We?re talking, of course, about Mandoza who is back ? and ready to show the South African music scene that he's doing better than ever, both personally and professionally.

His 2004 album is titled Indoda ? taken from a song with lyrics that speak about ?stumbling today and rising tomorrow? ? and everything about the album points to the fact that the Nkalakatha has returned with full force.

The album sees Mandoza revisit his successful creative partnership with Gabi Le Roux, with the two crafting a sound that is reminiscent of the music they are renowned for (?Godoba?, ?Nkalakatha?) but with the added impetus of brand new grooves and sounds. Other producers working on the album include D-Rex (who is producing two songs and collaborating with Mandoza on one), and Mandla Spikiri Mofokeng ? both of whom are known for their contemporary hit making ability.

Indoda is jam-packed with hits including ?Jahman? which features a deep eKasi bassline and is destined to be a massive club hit as well as ?File? which is vintage Mandoza and has lyrics that speak loudly about what the artist?s plans are ? ?he?s back on the block and everyone else is dead meat?. ?My lyrics this time around are definitely more personal ? I think that everyone knows the challenges I?ve faced this past year and my life experiences have influenced my writing in a deep way this time around,? Mandoza reveals.

Already ?Indoda? is creating a stir at radio ? entering the BDS Airplay monitor charts at number 29 in April, the highest new entry of that particular week (April 4 to 10). It?s a strong track that once again sees the trademark Mandoza/Le Roux combination elevated to fresh, new levels. The powerful vocals drive the song ahead and ?Indoda? features yet another signature musical hook (something ?Nkalakatha? did so cleverly and well). But the recording also includes some dazzling, almost 80s-style musical layers and a blasting horn that?s hard to resist!

Another of the album?s standouts tracks is ?Respect? ? which features production by D-Rex and is also included on the Yizo Yizo 3 soundtrack. Operating off an atmospheric and brilliantly slow-paced musical bed, here?s a song which sees Mandoza claim new musical ground and, once more, prove his singular way with lyrics.

Other musical influences abound on Indoda ? including a fabulous dose of Jamaican vibes on tracks like ?Dancehall? which boasts a cleverly placed ragga chant, and more than proves Mandoza?s musical versatility. And there?s a subtle touch of the traditional on ?Intsimbi? ? a track that was produced by Mandla ?Spikiri? Mofokeng and features Jarius on the mic too. ?I really believe that this is a more mature, more focused Mandoza that people are hearing on the album,? the artist says. ?It?s a reflection of where I am in my life right now.?

Indoda is chart-topping, big-selling stuff from Mandoza and everything points to 2004 being the year in which he reclaims his title as South Africa?s top solo star!

It?s also the year that sees Mandoza settle down. He recently married longtime girlfriend, Mpho Mphuti, in a ceremony that took place on Christmas Eve 2003 ? and the singer is also now father to two boys, Tokolo (who was born at the time of the release of Nkalakatha) and now baby Thumelo.

Mandoza is also speaking openly about his rehabilitation saying in a recent interview: "I want to start a new life. I have quit smoking, taking drugs and alcohol. I want to be a better person. Rehabilitation has helped me become a stronger person. I am still on rehab aftercare programmes.? The award-winning, platinum-selling singer pays tribute to his family and friends as well as other artists like Kabelo Mabalane, in assisting him in keeping focused on living the best life he can. ?I feel great to know that Indoda is getting played on the radio because my fans need to know that I am back ? better than I have ever been.?

Adding to Mandoza?s positivity in 2004 is the inclusion of ?Nkalakatha? as one of the South African Music Awards (SAMA) Song of The Decade ? a category that has been created specifically for 2004?s SAMA 10 in celebration of the 10th year of the music awards event as well as a decade of democracy in South Africa. ?Nkalakatha? is one of 10 songs on a list that will be voted for by the South African public.

?It?s a real honour to be included in the Song of the Decade list. I think Nkalakatha really is the one song that sums up where we have come ? it?s kwaito, it?s crossover and it?s still a great listen,? Mandoza says.

