Johannesburg - Yet another local star flew the South African flag high internationally and shone bright at the 2016 BET Awards in Los Angeles at the weekend.
After internationally acclaimed local house DJ Black Coffee, whose real name is Nkosinathi Maphumulo, walked away with the award for the Best International Act, Nandi Mngoma earned her own accolade.
The singer and actress earned praise from international fashion critics when she premiered her creation on the red carpet. Her monochrome mermaid-style garment with sequin detail, which she wore to the ceremony, caught the eye of international fashion publications such as E!News and Elle US.
The media houses chose her as one of their best dressed stars at the event, alongside international superstars such as actresses Gabrielle Union and Meagan Good, as well as singer-songwriter Alicia Keys.
On their website, E!News posted a picture of a glowing Mngoma with the caption “Work that dress! The singer wears an ensemble from her fashion line launching at AFI Fashion Week.”
The local star is the only female from Africa to receive the international honour. Mngoma, who paired the dress with a gold statement necklace and minimal make-up, confidently worked the red carpet.
She will officially launch her own fashion label in August.
Speaking to the Sunday Times, Mngoma said she had collaborated with designer Inga Madyibi on the label, called “Colour”.
“It’s such a cool and fluid name, and doesn’t restrict us to anything. We’ll play with texture and fabrics, but our focus will be on African designs,” Mngoma was quoted as saying. “We don’t want to do typical African-print styles, but people will have to wait to see the outcome of it, because Inga also designs with wood and many different elements.”
Mngoma’s dress was also well received by the public, who took to Twitter to applaud her unique creation. @temneprincess posted: “I mean, look at this #AfricanBeauty at the #BETAwards16 #Perfection #NubianQueen #NandiMngoma #AfricaStandUp!”
@TakalaniSioga agreed and tweeted: “This is what flawless looks like.”