Idols SA alumnus Mmatema Gavu, née Moremi, has gotten personal about her faith, career and submitting to her husband of six years Tshepo.
The 33-year-old singer from Zebediela in Limpopo rose to fame as runner-up in season 11 of Idols SA, which was won by Karabo Mogane.
“My husband and I met in 2014. I wasn’t looking the best when he first saw me. I mean, I could only afford a decent hairstyle once in forever, but he saw the beauty I never knew I had. He saw the gift in me before other people did,” she said.
“Marriage makes sense to me because that’s all I saw in the house I grew up in. My parents are very old but love each other like they just met. They hold hands, kiss and call each other just to say, ‘I miss you’. I remember telling myself, if I was going to get married, it had to be better than this and I’m happy I’ve found my man.”
The My Time Is Now! singer added that marriage takes a lot of work.
“Marriage is not difficult, it’s just work. When you are at work, you put in the effort, and the time for whatever task is at hand, right? Then, why not do that with marriage?
“Sometimes work is sitting and saying, gosh, I don’t like this guy right now’ because there’s so much we’re going through, but I remember the bigger picture and the goal of where we are going. Marriage isn’t easy, it’s work," she said.
“Imagine the amount of times my mother had to forgive my father and I’m not saying she stood for nonsense but God gave her the strength to take in whatever she’s faced with in her marriage. The biggest thing that works in my life is that we have principles and respect each other’s boundaries. We always try to keep up with the right momentum.”
Not winning Idols SA was the biggest wake-up call for Gavu about the music scene.
“I didn’t get the car, I didn’t get the millions or even the title. I didn’t get any of those things but you know what I got? I received God’s timing. Things that are happening for me now, are things I prayed for back then, maybe he knew I wasn’t ready for them,” she said.
On December 1, Gavu will go back to the same stage at The South African State Theatre in Pretoria, where she refused her biggest “no” after not winning Idols SA. She will stage her third annual concert Mmatema: A Night of Gratitude.
“We are going back to the same place where I established the brand Mmatema. It’s the same place where I was ridiculed and embarrassed because I lost,” she said.
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