The inclusion of the song in this prestigious list is proof positive that Mandoza is a bona fide South African music icon.

His talent first became apparent when Mandoza surfaced as part of kwaito group, Chiskop, and was confirmed in 1999 with the release of one of that year?s top-selling (100 000 units and counting) albums, 9 II 5 Zola South which also earned Mandoza a 2000 FNB South African Music Award nomination as Best Newcomer.

Then, in 2000, Mandoza?s talent was once again on blazing display on the multi-platinum album, Nkalakatha. The album produced a smash-hit in the form of the title track which surprised many in the South African music industry by becoming a genuine crossover song, hitting the top of the charts on both traditionally black and white radio stations. The Boss Remixes of Nkalakatha have also proved as popular with a wide range of music fans. The next year proved just as successful for Mandoza ? the release of Godoba and its subsequent scooping of the 2002 SA Music Awards Song of the Year title (for ?Godoba?) were just some of the highlights for the individual many now consider the hottest solo artist working in the kwaito genre today. The end of 2002 saw the release of yet another trailblazing album ? Tornado, featuring the hit song ?Tornado Part 1? which again proved to be a crossover hit (no small feat in a country like South Africa where musical boundaries are so entrenched).

That he has been able to stay on top of his game so consistently for so long is something that Mandoza ? or M?duduzi Tshabalala as is his given name ? is very proud of.

Life was not easy in the Tshabalala household in Zola South (Soweto) where Mandoza lived with his two sisters, mother and grandparents. ?There was lots of love, really. But my father drank too much. I mean we could be starving to death in the house but he would find cash for himself somewhere. We gave him plenty of chances but he kept messing up.?

Growing up in the hard-edged area of Zola was also pretty fraught, with the gangster life looming large over the lives of all youngsters in the township ? something made all the more enticing by Zola?s unemployment rate.

And then there was the small matter of a jail sentence metered out to Mandoza for stealing a car.

?I was just a teenager when it happened, just 16. And you know, it was hard to resist the older guys in Zola, who were gang members and who were always pressuring the younger kids into taking part in crime. So I landed up in Sun City (Diepkloof jail) with the old timers for one-and-a-half years. It was hard. Even basic things like in jail you eat twice a day only and I wasn?t used to that. Also staying in one place for the whole day and seeing the same people everyday drove me mad. But in Sun City I dreamed about becoming a real musician and singer so this really is a dream come true.?

But Mandoza came out of jail, and instead of finding his way back onto the streets, set his sights on becoming an artist of note, inspired greatly in this dream by his mother. ?My mother always believed in me. She knew that there was something different about me because I liked music big time. My family is churchgoers so gospel music was always around. And then I used to listen to the Toyota Top 20 on the radio and loved the R&B sounds coming out of it.?

Together with equally music-mad childhood friends, S?bu, Siphiwe and Siszwe, Mandoza formed Chiskop. The group was not an overnight success. ?We had been together for eight years and we were almost ready to give up when we got our deal,? recalls Siphiwe. But after the release of their debut album, Klaimer, and the success of Ghetto 2000, and others Chiskop are at kwaito?s forefront.

Although the Chiskop family remains supportive, Mandoza?s deep-seated desire to do a solo project gnawed away at him. ?But I had to wait until the time was right. Everyone who knows me was encouraging me to do my solo stuff. I think people first saw my potential during my stage performances. I am very different on stage. Sometimes when I?m singing I feel like crying. When I?m singing ?Angikhohlwa Langiphuma Khona?, for example, a song on my album, I talk about my roots. The lyrics talk about the fact that when I was a baby I used to fantasise about what I am now. It seems like this was meant to happen.?

In fact, Mandoza is known for his ability to tell sometimes heart-breaking, moving tales about streetlife, turning him into something of an urban poet.

