Bruce Ndlovu, Sunday Life Reporter
WHILE her songs have hit the top of the charts, outshining even some of Mzansi’s most beloved songbirds, Berita Khumalo has said that she is still struggling to nail down permanent residency in South Africa, with only a visitor’s permit that has to be renewed every three months allowing her to continue working as a performer in that country.
Berita has been in Mzansi for over a decade, becoming one of the most sought-after Afro Soul performers, while collaborating with some of the biggest acts in Africa.
Despite her acclaim, Berita revealed last week during an interview on South Africa’s Mac G Podcast and Chill that she still used a visitor’s permit as getting a visa as an entertainer had so far proved futile.
“At the moment I am a visitor in this country and I have to renew it every 90 days. When you try to apply for a work permit, you have to prove that you have got an employer, and I am self-employed as an artiste. Since 2016 they have been saying that there will be an entertainment visa and to this day, it hasn’t been put into effect,” she said.
Berita Khumalo
After her breakup from music impresario Nota Baloyi, rumours were abound that Berita only got into the union just to get a visa to make her stay in South Africa more secure. However, Berita denied this, as she said staying in Zimbabwe while attending gigs in South Africa was something she could have done instead.
“I was in the process of applying for a spousal permit but I didn’t get married. I can live in Zimbabwe and come to South Africa just to work but I think the issue is that there isn’t a designated entertainment visa while in other countries there are. My next single is a European single so I’m going to Germany and the visa for going to Germany was approved within 24 hours.
They have an artiste visa so I will be going there for at least three months. If I need to stay longer, they have a provision for that. I think maybe with South Africa, the immigration department has a lot going on,” she said.
Berita said moving to South Africa had not been as hard for her as it was for other foreigners, as she could adapt to the language and culture quicker because of her background.
“IsiXhosa, isiSwati, isiNdebele, isiZulu are all Nguni languages so they are similar and I think what fascinates me about the Xhosa language is that it is a very expressive language . . . I studied at Walter Sisulu University in East London and I think that’s where my music journey started when I was learning new words. I started doing my first performances in the Eastern Cape, singing to Xhosa crowds as I was learning the language.
“I think things were better for me because the language that I speak assimilates. IsiNdebele and isiXhosa are similar and I also had pretty privileges. I think I have struggled in terms of visas because there isn’t an entertainment visa despite the fact that I have contributed greatly with my music to South Africa and I will continue to contribute. I also understand that immigration is a difficult thing,” she said.
Berita, who was raised by her grandmother, said she had decided to choose her grandmother’s name as her stage name after a record label felt that Gugulethu, her real name, was not punchy enough for South African audiences.
“Berita is my grandmother’s name and it means truthful. I chose the name because at the time I was with my first label and they were like you are going to call yourself Gugu and sing? I personally think its fine you can be called Gugu and sing,” she said.
Berita Khumalo
Speaking about her upbringing, Berita said that while many assumed she was raised “soft” due to her parents being dairy farmers in New Zealand, this was not the case as she grew up in a middle-class home.
“Everyone thinks that I was raised soft. I was raised by my grandmother so I have people that think of being a grandmother’s child who’s spoilt me, but I come from a middle-class family. My parents were dairy farmers and maybe going to New Zealand to become dairy farmers sounds very boujee but it’s like living in the farms. I bought my first guitar from milking cows,” she said.
Berita Khumalo on stage
The songbird said since the breakdown of her marriage a year ago, she had found herself by going for therapy sessions.
“I started therapy when I was leaving my marriage, that’s a year and three months. Every Friday I go there and I have learnt a lot about myself. If anything, I want to thank me for being me, shoutout to me.
“I just decided that, I can look at my ex-husband and say he’s done this and this but at the end of the day what did I contribute? I allowed it to happen, I allowed myself to stay in that situation for so long. Why did I allow that to happen? In therapy you look into those things, you look into what’s causing you discomfort,” she said.
While some scorned her for marrying Nota, Berita said she fell for him initially because he reminded her of her father.
“When I met him, he reminded me of my dad. He had this aura that reminded me of my father and it’s true that you marry a man that reminds you of your father,” she said.
Despite the failure of her union with Nota, Berita said she thought she would get married again in future, as she is still interested in having children.
“I still think I will get married again guys and this time around, hopefully I can do it better,” she said.