Thembi Seete (born 25 March 1977) is a South African actress, singer-songwriter, media personality and model. She is best known as a member of former

kwaito Kwaito is a music genre that emerged in Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa, between the late 1980s and 1990s. It is a sound that features the use of African sounds and samples. Kwaito songs occur at a slower tempo range than other styles of h ...

group ''

Boom Shaka Boom Shaka was a pioneering South African kwaito music group consisting of Junior Sokhela, Lebo Mathosa, Theo Nhlengethwa and Thembi Seete. They released their first single "It's About Time" in 1993, and subsequently released their debut LP, ...

''. She played the role of "Gladys" in the

Mzansi Magic Mzansi Magic is a South African digital satellite and general entertainment channel created by Multichoice and run by M-Net's local interest division, and is broadcast on DStv. History The channel launched in mid-July 2010 on channel 107 as ...

telenovela '' Gomora''. from its debut in 2020 to its finale in 2023.

Early life

Seete was born on 25 March 1977 in Soweto, Gauteng, South Africa. Her father died in 2014. She grew up in

Sebokeng Sebokeng () locally called Zweni by residents, is a middle-class township in the Emfuleni Local Municipality in southern Gauteng, South Africa near the industrial cities of Vanderbijlpark and Vereeniging. Other neighboring townships include Ev ...

in the Vaal with her aunt and uncle. Her mother Rebecca Seete succumbed to a

brain tumor A brain tumor (sometimes referred to as brain cancer) occurs when a group of cells within the Human brain, brain turn cancerous and grow out of control, creating a mass. There are two main types of tumors: malignant (cancerous) tumors and benign ...

in July 2021. She has a son, born in 2018, with businessman Collen Mashawana.

Career

In 1993, she became one of the members of the kwaito supergroup called ''

''. She continued to perform with the group until the group split in 2000. Then in 2000, she made her debut film role starring in ''Hijack Stories''. Thereafter, she joined the

SABC1 SABC 1 is a South African public television network operated by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC). It broadcasts programming in English and Nguni languages, Nguni languages. SABC 1 was established in 1996 following the SABC's res ...

drama series '' Yizo Yizo''. Simultaneously, she featured on TV series' soundtrack with the release of "''Sure Ntombazana''". Seete, also joined the cast of another SABC1 drama series ''Gaz’lam'', where she played the role "Lerato" until 2004. She continued to perform as a singer. Thembi, and released her debut solo album ''Lollipop'' in 2001. After the album's success, she released a second album ''S’matsatsa'', which included popular solo tracks such as "''Shayi Zandla''" and "''Mphate Kahle''". In 2005, she acted in the

direct-to-video Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, television series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strat ...

film ''Crossing the Line'' playing the role of "Pumla". In 2006, she was cast in her first leading role in the SABC1

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

drama series ''Zone 14''. In the series, she played the role of "Nina Moloi" for four seasons with good reviews. In 2009, she released "''Black Diamond''" via her adult contemporary album ''Music Is My Life''. In 2014, she acted in the Mzansi Magic film ''The Gift''. In the same year, she co-hosted the Mzansi Magic show ''The Juice'' alongside Bob Mabena. Seete later joined the cast of the popular

E.tv e.tv (commonly referred to on-air as e) is the first and only privately owned free-to-air television station in South Africa. Founded in 1998, the company is headquartered in Cape Town. It is the fifth terrestrial television channel in the ...

soapie '' Rhythm City'' as the role of "Bongi". In 2020, Thembi was cast as another popular television role "Gladys" in Mzansi Magic's telenovela '' Gomora''. In 2020, she appeared in the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

original ''Kings of Joburg''. In 2021, she was a guest judge in one episode of the seventeenth season of Mzansi Magic singing reality competition, ''

Idols South Africa ''Idols'' was a television show on the South African television network Mzansi Magic, and previously on M-Net, based on the popular British show ''Pop Idol''. The show was a contest to determine the best young singer in South Africa. The gener ...

''. Apart from acting, she also works as a

beautician Cosmetology (from Greek , ''kosmētikos'', "beautifying"; and , ''-logia'') is the study and application of beauty treatment. Branches of specialty include hairstyling, skin care, cosmetics, manicures/pedicures, non-permanent hair removal such a ...

, where she owns the salon "Azuri". In February 2022, Seete was announced to be a judge on season 18 of ''

''. She returned the following year in 2023.

Filmography

References

External links

IMDb
{{DEFAULTSORT:Seete, Thembi Living people South African film actresses South African television actresses 1977 births People from Soweto