“The stage turns into an altar, while the music becomes an offering to God.”
That is how Judith Sephuma explains her experience of performing gospel music. While many listeners came to know her through jazz and Afro-soul, she will invite fans into a different musical and spiritual space when she takes the SunBet Arena stage on 16 December.
Sephuma will appear alongside Takie Ndou on the One Faith Gospel Concert bill. Ndou has spent years ministering in his home language of Tshivenda and has seen audiences around South Africa increasingly embrace his music.
BT Entertainment is staging the event around the theme “All Be One,” deliberately scheduling it for the Day of Reconciliation.
“One Faith aims to unite people through music’s universal language and a collective journey of faith,” BT Entertainment says.
“The ‘All Be One’ message reflects what we hope audiences will carry with them: despite our differences, there is power in standing together, honouring each other and sharing hope for what lies ahead.”
For both performers, the message carries personal meaning.
“Worship calls for vulnerability”
For Sephuma, the distinction between appearing at a jazz show and leading worship has nothing to do with vocal ability. Instead, it comes down to the purpose behind the music.
“Jazz gives me room to communicate through interpretation, feeling and the beauty of musical artistry. Gospel and worship, though, ask me to move past the music itself and fully yield to God,” she says.
“When I am on a worship platform, it is not merely about my voice, my skill or the quality of a performance. It is about the spirit behind the sound and the God receiving it. Worship demands openness, humility and the readiness to become smaller so that God may become greater.”
She draws a line between singing songs about God and ministering from a genuine personal encounter with Him.
“In worship, I do not only want people to hear my singing. I want the songs to help them experience God’s presence.”
Finding peace from within
When asked what reconciliation has required in her own life, Sephuma does not focus on dramatic moments. For her, it has involved private and inward reflection.
“I have learned that reconciliation starts inside us. At different points in life, you must bring your expectations into line with God’s timing, your own understanding with His purpose, and the person you imagined becoming with the person He is forming you to be.”
She says pain, doubt and disappointment taught her that faith does not depend on having every answer. That lesson has also transformed the way she approaches music.
“I do not view a song only as a tune or a polished arrangement anymore. I regard it as testimony. Every note may hold gratitude, surrender, hope and the confidence that God stays faithful, even when life takes a path we did not expect.”
Her hopes for 16 December extend well beyond the venue. “On the Day of Reconciliation, I hope all of us will consider what we need to make peace with, within ourselves as well as in our relationships with other people.”
For Ndou, reconciliation begins with language. He performs largely in Tshivenda, a language not spoken by many South Africans, and says representing it is a privilege.
“Singing in Tshivenda is simply who I am. I do not need to translate the words or stop to consider what I am saying. It flows naturally from my heart,” he says.
He is not concerned when audiences cannot understand every lyric. “Music speaks to everyone. People can receive something through the spirit, the sound and the melody. They can connect with what is in the heart behind the music.”
Ndou says he ministers in other African countries almost every second month, using the same songs, and audiences still respond strongly. He considers that response part of a wider effort to dismantle tribalism.
“It is gradual, but progress is happening”
For Ndou, “All Be One” also requires a closer look at which languages and voices receive attention. “I believe the gospel industry is still made up of about 90% Zulu songs,” he says. “I would like that to shift, so people can welcome a song for what it is instead of judging it by the language used to sing it.”
Collaboration has been his approach. Ndou says he has partnered with nearly every artist in the gospel field, in part to connect with listeners who speak different languages.
“We accomplish more through collaboration than we do as solo artists. I am grateful that people are beginning to recognise the Venda people, our music and our language. It is gradual, but it is getting there.”
He sees himself as one of the artists helping to drive that shift.
One platform, many languages
Concertgoers can expect far more than Tshivenda from Ndou. His album features more than seven languages, and he plans to bring that same multilingual spirit to his performance.
“When I step onstage, people will hear many different languages, but I will still perform the songs they love and already know.”
He will share the stage with Bishop Benjamin Dube, Ntokozo Mbambo, Xolly Mncwango, Dumi Mkokstad, Teboho Moloi, Oncemore Six and Methodist men’s choir Amadodana Ase Wesile. Together, the programme spans numerous languages, worship styles and generations of South African gospel music.
Sephuma hopes listeners familiar with her work in other genres will leave with more than a newly discovered song. “I want those who know me through other genres to understand that worship does not belong to one sound or one musical genre. Worship is a way of life.”
“It is not about having the most powerful voice or giving the most stunning performance,” she adds. “If even one person leaves encouraged, renewed, reminded of God’s goodness or brought closer to Him, then we have achieved something much greater than simply presenting a concert.”
The One Faith Gospel Concert will take place at Pretoria’s SunBet Arena on 16 December, the Day of Reconciliation.
Event: One Faith Gospel Concert, presented by BT Entertainment
Date: Wednesday, 16 December 2026. The concert begins at 16:00.
Venue: SunBet Arena, Time Square, Menlyn Maine, Pretoria
Line-up: Benjamin Dube, Judith Sephuma, Takie Ndou, Dumi Mkokstad, Xolly Mncwango, Ntokozo Mbambo, Teboho Moloi, Amadodana Ase Wesile and Oncemore Six
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