South African award-winning musician Vusi Nova is the latest celebrity to open up their private world to fans with a reality show.
‘Vusi Nova: Unprovoked’ is currently airing on SABC 1 and the talented musician’s fans are getting an intimate look into the life of the superstar.
Real name, Vusimuzi Nongxa shared with IOL Entertainment that shooting the reality show was extremely stressful.
“I’m extremely private, and for the longest time different channels were asking, ‘Don’t you want to do reality TV?’ and I was like absolutely not. I also believe that everything happens with time and I believe this was the right time,” he said.
“Thirteen episodes in, season one is done and dusted. It’s scary because people then get to know Vusi off-stage and it’s scary for me. I’m extremely private, now all of a sudden, it’s like privacy gone down the drain.”
Nova values his privacy and even though he is a public figure, he admits that it does get too much at times.
He explains that singing is his bread and butter, putting him in the spotlight, but people tend to want to know other things, such as what he does off-stage and who he is dating.
Nova recommends that his fans watch to see if they finally get the tea on his love life.
With all these channels that approached him the multi-selling artist explains that saying yes to SABC 1 was simple, especially as it was a channel he grew up watching.
“I am the artist that I am today because I watched SABC, I was inspired by just watching SABC, the music shows, the talent shows. It just inspired me and motivated me to be the person that I am today,” Nova said.
“The SABC is my target market, whichever way you look at it, so for me, it’s no-brainer.”
In the past year, Nova has experienced a few growth moments as an artist and also as an entrepreneur, with the launch of his recording label, Nova Sounds.
Nova Sounds was launched after the musician parted ways with his long-time label Muthaland Entertainment.
Nova Sounds have already signed up a few emerging and established artists like 047, an Afropop trio from the Eastern Cape, former ‘Idols SA’ contestant Kwanda, STU and SSIPS whose niche is amapiano have also joined.
“It’s hard,” jokes Nova about his record label boss journey so far. “It’s beautiful, I've always loved unearthing raw new talent, dating back to people like Nathi Mankayi, 047.
“It’s just always been something that came naturally, I’m loving it and for me to branch off and open Nova Sounds is exactly the platform I needed to do more.”
The musician says that the label is growing, they have signed a Cape Town female artist to the label, released Nova’s album ‘Full Circle’, and he is preparing for his first one-man show in September.
“It just goes to show, once you break away I think sometimes we get comfortable and we stay there because we are afraid to try out new things. And when you eventually try something new things just start flowing, which is exactly what is happening.”
In December, Nova lost his dear friend musician Bulelwa Mkutukana, known by her stage name Zahara. “One day at a time,” he says when asked about his healing journey.
“I don't think it's something that will go away very soon. It was just too quick and not nice. I would go to the hospital almost every day and hope.”
The star recalls going through a roller-coaster of emotions over seeing his dear friend in the hospital one day she would be fine the next a different story. “Bulelwa is very strong, opinionated and just to see her lying in bed helpless, was a lot.”
He may still be dealing with the loss of his dear friend but Nova is optimistic about the future and taking it day by day and ready for fans to witness his drama on his reality show.
‘Vusi Nova: Unprovoked’ airs on SABC 1, DStv channel 191 at 8 pm on Saturdays.
IOL Entertainment