Tankiso Mamabolo is an independent South African songwriter, composer, and singer based in Cape Town. Tankiso’s beautiful and powerful vocals will mesmerize you, and coupled with the stories each song tells, transcends her audience to another level.

Coming from a theatre and musical theatre background, Tankiso began

performing her own compositions publicly in 2018 at the Masambe theatre. She writes and sings in English, Xhosa and Sesotho and she is currently serving as the first musician to be accepted as an artist in Residence at GreatmoreStudios Trust, where she is experimenting with the meeting of music, indigenous history and storytelling, and performance art in traditionally visual artistic space.

Her work has included collaborating with Cape Town-based band, Sweet Chillie, and her first independently produced album, ‘Freedom Hurts Sometimes’ was digitally released to positive reviews in April of 2020. Tankiso also performed at venues such as the Waterfront Amphitheatre, The Baxter Theatre Golden Arrow, and The Great Wizoo. She has also been a guest performer on the television shows Afternoon express (Available on

Youtube) and on Hectic Nine9 where she was promoting her self-directed and produced ‘Tankiso Live: The Audacity To be’ which ran for two weeks at the Baxter theatre in August 2019 and at The V&A Waterfront Amphitheatre in February or 2020. In 2021 Tankiso performed at the SummerHill Wine farm as an opening act for beloved fellow musician Mandisi Dyantyis. In 2022, Tankiso collaborated on the ‘We Go It Alone song with Swedish singer Linus Wallin and she is currently working on her second album.

Themes

Pain, loss, love, politics, womanhood, memory, healing

Genres

Afro-folk, Indie, Afro-pop, jazz, R&B, traditional, Rock

Influences

Nina Simone, Busi Mhlongo, Simphiwe Dana, Sia, Yebba, Yseult, Jabu

Khanyile, Msaki, Sade, Aretha Franklin etc.