The Sunday News
Mbongeni Msimanga
OSCAR award winner Prudence Mabhena sits on her electric wheelchair twitches her face and forces a smile. You can easily tell that her mind is busy trying to mask the pain.
After a few more twitches, the smile comes out and she boldly declares that she has since moved on and accepted to let bygones be bygones.
Her first group that she won an Oscar award with, Liyana has disbanded and this time Prudence has decided to go solo in her music career. She still believes, however, that she can revive her musical career.
Other members, she said, were now based in the US pursuing their academic studies, although she said others preferred to “focus on doing other things”.
“We are regrouping and getting the right people to play with. The Liyana group that you know has disbanded as others have decided to focus on individual careers. I will be embarking on a solo career as this is the only way of reviving my career,” she said.
Coming from the dusty streets of Victoria Falls, Prudence never dreamt of rubbing shoulders with great names such as Sandra Bullock (Blindside), Monique (Precious) among others that featured at the Oscars.
After the photo shoots, cocktails and red carpet event it was time to go home with the hope that Liyana would produce another Oscar that would see them being superstars once again.
Now, all that talent is gone, although attempting to hide the sadness that she has, her hope is that a solo career will once again take her to stardom.
“It is not the end of the world. In fact this has made me stronger and I know that I will have the same impact that I had. The fact that Liyana has disbanded does not mean that my career is done,” she said.
Although seemingly disappointed after having worked hard and tirelessly to “win” the Oscars that she never won, Prudence said she has let the past go and the only way to forget about it was to start afresh.
The double blow to her, that of being cheated of her award by the producer Roger Ross Williams and Liyana disbanding has slowly “erased” her off world memory but her hope is the only comfort that cushions her soul.
“The fact that I was disappointed by one person (Roger Ross Williams) doesn’t mean I will not be able to make it again in my music career. It is true, I went for the Oscars and the world celebrated me. It is disappointing that the award just went away, and the only thing that I benefited from that was the marketing part,” said Prudence.
Liyana was identified and promoted by a Zimbabwean born Lady Leslie GoldWasser who ran a foundation in America that promoted cultural events through the GoldWasser Foundation.
“I remember the excitement that the band got after we were told that we were travelling to America. We had been identified by a Zimbabwean-born woman Leslie GoldWasser who is based in America and promotes cultural events through the GoldWasser Foundation,” she said.
Although the media has been awash with reports that her parents abandoned her, Prudence dismissed that, saying she was raised by her late father in Victoria Falls, although her parents separated while she was still young.
“I don’t know why people say my father abandoned me. I was raised by my father in Victoria Falls although he is now late. My family has been very supportive in my career,” she said.
The group Liyana had two albums to its name — Liyana and Sugar Rhythm.
Also Read:
