“I have not been able to release any music. No album. It drove me crazy! My label drove me into depression and it was time I got myself out of it!”
His breakthrough single ‘Mmamotse’ was one of the biggest tracks of 2018, the feel good tune catapulting the unassuming Motlha into the limelight.
Sadly, instead of the launching pad to a great career, the monster hit has so far proved the peak, with Mothla unable to produce anything close to the magic of ‘Mmamotse’ since.
Now 26, the singer, winner of the ninth season of My Star in 2015, is in danger of fading into obscurity.
Scheduled to release his debut album last year, the launch was repeatedly postponed and is yet to happen.
Last week, Motlha’s record label, Roc Lefatshe announced they had parted ways with the artist after a three-year partnership.
Voice Entertainment reached out to Motlha to find out what went wrong to a once blossoming relationship that promised much but ultimately delivered little.
In an emotional interview, the singer admitted he had fallen into depression.
“I have not been able to release any music. No album. It drove me crazy! My label drove me into depression and it was time I got myself out of it. It does not feel good as an artist to record music, go for photoshoots and have everything but then have your record label just not release your work. It is frustrating and stressful. They kept on postponing my music and did not really come out clear as to why, but other artists kept on pushing their work.”
Motlha revealed he felt the only way to resurrect his career was to sever ties with the Roc Lefatshe stable.
“We sat down and agreed that I go solo. We are yet to discuss a few things especially on the business side of it all. We will do so after the lockdown.”
As for the future, Motlha is confident he will not fall into the dreaded ‘one-hit wonder’ category. However, nor will he be hurried into any new releases.
“I will not rush to release any new music trying to prove I can do it on my own. I will take my time and work on new music so for now I don’t think I will have anything out but I definitely will eventually,” concluded the man born Motlha Mompe.
For their part, Roc Lefatshe’s Suffocate had a slightly different explanation for the singer’s psychological struggles.
“We are not the reason Motlha fell into depression. I would say the loss of his brother last year really hit him hard. Also, the fact that some of his singles did not really do as well as he would have hoped.”
Suffocate further disclosed that their three-year contract with Motlha had come to an end but when discussions over a renewal were about to begin, the star indicated he wanted out.
“We parted ways amicably. We will meet again after the lockdown to finalize how we will proceed because he had already recorded music with us.”
Asked if he will keep rights to Motlha’s music, Suffocate responded, “We will most likely keep the rights to his music, but we will finalize the details once lockdown is done.”