documentary, revisits and celebrates Zola’s crowning achievement in his 2000 debut album uMdlwembe. The icon breaks down some of his most celebrated songs and shares some never-before-heard stories. "I have always wanted to do a documentary. Every young person wants a break in their life. The album uMdlwembe was my big break. It came at the same time as Yizo Yizo, at the height of my career," he says. "These are all the things I prayed for and wanted, which happened in front of my eyes. It was an absolutely amazing time for me. I come from a township where we are told that things like these will probably never happen, and we became the generation that proved that anything is possible," he says. "I know there are a lot of people that will look back because it gave birth to many other stars." In the doccie, he talks about his home situated at the hub of Melville, Johannesburg, where many hits were made and memories were created. Appearing in the doccie will be friends Maggz, Kaybee, Towdee Mac, Ph Raw, Proverb, Ms. Supa, C-live, Rashid Kay, Amu and many other close friends.

 

FALLEN ON HARD TIMES

 

A few months ago, Zola 7 shared how life has been tough and how his health has been deteriorating but he is still making music and plans to release an album soon.

 "I could say that I rose from the dead. I almost didn’t make it. I almost kicked the bucket," he says. "But the medication is treating me well. I’m trying to eat right. I take 200 mg of medication in the morning and in the evening, so it’s heavy. According to the doctors, I will be doing this for the rest of my life," he says. Zola feels like he conquered death. "I was in a coma for five weeks due to epilepsy. I was not on any ventilators or anything, I was breathing by myself. I also learned that epilepsy could hide in your body for a while and then show itself at a later stage, I think this was the case with me." But he is learning to manage it. Zola says there are rare illnesses that South Africans are not talking about or getting enough education on. "That is something I would like to explore in the future in either a show or If there is an organisation that is interested in talking about rare illnesses, I’d gladly be part of it," Zola says he is looking and feeling good. "I’m not going back to weighing 42 kg. I gained a bit of weight; I like this body now,"  he gushes.