She’s usually more comfortable singing into a mic than speaking into a mic.
And if she is ever closer to anything, it is a dream.
Not only does she feel it in her sleep, but she also takes it higher and higher.
Over the years, international star Goapele Mohlabane has brought the dream closer and closer to home with her music collaborations with South African artists.
One notable collaboration was with the late HHP on the 2010 humanitarian-driven Victory song.
In the same way, she fits Drum in her Wednesday morning routine all the way from her US home. As she joins the Zoom call, she lets out a big bright grin and her eyes turn cheerful for a greeting.
The singer takes us back to her performance at the MetroFM Awards which she kickstarted with a heartfelt message.
“With every step that I get to take, there’s another step that I would love to get to that sometimes feels unattainable, but I know I’m going to get there, and I won’t be alone,” she said as the beat to her Closer hit dropped.
Now letting us in on the depth of that moment, over a week later, she says, “I was so humbled and excited to be part of it. It was really last minute, but I just really wanted to be there for the 30 years anniversary of Freedom Day. My brother and I travelled there, it had been a long time, and we just knew it was going to be special somehow.”
For the first time ever, she also got to perform with Cassper Nyovest with whom she topped local charts with their 2017 Destiny song.
“Cassper and I worked in a studio together. We never got to be on stage together. We had plans. I was supposed to be at some of his shows and this was the first time we got to do something live. He's just such a talented, charismatic performer and that was just exciting for me to get to do.”
Read more | This heartbreak inspired Cassper Nyovest’s song Destiny
Exactly 30 years ago, Goapele came to South Africa for the first time with his father, just in time for the first democratic elections. More than the performance was a homage to her home away from home, it was also born of adulation for her late father who went into exile in California, USA, during apartheid.
“It was a rest trip for me and was my first time getting to even see Mpumalanga and [driving there] I felt like we were getting into the tropical vibes. I was like, I want to go deeper and then see the coast because it just, it was really beautiful, and peaceful. [During the seven-day visit] what I got to do is gather with people and eat some good food,” says the soul and R&B songwriter.
To complete the warm feeling of connecting to home, she graced the black carpet and the stage with local fashion pieces from Sun Goddess and Imprint.
“It just felt like a special night and what a wonderful opportunity to showcase more talent from the country. The designs are unique, and I like the flavour that comes out of South Africa. I don't get to experience that on a daily [basis] but it's part of the eclectic influences in me.”
What made it more special to her is “the personal connection to what I was wearing. Sometimes you choose something to wear because] ‘I like how this feels’ or ‘I like how this looks’ but there's not always a personal connection to it. So, I think I just felt a little more pride feeling steeped in it”.
The patriot went beyond just putting on a show at the awards ceremony, though. The mother, songstress and entrepreneur also got some studio time with Mörda, Brenden and Maphorisa.
Read more | Goapele is back
“There's a lot of other folks that I'm talking to but it's really the beginning process. There is definitely going to be some musical collaborations that I've kind of just been waiting to do it, I was just like ‘now's the time!’. I can't keep waiting,” the icon gushes.
This feeds into the season that she currently finds herself in where she pours into her creative cup.
“I just feel like there's so many daunting things in the world and it's just like time to just like seize the moment but also collaborate and come together and I feel like we can inspire each other.”
Unlike when she was starting out in the music industry in the late '90s, she now values taking deserved time out and not needing to say 'yes' to everything just for the sake of the grind.
