Munya Vomo
When he first entered IdolsSA in 2012, Monde Msutwana was hungry to win. He had worked as a marketing assistant for a music company, Sheer Music, for years and on the side had unsuccessfully tried to break out with his own music. While he got a taste of what the music business was like through his day job, by night Msutwana yearned to be in the same league as the artists whom he helped gain visibility.
“My main duties were to get the album onto radio and get reviews published in various media houses. On the side, I was involved in a number of musical things. I did corporate gigs with a boy band and we recorded a demo which we handed to Sheer, but no one took us seriously. I then decided to learn more about the industry, especially how to get an artist popular and known by everybody,” he said.
At 30, (which is the cut-off age for entering IdolsSA), Msutwana tried his luck in the talent competition, fully aware that he had only one chance.
“My whole plan for Idols was to get into the Top 10 and then see where that took me. When I reached further than the Top 10, it turned out that the plan had worked better than I’d expected. Going back to work was an option, but with my further progression on the show, that ceased to be an option. I knew that I wanted to get out there and let people know what I could do. I needed a change in life and being on Idols made me see my dream mushroom,” he said.
Msutwana was delighted to finish third in the competition which saw Melissa Alison finish as first runner-up and Khaya Mthethwa crowned the winner.
“Every progression in Idols was a surprise for me. After reaching my Top 10 goal, having to compete against more popular people made it obvious that my chances were getting slimmer. We had the likes of Tshidi who was there the previous year and a brilliant vocalist. We also had Khaya who was coming from Joyous Celebration and popular on the gospel scene, so you look at your chances and think there is no way you can make it. Also, the age thing played on my mind because I thought that all the other contestants were younger than me and more popular, so what were the chances that the young fans who followed Idols would also appreciate what I had to give?” he said.
This realisation forced him to work even harder. However, as the other contestants fell by the wayside and Msutwana progressed, he noticed something interesting.
“The fans of the evicted contestants began to find new favourites on the show and I think my following grew thanks to that,” he said.
Upon leaving the show, Msutwana knew his life had changed for ever. He was that much closer to realising his dream of a career in music.
“Instead of looking for work, I was now being called by the corporate world to perform for them. I then used that to build my brand which then led me to me making the album,” he said.
The album in question is titled Introspection and is something that Msutwana had wanted to make for the longest time.
“In actual fact, I started working on the album around 2009 when I was penning songs while I was studying jazz at TUT. I took my time because there were lessons that I needed to learn, production lessons, and I was also waiting for the right musicians to work with. Now I am ready for the industry to take me,” explained the singer.
“You have to write music that is timeless so regardless of when a song was released, it has to still be relevant enough to be listened to 10 years from now.
“I am making what I call contemporary soul and I wrote and co-wrote all of the songs. The album title feeds into the material on the album which I drew from my and other people’s experiences.”
Introspection is available on iTunes.