Inside Babes Wodumo’s career: Net worth, Mampintsha and more

Bongekile Mildred Simelane, popularly known as Babes Wodumo, is a 28-year-old mother of one and the widow of an iconic kwaito star, Mampintsha (Mandla Maphumulo). She is a pastor’s daughter from Lamontville in Kwazulu-Natal and one of the biggest female superstars in South Africa.

BABES WODUMO’S CAREER PEAK

In 2013, the 19-year-old aspired to break into the music industry and worked at West Ink Records, Mampintsha’s company.

Babes Wodumo started dating Mampintsha soon after. Her song Wololo came out in December 2016, and fans immediately saw the spark between the new hitmaker and her boss.

Babes Wodumo captivated music lovers across the country with her new style of music and South Africans bid her Gqom queen.

By the end of 2016, Babes Wodumo was getting booked for R100 000 per gig, News24 reported.

Her top hits were Umngan’Wam which was released in 2016, Gandaganda was released in 2017, Angisona was released in 2017; she had a few hits in between and then released eLamont in 2018.

She has received prestigious nominations and awards over the years.

In 2018, Babes Wodumo was featured in the Black Panther movie’s soundtrack, eNCA reported.

The Gqom queen has worked with substantial local and international stars such as American rapper Kendrick Lamar and Nigerian musician D’banj and even collaborated with her late husband Mampintsha.

THE GQOM QUEEN’S CAREER GOES DOWNHILL

In 2019, Mampintsha trended for domestic abuse after Babes Wodumo recorded the kwaito star physically abusing her in their bedroom.

But the following year, the Ka Dazz hitmaker agreed to marry her influential boyfriend. Mampintsha proposed on Gagagsi FM in 2020, SAfrolebs reported.

The Gqom queen’s net worth was R5 million at the time.

Suddenly, the number one selling West Ink Records artist’s career looked to be taking a turn for the worst. She was constantly in the media, and not for the right reasons.

Following her drastic weight loss, a video of Babes Wodumo shouting for help on a police vehicle in a petrol station had fans convinced the Gqom star was on drugs.

The video brought back past allegations that the star would ditch gigs and when she did appear, she performed either intoxicated with alcohol or under the influence of cocaine.

Speaking to TshisaLive in 2020, Babes Wodumo’s PR manager and sister Nondumiso Simelane dismissed the drug claims as gossip.

BABES WODUMO’S NET WORTH TODAY

Speaking to MacG on Podcast and Chill, Babes Wodumo reflected on the peak of her career and said that at some stage, booking her for a single performance was R150 000. She added that some weekends she would be so busy that she would attend eight gigs in three days.

Quoted in a previous story by The South African, the Gqom star said,

“You can count R150,000, R150,000, R150,000, and you would find that on Friday I’d have about three or four gigs, on Saturday I’d have three, and on Sunday I’d have two.”

By the end of 2021, Babes Wodumo’s career was hanging by a thread. She had dropped her price rate and charged R60 000 for performances, startlingly more than half the rate she used to charged during her peek.

“So when fame came to me, I was still a child. I didn’t know much about saving. When I look back, there are many things that make me say if fame came at the stage I am at now, there are many things I would have done differently,” The South African quoted the Gqom queen as saying.

Babes Wodumo reportedly blew her money on wigs, alcohol, and just living her best life.

ALSO READ: ‘She is not okay’: Babes Wodumo’s sister explains her mourning

By the end of 2021, Babes Wodumo and Mampintsha had a reality Tv show, Uthando Lodumo which premiered in June on Showmax, news24 reported.

Shockingly, Mampintsha died on 24 December 2022 after suffering a stroke in hospital. His family scrabbled to make ends meet. The kwaito singer’s sister Pinky Gumede pleaded with Mampintsha’s fans for donations just weeks after the producer died.

A video resurfaced on social media from their Showmax show. In the clip, Mampintsha consulted a lawyer and needed advice on ensuring his money would not land in his wife’s hands after he died. The kwaito star shared that he married under a community of property contract and regretted signing the document.

He said he was under the influence of alcohol and did not know what he was signing at the time. The layer explained to Mampintsha that the contract was unfortunately irreversible.

This year, Babes Wodumo’s latest net worth estimated at R17,059,295.00, Flatprofile reported.

ALSO READ: ‘The bed is empty’: Babes Wodumo ‘misses Mampintsha a lot’