Thandeka Nontobeko Ngema (born 16 December 1994), professionally known as MaWhoo, is a South African singer-songwriter, and

model A model is an informative representation of an object, person, or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin , . Models can be divided in ...

. She got wide recognition after releasing her debut single "Umshado" featuring

Heavy-K Mkhululi Siqula (born 4 December 1991) professionally known as Heavy-K, is a South African DJ and music producer. Born and raised in Veeplaas, Port Elizabeth, Siqula relocated to Johannesburg at the age of 21 to pursue his musical career. E ...

. Ngema has also appeared in several music videos, including acting in cameo roles. She has also modeled for brands in and outside of South Africa. She has also worked for Tribe Afrique, House of Supreme, and Convoy Clothing South Africa. She has collaborated with the likes of

DJ Maphorisa Themba Sekowe (born 15 November 1987), known professionally as DJ Maphorisa, is a South African DJ, record producer, singer, and songwriter. As a record producer with a blend of house music, amapiano and afro pop music, afropop, he has worked ...

, Master KG, Tsisto, Kabza De Small and Vigro Deep. Apart from her home country, Ngema has performed in African countries such as

Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory part of the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the sou ...

Eswatini Eswatini, formally the Kingdom of Eswatini, also known by its former official names Swaziland and the Kingdom of Swaziland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by South Africa on all sides except the northeast, where i ...

Zimbabwe file:Zimbabwe, relief map.jpg, upright=1.22, Zimbabwe, relief map Zimbabwe, officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Bots ...

and

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

Background

Early life

Thandeka Nontobeko Ngema was born on 16 December 1994 in

Eshowe Eshowe is the oldest town of European settlement in KwaZulu-Natal, Zululand, historically also known as Eziqwaqweni, Ekowe or kwaMondi. Eshowe's name is said to be inspired by the sound of wind blowing through the more than 4 km2 of the indig ...

KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN) is a Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the government merged the Zulu people, Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu language, Zulu) and ...

, South Africa. She started her music career at a young age. When she was eleven years old, she took her recorded song to a local radio station for air play, but was refused for being too young.

Stage names

In an interview, she shared that her stage name means "magical" in

Japanese language is the principal language of the Japonic languages, Japonic language family spoken by the Japanese people. It has around 123 million speakers, primarily in Japan, the only country where it is the national language, and within the Japanese dia ...

. She reasoned that the name came up with Okmalumkoolcat.

Education

Ngema has a degree obtained from the

University of South Africa The University of South Africa (UNISA) is the largest university system in South Africa by enrollment. It attracts a third of all higher education students in South Africa. Through various colleges and affiliates, UNISA has over 400,000 student ...

(UNISA).

Career

Her single "Bengicela" with GL_Ceekay, Thukuthela featuring Jazzworx was released June 13, 2025.It reached number one on Apple Music all-genres charts, trending song on YouTube, viral song on Shazam and number 5 on Spotify top songs charts respectively.

Controversy

In 2024 during a live interview with L-Tido, Ngema revealed that she had multiple men on her social media account that contact her, including rapper

Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. He is often regarded as one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generation, as well as one of the greatest rappers of all ...

Jay Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named the greatest rapper of all time by ''Billboard'' and '' Vibe'' i ...

and

Rick Ross William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper. An influential figure in modern Hip-hop, hip hop music, Rick Ross has become known for his "Wiktionary:booming, booming" vocal perfor ...

. Her fans insisted her to prove if this was even true, to which Ngema shared a screenshot of a chat with Lil Wayne.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''What a Time to Be Alive'' (2022) * ''The Chosen'' (2023) * ''The Sound of Magic'' (2024)

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Other charted and certified songs

Personal life

There were reports that Ngema is dating Hlubi Nkosi. The couple had been reported exchanging gifts.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:MaWhoo South African pop singers 1994 births 21st-century South African singers Living people South African models People from KwaZulu-Natal English-language singers from South Africa