28/09/2026
INTONGA YAMANTUNGWA: “POETRY IS JUST HOW I BREATHE OUT LOUD”
From pain and survival to purpose, identity and empowerment, poet iNtonga YamaNtungwa opens up about her journey, motherhood, culture, womanhood and the legacy she hopes to leave behind.
VitalHer Magazine | September 2026
For some artists, poetry is a craft. For iNtonga YamaNtungwa, poetry is something much deeper, it is survival, identity, healing and a language through which she gives voice to experiences that are sometimes difficult to express.
Born Ntonga Lydia Philadelphia Ndlangamandla in Ermelo, iNtonga describes herself as “a daughter of the soil” and a mother to Owenkosi. Her journey as a poet has been shaped by heartbreak, perseverance, motherhood, culture and the realities of being a woman navigating the creative industry.
In her interview with VitalHer Magazine, she speaks candidly about finding her voice, the meaning behind her name, the importance of isiZulu and African identity, the challenges facing emerging poets, and the future she is building for herself and her daughter.
Her original interview questions explored her identity, journey, artistry, culture, womanhood, industry experiences and ambitions.
MORE THAN A POET
When asked who she is beyond the name and the poetry, iNtonga does not separate herself from the art.
“I am Ntonga Lydia Philadelphia Ndlangamandla,” she says, describing herself as a woman who has learned to turn pain into power. She describes herself as soft but strong, adding that “poetry is just how I breathe out loud.”
Her stage name, iNtonga YamaNtungwa, is deeply connected to her heritage. She explains that the name comes from her clan, amaNtungwa. For her, iNtonga, the stick of a maiden, represents dignity, discipline and a woman who knows who she is.
But the name carries an even deeper responsibility. “When I hold a mic, I am not alone,” she explains. “I carry my grandmother's prayers and my daughter's future.”
WHEN POETRY BECAME HOME
Although she had always enjoyed writing, iNtonga says she realised poetry was part of her identity during some of the most difficult moments of her life.
When she had no one else to talk to and found herself facing sleepless nights, poetry became the place where she could exist without judgement.
“It wasn't a hobby anymore, it became my home,” she says.
Her journey into performance began in 2013, when she started performing at schools and churches. In 2014, she entered competitions in Mpumalanga, and in 2015 she backed Inzulu Yemfihlakalo and recorded a CD titled LOVE.
Her journey eventually took her to Grahamstown in July 2017, where she performed on the stage of the National Arts Festival with the Kwaguqa Generation 2 Generation band.
Along the way, her voice was influenced by her parents, family, high school friends, Sbo the Poet and Mzwakhe Mbuli. Yet, despite those influences, she says she developed her own voice by remaining true to the stories of Ermelo.
A POETRY BUILT FROM LIVED EXPERIENCE
There is an honesty that runs through iNtonga's work. She draws inspiration from heartbreak, survival and the everyday experiences of women. Her poetry is not simply imagined, it comes from lived realities. “My poetry is not made up, it is lived,” she says.
Her inspiration can be found in places that may seem ordinary: taxi ranks, court corridors, her daughter's laughter and even her own kitchen.
“My inspiration is not far, it lives in my kitchen,” she says.
Poetry also gives her permission to say things that may be difficult to express in ordinary conversation, her anger, desires, exhaustion and dreams.
Through poetry, she can say, “I am tired,” without feeling as though admitting exhaustion means she has failed.
And when she performs, she does not believe she is playing a character.
“I don't perform poetry, I bleed poetry,” she says.
Her childhood, clan, scars and motherhood all enter the performance.
THE POEM THAT HOLDS HER HEART
Among her works, “OWESIFAZANE” holds a particularly special place.
The poem explores the strength, pain and crown of being a woman. She wrote it during a night when she felt she had nothing left to give women who were wounded except words. For iNtonga, those words became something bigger. “Words can be inheritance too,” she says.
Her hope is simple but profound: that people who experience her work feel healed and less alone.
If even one woman leaves after hearing her poetry feeling less alone, she believes her job has been done.
CULTURE IS NOT OPTIONAL
For iNtonga, culture and language are at the heart of her artistic identity.
She describes culture as everything and explains that she cannot tell her story in what she calls “a borrowed tongue.” Writing and performing in isiZulu is, for her, a way of honouring amaNtungwa and preserving something for the next generation.
