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mandoza worry

Zenoyise Madikwa

Zenoyise Madikwa

Kwaito icon Mandoza has reacted angrily to

claims by fans that his health was failing.

The popular musician, whose real name is Mduduzi Tshabalala, says the reason his face appears frail sometimes is because he has had skin problems since he was young.

Sowetan received calls from fans saying they had seen Mandoza on Live, a SABC1 music show, and he did not look well. They claimed his lips were red and that he seemed to have lost weight. Fans also asked why he was absent in the line-up of artists who performed at major festivals and concerts over the lucrative festive season.

The 29-year-old kwaito star told Sowetan yesterday that claims that he was sick were "rubbish".

"People are talking rubbish. I do have a skin problem, but a rough skin does not mean that one is sick. I'm not HIV positive either. I have a skin problem. I have had a skin problem since I was a teenager. I am not sick. I'm as fit as a horse. These pimples appear when I'm stressed."

Mandoza said he was stressed during the festive season because of performing at too many gigs. He said he probably lost weight because he is working out at the gym.

Asked why he was absent from most festive season line-ups, he said he had been performing at corporate gigs.

His manager Curwyn Eaton also refuted claims that the star was sick.

"Mandoza is a human being. He gets skin problems sometimes. He recently went to a dermatologist for his skin problems and has done facial treatments. I've never seen someone who is sick look like that. Besides, if he was sick he would not have performed at so many corporate gigs like he did during the festive season."

Mandoza, a former member of Chiskop, became a successful solo artist as his brand of kwaito broke the cultural racial barriers and appealed to both white and black youth.

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