Goapele trends in Mzansi: US R&B singer has ties to South Africa

- On Friday, US musician Goapele Mohlabane trended on Mzansi social media for all the wrong reasons

- Goapele disappointed Mzansi with the way she pronounced her name, which means to move forward in Setswana

- Briefly.co.za took a look at the American R&B singer and her ties to South Africa

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US R&B singer Goapele Mohlabane trended on Twitter on Friday after a video surfaced showing her pronouncing her name while speaking about supporting youth voices.

She captioned the video:

"As a mom I believe in supporting youth voices! YES on Measure QQ. @oaklandyouthvote"

According to Mzansi social media users, the muso pronounced her own name wrong and they weren't impressed by it.

One person commented:

"Ausi Goapele Mohlabane, with all due respect, 'Gua-pêlé' is not how your name is pronounced. I know you've been in the US wara wara, and that's okay. Just call bo Rakgadi, or your cousins in Mafikeng and ask them to teach you how to say it right."

Take a look at the post below:

Briefly.co.za decided to take a closer look at the singer's life and her ties to Mzansi. Goapele was born on 11 July, 1977 in Oakland, California, United States.

Goapele's name means to move forward in Setswana, a Southern African language, according to Wikipedia.

However, her African name is not the only tie she has to our beautiful country. The 43-year-old's father, Douglas Mohlabane, was a South African anti-apartheid activist who had been exiled over his political activities.

Douglas married Noa - an American-born Israeli Jewish woman who had been part of protests since the age of 12.

They met and tied the knot after meeting in Kenya while Noa studied in Nairobi. Goapele has a brother, DJ Namane, who was raised in a California South African exile community.

In other news, Hlelile Mbanda (25) has brought joy and happiness to her parents by building them a mansion after decades of living in falling mud houses. According to some residents, she is the first person to build such a house at her age in her neighbourhood in eMaphephetheni, Ndwedwe.

Speaking to Briefly.co.za, Hlelile said it has been always her dream to get her parents out of their misery. She said anybody who lived in a house built with blocks in her area was seen as a very rich person. Therefore, she had this drive to get her parents out of the mud houses after being through a lot. She said one of the mud houses collapsed on them few years back.

“I wanted to thank them. They've been through a lot. There are things they could have done, but they didn't because they cared for me. I always thought maybe things could have easier for them if they did not have me. So there was no way I could forget them for all the sacrifices they made to make sure my future is bright,” she said.

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Source: Briefly News