How singer Nelisiwe Sibiya reinvented herself as a Safta-winning actor

Mama Ka Bafana hitmaker Nelisiwe Sibiya is booked and busy and on top of her acting game five years after stepping away from music.

The singer and actress known for her prolific roles in Lockdown, Durban Gen and Umkhokha has booked her next lead role after winning her first SA Film and Television Award (Safta) for her buzzy role in iThonga.

In the new e.tv drama Land of Mills and Money, she is joined by a stellar cast of Winnie Ntshaba, Zamani Mbatha, Themba Ndaba, Jo-Anne Reyneke, Sphelele Luthuli, Mbali Ngiba, Kenneth Nkosi, Thandeka Qwabe and Gcinile Nkosi.

Words cannot express. Besides the fact that it’s a lead role, to get a job is something I’m grateful for because we all know how hard it is in our industry to move from one gig to another. It wasn’t long after I had finished shooting and winning a Safta a few months ago, and already something else is happening. I’m grateful to my ancestors that everything seems to be aligning the way it’s supposed to.

Phiwe is a police officer, which I love because I enjoy embodying different professions. At some point I played a doctor, lawyer and cook. Recently, I played a spoilt brat who was also a businesswoman. It’s something that is very challenging because there’s a lot of fighting that needs to be done. Phiwe is also a first-born daughter who takes care of her family. That is something I’m very used to because of how I grew up. First-born daughters carry a lot. They become deputy parents because they have to take care of their families.

I was star-struck. I grew up watching these people on TV, and now working with them kind of gives me hope. I remember when I was shooting with Winnie, I was shaking. She came to my room and said, “Let’s run the scene,” and I was thinking, “I don’t want to mess this up.” I went to the bathroom and had a little prayer. I said, “Lord, you’re the one who put me here. You have to sustain me.” This was because I was quite anxious of the intense scene I was about to shoot with Winnie.

That’s one thing I cannot choose. Both of them play a huge role in my life. I love being a musician, but I’m taking a break from music. It’s been five years. I’m putting my energy into acting. I’m going back to the studio soon.

I’ve got criticism from other shows that I’ve done. People just thought, “She’s a musician. Why is she acting?” Not knowing that, I’m a professional actress. I’m a musical theatre graduate from TUT, so what I’m doing is what I studied and what I’m passionate about. I cannot wait for people to see me in a different space and profession and still as an actress.

It’s important to show versatility and how far you can go as a person. I’m also grateful because I’m not typecast. I might be typecast in terms of having a love triangle all the time, but in terms of the profession that I do on shows, it’s vastly different.