GOING through a turbulent period while writing songs for her new album didn't lead to Lulu Dikana giving her fans a depressing album but one that inspires them to live their lives.

Unlike classic R&B singers such as Celine Dion and Toni Braxton, who are synonymous with belting out notes that bare their scars, neo-soul artist Dikana says she doesn't want to sing about pain.

"Imagine if we all wrote about pain. I want people to listen to my music and be inspired," she said.

The singer's sister Busisiwe died last year when she had already started jotting down lyrics of her new project.

She performed songs from her new album, I Came To Love, for a handful of fans at Kaya FM's Live Sessions.

"It took me about a year to put the album together."

She will be John Legend's opening act in the Johannesburg shows when the US soul singer comes to these shores next month on his All of Me tour.

During her performance, Dikana quipped that fans are likely to see a collaboration between her and younger sister Zonke, a music artist and X Factor judge, in 50 or 100 years.

"We actually were supposed to work together on her [Zonke's] album, but it didn't work out. We're both just too bossy," she said.

Her relationship with the Lord is something she speaks a lot about. "That's what I'm about. The Lord isn't just my cornerstone. My music is about my love affair with Love himself."

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