Musician and actor Sandile Dlamini has paid tribute to his late friend, actor Mfana-Jones Hlophe. He told Daily Sun how he helped Hlophe get an audition that changed his career.
Hlophe died on Wednesday, 7 October, at the age of 53. Daily Sun reported that he had a long battle with Type 1 diabetes.
“When I arrived, they were already giving him R50 for bus fare back to Durban because auditions had closed. I went straight to Mbongeni in his office and asked him to audition Mfana-Jones because I knew that if he saw him perform, he’d love him,” Dlamini said.
Dlamini, who is 60 and comes from Umlazi, south of Durban, said the late Mbongeni Ngema agreed to the audition. “Mbongeni auditioned him, and after that, he asked him to come back,” he said.
He said Hlophe arrived in Johannesburg from Umlazi in 1989. The audition was for Ngema’s play Township Fever. Dlamini said Hlophe had not been given a chance to audition before he stepped in.
Dlamini first joined Ngema’s productions as an instrumentalist. He said the two men grew up together in Umlazi, although Hlophe was younger than him.
“We were very close because we grew up together at my home where there was a church. My father was a pastor, and his father was a junior pastor. He learnt how to play guitar at our home,” Dlamini said.
He said Hlophe sent him a message on his birthday only a few weeks before he died. “During my birthday on 28 September, he recorded a video singing a happy birthday song for me and telling people that I nurtured him,” Dlamini said.
“I’m heartbroken that he is no more because I was still expecting so much more from him as an artist. May his soul rest in peace,” he said.
Hlophe became a household name as Nimrod on the SABC1 soapie Generations: The Legacy. He also worked on Township Fever, Uzalo and Imbewu: The Seed, among other productions.
Dlamini also has screen work of his own. He played Phakade on Imbewu: The Seed and appeared in Sibongile & The Dlaminis.
Generations: The Legacy PR and social media manager Eugene Cele-Kings also paid tribute to the actor on behalf of the show.
“On behalf of the producers, cast and crew, we’re deeply saddened by the untimely passing of Mr Mfana-Jones Hlophe. We’d like to send our condolences to the family. We hold you close in our thoughts during this painful time,” Cele-Kings said.
Source: this article is based on reporting by Daily Sun. Image: Daily Sun. Written with the help of AI and published by the Tzaneen Voice Entertainment desk. See our Editorial Standards.
Rirhandzu Baloyi writes about entertainment for Tzaneen Voice. Rirhandzu covers South African music, film, TV, streaming, awards and celebrity news, from amapiano and local soapies to Showmax and Netflix releases. Stories stick to what happened, who was involved and when fans can watch or listen.