Zee Nxumalo Achieves Major YouTube South Africa Milestone

• Singer-songwriter Zandile 'Zee' Nxumalo achieved major success on YouTube South Africa when she received top status on the streaming scene
• The 23-year-old amapiano superstar amassed an impressive number of views, cementing her place in the industry
• Last year, rapper Cassper Nyovest crowned the Ama Gear hitmaker as one of the best to ever do, a stance that caused a stir online

Popular Swazi-South African singer-songwriter Zee Nxumalo remains on top of her game, recently receiving the title of YouTube South Africa's most-viewed female artist for 2025.

The Ama Gear hitmaker impressively amassed a whopping 181 million views on the streaming platform, despite having over 300 000 subscribers on her YouTube channel, making her one of the country's most dominant and influential figures in the music industry.

According to Fakaza News, 2025 was also the year the 23-year-old amapiano star, real name Zandile Nxumalo, was crowned the most-streamed artist on Spotify, a rare feat that saw her simultaneously dominate two of the world's biggest streaming platforms.

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Last year, rapper and businessman Cassper Nyovest already spotted Zee's greatness and caused a bit of a stir online when he confidently named Zee the best artist in South Africa.

Zee Nxumalo dominates the charts

On 31 December 2025, Briefly News compiled a list of Zee's achievements, which included her hit song Ngisakuthanda, which had surpassed 100 million streams across all Digital Streaming Platforms (DSPs). She released the short film on YouTube on 21 November 2025.

During the same year, the superstar released her hit track Mamma, which gained rapid traction and went viral soon after its debut. In August 2025, she surprised fans by asking for a R250 000 donation to fund an official music video for her song. She later revealed how the investment had paid off by taking to her official X account. She shared that she had fully recouped the six-figure amount, which premiered on her YouTube channel on 22 August 2025.

More on her Spotify success, Zee's achievement allowed her to surpass prominent global stars, such as Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Rihanna, and SZA.

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Shingai Darangwa, Zee's manager and co-founder of Punchline Projects, explained that his artist's rise had never been accidental, adding:

"What people are seeing now is the result of an unbelievable work ethic, a deep love for craft, and a hunger that never switches off. She shows up every day with the same intensity, whether she's in the studio, on set, or in the boardroom, and that consistency is what separates generational talent from fleeting success."

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Zee Nxumalo drops hints on booking fees

In more entertainment news, Briefly News reported that Zee sparked a social media frenzy when she hinted at her performance booking fee, an amount some would say was earned.

During an interview, the singer was asked to quantify her rate by the type of luxury car she could afford with it. Her witty response went viral and thoroughly impressed fans after the interviewer cleverly tried to get exact numbers out of Zee, who playfully sang about several possible figures.

Source: Briefly News