On Sunday night (27 November) I caught up with our new Idol Noma Khumalo after her win and the handover of her prizes. We hooked up in her dressing room where we chatted about her future and her winner's album, which she's recording immediately.
She's started recording it as we speak - three days after her win - and it's going to be released between 19 and 23 December.
I was disappointed and iffy when I heard this because of the
convos we've been having on TVSA about the problematic impact on Idols winners when their albums are rushed. Also, the show's already been renewed for Season 13 with auditions in January so the issues raised in the article have come into play with Noma.
After the finale Gallo Music promised us that they're going to do good by her so we'll see if they can reverse the trend.
Here's what Noma has to say about her win and future:
Tashi: Are you going back to teaching after recording your album? What are your plans?
Noma: After this I really want to pursue music. I've had this discission with my kids before where I said, "Guys, I'm coming back, I can't do this anymore," - when Unathi had again seen right through me by seeing I'm feeling torn by something.
She just said, "Don't let forces from outside..." - at the time I was feeling at my lowest. I said to my kids, "Guys, I can't do this anymore," and they said to me, "If you give up now, what message are you sending to us?"
They said, "Miss Khumalo, go out there and live your dreams, we want you to live them," so I'm planning a surprise visit soon. I hope Kim (Noma's manager) and Gallo will allow me to visit them before schools close.
Tashi: Of course they must - they can't keep you chained up. When it comes to your album, the songs have been pre-selected. What do you know about the album so far?
Noma: I know it's going to be awesome because Rob (from Gallo) just gives you the best team. I don't know what songs have been selected as of yet but I'm really excited to see what they want me to produce.
Tashi: What music do you want to do? What is your music?
Noma: I definitely want to do Afro Soul - something with soul, whether it be a slight R&B, slight jazz, I really want to work with a lot of artists who I've gotten to meet over the shows.
I'm looking forward to seeing where South Africa would also like to hear me based but I really like the Afro Soul vibe. I want to broaden my wings and see where I can push my boundaries.
Tashi: The money... R700,000 is great prize money. What are you going to do with it?
Noma: I definitely want to invest it. Our agents have said rather put it back into your artistry and start making a living with your work so I'm definitely goinna invest in it and see where it goes.
Tashi: You've conquered your cyberbullies! Can you give us insight into what it's like to be cyberbullied for being on a talent show?
Noma: I feel like a lot of people encounter negativity in different ways. As a teacher, I come to work every morning with hugs and kisses ready for me and just being embraced by children and then you come into a different field and everyone's nice because I'm just bubbly and I love to see everyone smiling.
I'll go out of my way to make you smile - but when someone says something negative or something horrible, it's sort of like a slap across the face and I cannot explain how painful cyberbullying is.
I do not wish anyone that sort of thing. I've witnessed a friend - they also had someone cyberbullying them - and she was ready to take her own life.
For me to have gone through that, it brought back something that was like, "Tjo, Nomz, maybe just give up 'cos they don't like you."
Sis Unathi said, "That's one person out of how many people?" As a person who's been cyberbullied, you never actually see the greater, it's always just the one voice that hurts, and she helped me conquer it.
She helped me distinguish between what I believe and what really is the truth. If it's not true about you, don't believe it - and don't keep quiet about cyberbullying.
Tashi: Was it more prevalent on one social media platform than others? Was it Twitter that was worst?
Noma: I mean you get it on all platforms and Twitter never really loved us *
laughs*. My mom's always taught me: "Nomz, if you don't have something nice to say, don't say it."
I've always been taught to be cautious about what I say hence on social media platforms, I'm not gonna be that person who's hating with hate speech, I'm not a person of hate speech.
A part of me is just saying, that platform really hurt me. She told me, "Stay away from Twitter," and I went right to Twitter. It's sort of like telling a child, don't do it and you want to do it.
A part of me didn't listen at that time and I went for it, thinking, "Let me show the ones that are supporting me some love," and as I'm doing that there was just hate speech coming across and it's about things you can't really change, your physical appearance or what you're wearing on the show, your hair on the show or eyebrows or whatever it is.
A part of me really needed someone to tell me, "Nobody's perfect and you are human," and Unathi did that for me. She just reminded me of that, and Valentine as well.
Tashi: Where do you see yourself in five years time?
Noma: I see myself collaborating with big artists here in South Africa. I see myself running programmes for the youth, just to encourage them about how they can get into the music industry and how to pursue their dreams - to be part of programmes like that.
I see myself working with Gallo. I see myself on platforms like Idols, being the guest that comes back. I would love that.
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