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Her hit song Wololo has everyone singing and dancing their hearts out.
But that’s not the only reason Babes Wodumo (23) is in the spotlight.
The KZN songstress, whose real name is Bongekile Simelane, had tongues wagging after a recent radio interview with DJ Sbu on Vuma FM.
On the air, she admitted she didn't know who Pravin Gordhan was -- and all hell broke lose.
Since then, Babes has been on the receiving end of an online lashing of note. If that weren't bad enough, "haters" took aim at the young star over her English accent, her family, and her faith.
According to The Sunday Sun newspaper, Babes attends the Mount Zion Faith Mission in Lamontville in Durban, where her father is the bishop. But fellow churchgoers claim that since the songstress’s rise to stardom, she hasn’t been to church in months. Some sources reportedly called her out for spending more time "popping champagne and shaking her booty with fans instead of attending church." "At first we understood she was doing it for work purposes, but we haven't seen her for months now," one churchgoer is quoted as saying. "On the other hand, the bishop stresses that young people need to be always in church, while his daughter's a no-show." Another member said, "Her dad shouldn't dwell a lot on young people not coming to church as his own daughter doesn't bother to."
After the furor, Babes told Drum, “I was telling the truth, I don’t know Pravin Gordhan.”
“I mean, does he know who Babes is?” The local sensation admitted she hasn't been going to church as often as she would like. “It’s true that I have not been attending church. The last time I went to church was early last month,” says Babes -- but she insists that her hectic schedule (and not champagne) is to blame. She added she still gives her 10 % tithe and offering.
Luckily for Babes, she seems to have an army of fans in her ring, using the hashtag #HandsoffBabesWodumo to show their support. Even the likes of Idols judge Somizi showed his support in an Instagram video, captioned "u shud walk in Pravin's court case like this. Like do I know who I AM lol.."
Entertainer Dr Malinga also shared his support, putting things into perspective in this post:#wololo @babes_wodumo u shud walk in Pravin's court case like this. Like do I know who I AM lol.
A video posted by Somizi (@somizi) on
Welcome to the industry, Babes! Check out her toe-tapping hit below:
Additional sources: drum.co.za, timeslive.co.za, sundaysun.co.za