“Our language holds our medicine. If we lose it, we lose ourselves,” she says, adding that she writes to keep it alive for her daughter, Owenkosi.
She also sees artists as custodians of history.
“Before books, we had poets,” she says.
For her, artists are archivists, teachers and mirrors, people who have a responsibility to remember and preserve stories that might otherwise be forgotten.
POETRY AS ENTERTAINMENT, ACTIVISM AND HEALING
iNtonga refuses to place poetry into only one category.
For her, it can be entertainment, activism, healing and education, sometimes all at once. She can entertain an audience on stage, but when she speaks about issues affecting women and children, her poetry becomes activism. When a woman tells her that her words helped heal her, poetry becomes healing. And when people learn through her work, the stage becomes a classroom.
“My poetry is a classroom where everyone is welcome,” she says.
THE CONVERSATIONS WOMEN NEED TO HAVE
One of the strongest themes in iNtonga's message is the importance of honest conversations among women.
She believes women need to speak more openly about being tired, motherhood not being perfect, financial stability, abusive relationships and the importance of choosing themselves. “We were taught to suffer silently and smile,” she says.
Her message is instead to speak, even when the voice shakes, particularly about boundaries and self-worth. Her understanding of womanhood has also evolved.
Today, she describes womanhood as wholeness. It means allowing herself to be soft, to rest, to be held and to experience vulnerability, while still embracing the different dimensions of herself as a mother, lover and fighter.
One of the lessons she wishes she had learned earlier is that saying “No” does not make a woman a bad woman. “Boundaries are also love,” she says.
“YOUR VOICE IS NOT TOO MUCH”
For the young woman who has a story inside her but is afraid to use her voice, iNtonga has a powerful message:
“Your voice is not too much.”
She encourages young women to start small, with one line, one poem or even one honest statement such as “I am not okay.”
Her belief is that someone's story may be exactly what another person needs to hear.
Among the women who have influenced her journey is her mother, Zamantungwa Ndlangamandla, whom she describes as a deputy parent, alongside the many single mothers who continue to make a plan even when there seems to be no plan.
FINDING STRUCTURE WITH ZIKODE MEDIA
After years of navigating the creative industry largely on her own, iNtonga is now managed by Zikode Media. She describes the partnership as bringing structure and respect to her journey.
“After hustling since 2013 alone, now I have a team,” she says. She sees the partnership as part of building not only an artist but also a brand and a legacy.
For her, management should be about more than finding gigs. Artists need guidance, protection and people who understand that their art can be connected to deeply personal experiences.
She also believes management should respect artists' mental health.
THE REALITY FACING EMERGING POETS
Despite her progress, iNtonga is clear about the challenges facing emerging poets and creatives in South Africa.
She points to inadequate pay, limited platforms, being booked last and the perception that poetry is merely a hobby rather than a profession.
Her solution is direct:
“Pay Artists.”
It is a simple statement, but one that speaks to a broader conversation about the value of creative work and the sustainability of careers in the arts.
A NEW CHAPTER
Looking ahead, iNtonga is working on an EP that will be released under Zikode Media.
Five years from now, she hopes to perform on international stages, mentor upcoming poets and, importantly, achieve financial freedom as a mother through her art.
She also has a personal academic ambition: furthering her studies.
But beyond achievements and accolades, the legacy she wants to leave is deeply personal.
She wants her daughter to one day look at her name and say:
“My mother didn't fold, she wrote.”
RESURRECTION: UKUVUKA
When asked to describe the current chapter of her life in one word, poem or sentence, iNtonga chooses “RESURRECTION (UKUVUKA).”
The reason is perhaps the most powerful reflection of her entire journey. “Because I died many times, in heartbreak & in silence, but I am rising now, with my ntonga in my HAND.”
She also offers another word: “EMAPHUSHENI” — a place where she says she currently lives in peace.
And perhaps those two ideas, rising and finding peace, capture the essence of iNtonga YamaNtungwa's story.
Her poetry is rooted in where she comes from, but it is not confined by it. It carries the voices of women, the memory of ancestors, the realities of motherhood and the experiences of a woman who has learned to transform pain into language.
She carries her ntonga in her hand.
And she is still writing.
