Artist Nomsa “Nomisupasta” Mazwai has opened up about what she describes as years of frustration, financial hardship and unanswered questions over royalties, revealing that she could lose her home while accusing the music industry of failing artists.
Mazwai, the younger sister of acclaimed musician Thandiswa Mazwai, and poet Ntsiki Mazwai made the claims on social media, saying she has not received what she believes she is owed from music royalties and questioning whether winning a South African Music Award can genuinely change an independent artist’s fortunes.
“I have not been paid over R2 million in royalties. On the 1st of September this year, I lose my home. So much for the 26-year-old independent who thought winning a SAMA would help her navigate the industry,” she wrote.
Mazwai, who performs as Nomisupasta, is an established singer, songwriter, lyricist and creative whose career has stretched across music, academia and social activism. Her self-titled debut album won the SAMA for Best African Alternative, an achievement that once appeared to signal a breakthrough for an independent artist navigating an industry often dominated by major labels and established players.
Her music career has also included collaborations with prominent artists, including Thandiswa, while her work has moved between African alternative, electronic, hip-hop, soul and other contemporary sounds. Her catalogue includes “Traveller”, a collaboration associated with DJ Black Coffee, as well as “Maybe I”, “With You” and “Musukungsukela”.
It is her account of “Traveller”, however, that has now placed the spotlight firmly on the issue of royalties and transparency in the South African music business.
Mazwai says Black Coffee approached her in 2011 after watching her perform at Madiba’s in Brooklyn and asked her to record a song with him. She says she deliberately did not ask for an upfront payment because she wanted to participate in the royalties.
“I did not want payment I wanted royalties. Anyway, he never paid or offered a session so for me, recording with him was an investment. I knew I was singing and I write all my lyrics,” she said.
According to Mazwai, she organised the recording session herself and wrote and performed the lyrics for “Traveller”.
“I organised a studio. ME! I wrote and sang all the lyrics to traveller,” she wrote.
Mazwai alleges that while information available online indicates the song generated more than R2 million, she received less than R30,000.
“According to the internet the song made over R2 million; I received less than R30k,” she claimed.
She says that for years she repeatedly asked questions about the money she believed she was owed but was met with what she describes as silence. She says she eventually found what she believes was a legal loophole and attempted to resolve the matter directly, believing the issue could have been an error.
“13 years later I found the loophole. I still believed in my brother, I thought it was a mistake and went to him to try get it fixed. It’s two years later and apparently according to him through his lawyers my money is with SAMPRA. It’s not, it’s with them,” she alleged.
Mazwai further claimed that SAMPRA had already paid her share as a performer, while payments had also been made to other contributors, but alleged that she had not been paid by Black Coffee for her performance.
“SAMPRA paid me my share as a performer, and paid Black Motion and paid Black Coffee. I was paid nothing to sing. Black Coffee never paid me as the performer. Not a cent. Nothing,” she wrote.
These are serious allegations, and Mazwai’s claims have not independently established that more than R2 million in royalties from the song is legally owed to her. The dispute also raises questions about the distinction between different forms of music royalties and neighbouring rights, as well as the contractual arrangements between artists, performers, composers, producers and rights organisations.
The controversy comes as Mazwai also turns her frustration towards the South African Music Awards, arguing that industry recognition does not necessarily translate into sustainable financial security for artists.
“The SAMA’s are just expensive PR and that is a huge shame!” she said.
She called on former SAMA winners to engage directly with the organisers and help explain what artists actually need from the awards.
“Please invite past winners to come and debrief you so that the awards can be more meaningful for the recipients,” Mazwai wrote.
For her, the issue goes beyond online conversations and celebrity attention. She argued that musicians themselves should be at the centre of conversations about the awards and the industry’s support structures.
“What people have to say online is really not important, it’s the musicians that should matter and free food, a room at a hotel and prize money does not an institutional award make!” she said.
Her comments have struck an emotional chord because behind the royalty dispute is a much more personal crisis. Mazwai says she is a single mother trying to keep a roof over her children’s heads and believes that years of working in the industry have left her fighting for money she says should have been paid to her.
“Anyway, I don’t need friends or brothers, I need a home to raise my children as a single mother. I am an honest worker and all I want is honest pay,” she said.
“Why is money more important than integrity?”
Mazwai also explained why she believes she remained silent for so long.
“I kept quiet all this time cause I didn’t want to bring a Blackman down, but really we are beyond black consciousness. I could lose the little I have left,” she wrote.
“I already lost a lot to corruption, I can’t lose the rest to theft.”
The artist has since urged her supporters to stand with her, pointing to September 1 and the Gauteng High Court as a significant date and inviting people to support her on Spring Day.
Despite the turmoil, Mazwai continues to make music. In 2026 she returned with new work, including “What You Like”, while a recent Music In Africa interview described her as preparing a new album following a period of reflection and recalibration. The project is executive produced by Thandiswa Mazwai, underscoring the creative relationship between the sisters.
For an artist who once won one of South Africa’s most prestigious music awards, Mazwai’s current battle presents a stark contradiction: recognition on the industry’s biggest stages does not necessarily mean financial security behind the scenes.
