Actress Mona Monyane bought a new house.
Image: Gallo Images / Daily Sun / Noko Mashilo
Actress Mona Monyane has blessed herself with a beautiful new house as a clear “look at God!” moment after a series of hardships in life and Mzansi is here for it!

The talented actress lost her house after it went up in flames last year and so her followers celebrated her new crib when she shared some snaps of it earlier this week.

“Look at God. October 2019 showed me literal flames but God had other plans. Remember always my beloveds, that God will never forsake you,” Mona said.

Mona losing her house followed several other tragic life events, including losing a child and later going through separation from her estranged husband Khulu Skenjana. The actress has shared her journey detailing and documenting both her highs and her lows.

The actress’s life testimony has helped many women across the country who have followed her story and applied her tips to their lives. Mona also shared a picture of her sparkling new kitchen and gushed about how happy she was to put her interior design skills to use.

“New kitchen, new home, new life. Getting to practise my interior design skills in the rebuilding of my home felt like God saying … not only will the phoenix rise but she will rise. P.S. Please get home insurance and cover your household items as well. Life happens and you don’t want to be left paying out of your pocket,” she said.

Her TL and comments section were flooded with congratulatory messages from people who were happy to celebrate her season of “Look At God!”.

“Yes Lord! Congratulations Mona!” Pearl Modiadie said.

Check out how beautiful her house is!

Somizi Mhlongo is busy cooking up a show for his fans.
Image: Instagram/Somizi
In the absence of Living the dream with Somizi on their screens, Mzansi has been going through a serious “Somizi withdrawal”, but SomG recently revealed that he’s busy cooking up a show and it already looks like it will have Mzansi wrapped around its pinky.

The flamboyant media personality has been dropping snippets and behind-the-scenes footage, as he teases his upcoming show. Fans believe Somizi is busy creating a talk show …

So far Somizi has revealed that the show will have couch interviews and he’s already shown Mzansi that the likes of Cassper Nyovest, Pearl Thusi and DJ Zinhle have graced him with their presence.

Through his social media, we also found out that Somizi will be using the platform to showcase his great cooking skills.

Plus, everyone who knows SomG knows that he never runs out of alcohol. If his wedding was anything to go buy, the guests will be well served!Whether Somizi always knew it or whether it was Covid-19 that finally spurred him into action, his fans have been begging for such entertainment for ages now.

The guy’s personality and his interactions with his friends are enough to make a proper show but because he’s Somgaga, fans know he never settles for the bare minimum.

There’s no doubt that SomG’s fans are ready for this show and all it brings. It has three major ingredients that go into making a great and entertaining show:

Zozibini Tunzi has a voice that will leave you with goosebumps.
Image: Via Zozibini Tunzi’s Instagram
Forget Idols SA 2020, Miss Universe Zozibini Tunzi has shut down the competition and again shown Mzansi that she has pipes for Africa.

The star has bowled over fans in the past with her renditions of Beyoncé’s Sandcastles and Amanda Black’s Amazulu, and this week had the entire internet mesmerised with another ballad from her apartment.

This time she left jaws on the floor with a version of Andra Day’s hit song Rise Up.

She posted a black-and-white video of her performance on Instagram and was flooded with praise.

Sis also quoted lyrics from the song, encouraging her followers to ‘“rise up”.

“We will rise up! It may seem and look bleak but it’s not over. We can and we will rise up! I brought out all the vibrato today for my Queen Andra Day,” she wrote.Idols SA judge Somizi was one of several famous faces to gush over the performance, telling Zozi to embrace her talents and shine even brighter.

“Use all your talents, babe. Winning Miss Universe should not be the ceiling for your future but the foundation. The start not the end. You were not born to be mediocre. Ignore whatever voices that want you to downplay your true potential so that they can be comfortable. You are a force,” Somizi wrote.

Minnie Dlamini said that she was so glad Zozi was sharing her voice with the world, recounting how shy Zozi once was about her singing.

“I’m so glad you’re singing. Your voice is incredible. More, more, more, please. I remember how shy you got when I asked you about your singing. Shine, baby girl,” Minnie wrote.

While stuck in her New York apartment during the Covid-19 pandemic, Zozi has used her Instagram page to inspire hope and courage.

She recently weighed in on the Black Lives Matter movement around the world, encouraging people to fight for the right to be heard and not discriminated against.

“At least twice a week I have to deal with comments or DMs [direct messages], about the colour of my skin and why I shouldn’t be where I am and why I’m not deserving. People would constantly call me ‘black girl’, ‘the monkey’, and all those derogatory terms,” she told the Sunday Times.

Playwright Welcome Msomi died on Saturday.
Image: Gallo Images / Sowetan / Veli Nhlapo
Veteran playwright Welcome Msomi has died at the age of 76.

The Durban-born star’s death was confirmed on Saturday by his lawyer Benito Mangolele. Mangolele referred questions to the family.

Msomi suffered a stroke in November last year that left him paralysed, according to Sowetan.

He is world-renowned for writing and directing theatre play Umabatha. The play is an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, and details how Mabatha overthrows Dingane. It was staged in 2016 by the University of Pretoria.

He also directed Buya Africa and created music for Tamburlaine the Great, a Royal Shakespeare Company production.

He received a Lifetime Achievement Award for Theatre from the Arts & Culture Trust in 2012.

Msomi served on several boards, including the KwaZulu-Natal Film Commission (KZNFC) and as former chairman of the Living Legends Legacy.

Msomi was found guilty of theft and fraud in October 2019 of stealing R8m from the Living Legends Legacy Programme (LLLP) trust account. His sentencing was postponed because of his health.

News of his death sent shockwaves across the entertainment industry, and tributes poured in on social media for the star.

pandemic, this year’s Vodacom Durban July will make history as it will take place behind closed doors, while the glamour and fashion extravaganza which makes #VDJ the place to see and be seen, will move into the virtual space.

This year’s Durban July event will now take place on July 25 at Greyville Racecourse, without spectators due to the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown regulations.

And the country’s celebs, high-flyers and influencers along with fashionistas and those who enjoy a flutter will be sharing their #VDJ day on social media.

Vodacom will be holding a competition asking people to design masks which reflect the theme and fashion trends through social media. Fashion from 10 guest designers and eight emerging designers from the Durban Fashion Fair will be unveiled on the day via live-streaming from the course, with fans at home being encouraged to send in images which will be shared on social media and the live-stream – so there’s time to plan your own race day at home.O is set to host a pre-race day virtual party on Friday night ahead of the big day and a post-race Vodacom Durban July party on Saturday night.

The traditional gallops, which always provides a sneak peak for punters, will also be a closed-door event held at Summerveld Racehorse Training Complex on July 16 and screened on TellyTrack.

And with excitement starting to build, the first #VDJ fashion shoot took place at Summerveld on Thursday morning, with models strutting against a backdrop of the thud of hooves.

Well-known designer Madelain Clark said the “Butterflies” theme, which was decided prior to the pandemic, was appropriate as the world has been changing and evolving.

Designer Karen Monk Klijnstra who has been on the invited designer list for 22 years said: “We have all been cocooning like a butterfly. It’s about reinventing and renewal and soaring for new dreams and new possibilities.

Brenda Quinn said: “Obviously this July is going to be very different, there are going to be a lot of virtual fashion shows and social media. It’s an iconic event and will go down in history.”

Extreme Model Management MC for this week’s photoshoot, Ayanda Phakathi, said she was looking forward to the colour and diversity in designs.

“It’s going to be interesting to see how designers will express themselves during lockdown.”

Main Image: IOL