There are many reasons why celebrities often go by a stage name different from their birth names. Some enjoy the ability to have an alter ego, while others just find themselves called so by their fans, let it stick as a way to relate to the masses.
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Whatever the reason, we can’t deny that some stage names are pretty creative, but do you know your favourite celebrity’s real name?
Here are some ZAlebs and their less-known real birth names.
Cassper Nyovest
He goes by many names: Cassper Nyovest, Mr Fill Up, Billiato, and even Sasko Sam. As it turns out, all these names have quite interesting origins, but none of them is his real name.
Cassper’s real name is Refiloe Maele Phoolo, and he was born in 1990. He has explained the origin of his rap name before.
He named himself Cassper from the cartoon character Casper the Friendly Ghost. He said that it represents his personality, which is why he thinks it’s a fit.
“Rappers are known to be very arrogant and uptight, but I’m just like the friendly, humble dude, even though I rap. I compare myself to ‘Casper the Friendly Ghost,” he said.
About Nyovest, he said it was inspired by American singer Pharrell whom he loved when he was younger. Pharell would say ‘yezzir’ a lot on his records, so Cassper put a South African accent on that, and transformed it to Nyovest. He happened to put the two together to set up a Facebook account, and he has been Cassper Nyovest since.
Well, thank Pharell and Facebook because that name just fits!
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Makhadzi
We all call her this so much that it is easy to forget that her parents did not name her Makhadzi. The Zwivhuya hitmaker was born Ndivhudzannyi Ralivhona, but has gone by her stage name for most of career – at least since she made it big.
But there is a story behind her stage name, as there often is. ‘Makhadzi’ means ‘paternal aunt’ in Venda. As Sowetan Live reports, Makhadzi recounts that the name came up when she was performing in a Pedi-speaking area.
As her name is Venda, the people in the area struggled with her name, so they dubbed her ‘auntie’ after a Muvhango character at the time. Her career has grown tremendously, and she has performed all over Africa and even outside the continent, but the name has stuck with her throughout.
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Master KG
While we are on the subject of Makhadzi, why not take a look at her soulmate Master KG, who also uses a stage name.
The Jerusalema hitmaker’s real name is Kgaogelo Moagi, so it should be pretty simple to figure out where he gets his pseudonym. He simply took the first two letters of his first name Kgaogelo, then added ‘Master’ before them. Why? Well, because he is a music master, which I’m sure none of us is even going to try to deny.
Babes Wodumo
Babes Wodumo is one of the few celebrities who have had their stage name since they were children. Her real name is Bongekile Simelane, but her stellar career, and the fact that she has been in the spotlight for pretty much most of her life, makes her just Babes Wodumo to her fans and followers.
As Briefly reports, her first stage name, ‘Babes’, was given to her by her father while she was an infant. Apparently, he thought her eyes resembled those of the members of the old rock ‘n’ roll music group, The Babes.
Her second name, ‘Wodumo’, came about because she was a very active child, excelling in extracurricular activities like soccer, athletics, dancing and acting. And if you have ever seen her on stage, you must agree that the name still fits to date.
King Monada
Malwedhe hitmaker King Monada may be a household name in many countries across Africa, but we can bet most of his fans don’t know his real birth name.
The 29 year old musician was born Khutso Steven Kgatle, in Limpopo. In an old interview, he said that he didn’t name himself King Monada, rather the name was given to him by his fans.
“This name King Monada comes from my fans, from the people. I got the name before I started making music. Before I could produce, before I could sing, I was a dancer. People gave me different nicknames, but the one that became popular was Monada,” he said.
He also divulged that he sings in his native language, as he was inspired to do so by other musicians doing the same, like Penny Penny and Candy. We love a proudly African man!
Zahara
Zahara gained notoriety for her drama with DJ Sbu in which she accused him of refusing to pay her. But other than that, she has maintained a relatively low profile, so much that many wouldn’t know her real name.
Zahara was born Bulelwa Mkutukana 33 years ago in the Eastern Cape. Her stage name is an Arabic or Swahili word that means “blooming flower”, and considering her debut album Loliwe went down in history as Mzansi’s second fastest selling album, there couldn’t be a more fitting name for the artist.
Unlike other celebrities on this list, she hasn’t really explained how her stage name came about, so we can only surmise that she chose it herself.
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So what do you think? Will you start calling Zahara Bulelwa, or King Monada Khutso Steven? It will get pretty confusing, wouldn’t it? Either way, now you can probably brag about sharing a name with a celebrity.
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