His unique, deep vocal style and delivery add real impact to Mandoza?s lyrics. ?Most of my songs are about the ghetto life. It?s about what?s happening in the ghetto ? the way people dress, the way we drink, the music we listen to, just the way we do things. Even though I?m now successful, I always must remain connected to my roots. If I move out of the ghetto, I still need to go back and see my mother and make sure she?s all right and after that I?m going to chill with my friends. The ghetto is where I get my lyrics. People must hear what I?m saying and understand it. The best kwaito describes the life black people are leading. The only problem is that many kwaito artists are doing it for a quick buck and not the love of it like us, talking about important things.?

And few albums in the pretty over-subscribed kwaito market did this as well as 9115 Zola South ? released in 1999 to a grateful fanbase, seeking a fresh star on the kwaito scene and once again teaming Mandoza with longtime Chsikop producer, Gabi Le Roux.

If 9115 Zola South set the groundwork for Mandoza?s flight to superstardom, Nkalakatha thrust him into the sonic stratosphere. The latter earned Mandoza a 2001 South African Music Award for Best Kwaito Music Album. The album?s title song was also named Song Of The Year at the same awards event, in a category that?s entirely based on popular opinion. This, along with Mandoza?s scooping of five of the 10 categories at the 2000 Metro Music Awards - Best Kwaito Artist, Best Male Vocal, Best Album Nkalakatha, Best Styled Artist and Song Of The Year for his smash hit ?Nkalakatha ? just confirmed what the public had known all along: that this Soweto ghetto-raised man is the real thing. And Nkalakatha proved that Mandoza had the ability to scale previously entrenched musical boundaries with real naturalness, when the album?s title track was thrust into high rotation on 5FM, South Africa?s national pop and rock (read ?predominantly white?) radio station ? and eventually secured a high chart position.

Of the musical vibe underpinning Nkalakatha, Mandoza said at the time: ?I?m proud to say that we have pulled it off. The album has a real good mix of slow jam and strong, strong grooves with a message. This album is a true reflection of my feelings. I don?t write lyrics cause they sound good. Any song from Mandoza is going to be the truth. Honest!?

Godoba ? released in 2001 ? delivered yet another powerful blow to South Africa?s musical solar plexus. The 10-track release, recorded by Le Roux and Mandoza at the formers studios in Cape Town, revealed why Mandoza had earned a reputation for among South Africa?s most lyrically inventive artists, moving between science fiction, spirituality and kwaito?s party-on themes with ease and maturity. Musically, Godoba took in a striking gamut of sounds ? always anchored firmly in kwaito terrain, the latter?s bass-heavy grooves dominant throughout, the album included a Gospel track, a rock-influenced song, house influences and smatterings of mbaganga and pantsula vibes. There were even some sweeping 80s disco influenced moments and, of course, some serious hip hop outings.

Then came Tornado ? an album that stoked up a musical tornado with its cutting-edge and breathtaking diversity of songs. Tornado more than confirmed Mandoza?s status as South Africa?s biggest male star, and proved that he is able to unleash album after album that hits just the right spot with music fans, radio, retail and more.

Along with his kwaito rapping, many songs on the album prove just how far he has grown as an artist, stretching himself into new territories, especially as far as vocals are concerned. A great example of this was Mandoza?s collaboration with Lebo Mathosa (Boom Shaka and successful solo artist) on the grooving, seventies-influenced track, ?Flame of Life? ? a track that still gets play at radio.

And speaking of collaborations, fans of Mandoza and Brenda ? undoubtedly the biggest male and female music stars in South Africa ? were thrilled to learn that the two worked together on a track called ?Ngisemi Ndawonye?. Musically, the album took Mandoza into new places. Although kwaito is the bedrock of Tornado, a myriad of musical influences can be heard ? hip hop, funk and pop even. The latter means that, like the huge hit ?Nkalakatha? (also included on the release) Tornado has plenty of crossover moments that will again affirm Mandoza?s standing as a star of note outside the kwaito community.

Now 2004 sees the release of yet another Mandoza classic ? Indoda, which is already igniting airwaves countrywide and reveals a more mature, yet always street-rooted Mandoza, reaching new musical heights.