Liema Pantsi rises from Big Brother to music stardom

JOHANNESBURG — 18 August 2025

Big Brother Mzansi star Liema Pantsi, 23, has won Songwriter and Collaboration of the Year at the Basadi in Music Awards just a year after her reality TV breakthrough. The Eastern Cape-born performer also captivated audiences at DJ Zinhle’s Zee Nation Fest, cementing her place in South Africa’s music scene.

Pantsi told TRUELOVE the awards validated her career shift: “These awards just validated me in such a huge way. This is literally proof that I should keep going, there’s people that love my music, love me and want to see me do this so, ja, I have no excuses at all.”

Her strategy on the controversial Big Brother Mzansi Season 4 was deliberate. Pantsi explained, “When I went to Big Brother, I went there to promote myself musically and to put myself out there so that when I come out I have an audience.” She credits singer Cici for kickstarting her music career after the show.

Though known for amapiano hits like “Amahloni” and her award-winning collaboration “Impumelelo” with Cici, Pantsi refuses genre limits. “I started off being an R&B girlie, neo soul – strictly neo soul and R&B,” she said, adding she’s exploring Afrobeat and other styles to “find who I really am”.

Life transformed dramatically for the former student since leaving the Eastern Cape. “The change was drastic… I was just a student and now I’m a superstar,” Pantsi reflected.

With new music planned and dream collaborations including Shekhinah, Wizkid and Tems, Pantsi’s journey seems unstoppable. She confirms: “I have no excuses at all.”