Bulawayo born reggae gospel artist Tedius Ndlovu said music has always been part of his life because he grew up being surrounded by music-loving people.
“I fell in love with reggae because my elders played it all the time. When they played I tuned my ears to the frequency because it was the best tune ever,” said Tedius.
The 35-year-old from Yeoville is known to his fans as One Soul, he said the name was inspired by fans.
“The name came after being identified by fans as ‘umuntu wabantu bonke’ meaning ‘a people’s person’. That made me question who we depend on as human beings. My answer was God because he is for me, that means we are one. We are connected and that is why I decided to use the stage name One Soul,” he explained.
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He said, with the upbringing with music, when he moved to South Africa in 2001 he decided to pursue music.
“Music has always been my first love and I appreciate all different genres of music because they all deliver a message in their own way.
“I love reggae and chose to do reggae gospel because of the peacefulness and spiritual part of it. I listen to Lucky Dube and Bob Marley and their songs always carried powerful messages,” said One Soul.
His journey in music has been of growth and discovering.
In 2013 he formed a band called Out of the Blue which was made up of three musicians, Naledi Antony, Letlhogonolo ‘Tlhoks’ Moloi and One Soul.
“We did well as a band and performed at functions and events. We got to the point where we went our separate ways because we were growing as artists and exploring. We still work with each other every now and then,” said One Soul.
He will be releasing a single called Turn Around on October 8.
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“I wrote the song to give people a good feeling. It has a soothing rhythm and just I want people to feel good when listening to it,” said One Soul.
He worked with former band member Naledi, who plays the saxophone, and producer Lucky.
He said he wants to inspire people through his music.
“I am a very humble person because life has taught me a lot and I am still learning from it. I would like people to look at me and see a role model and be inspired. I want people to see the love in me as my music,” explained One Soul.
He said in the future he would like to work with gospel star Rebecca Malope, Benjamin Dube, Nathi, Ringo Madlingozi, Black Mambazo and Tlhoks.
