Gogo Manzini, also known as Tyra (after Tyra Banks), is a traditional healer, entrepreneur, and casting agent from Secunda.
Born Thabo Mahlangu, Gogo Manzini prides herself as a modern-day healer with a flair for helping communities heal and find solutions to their problems.
Speaking to Sunday World last week, Manzini said being a queer traditional healer does not matter, because she identifies as a human being and God’s creation.
“I do not face any difficulties in my line of work, and I find myself lucky in that way, or maybe I don’t take note of things people say or do,” Gogo Manzini said.
“Being a queer traditional healer is fabulous just like any other healer, regardless of one’s gender or what one identifies as.”
Gogo Manzini was raised by her paternal late aunt, a strong Christian who instilled God and church as a foundation.
However, Gogo Manzini felt the church was not the place for her with its homophobic teachings and decided to walk away. Though the family was understanding, they were hesitant in welcoming her calling.
“My maternal side of the family has been very supportive, we grew up being exposed to this because my great-grandfather was a traditional healer.
“What I like about my family is that they know how to separate Gogo Manzini and Tyra.”
Gogo Manzini said backlash is everywhere and it is something one must expect in any profession.
“You need to develop a thick skin, know what you want and what you do. I am not bothered by backlash from someone who doesn’t give me food or adds value to my life.”
She is now a wife, a mom, and raising a daughter from her husband’s previous relationship.
She recently started K.O.S casting agency based in Sandton and named after her daughter, after having looked at the gap in the industry and her love for the entertainment industry.
“I want to break favouritism in the casting agency industry in South Africa. My clients do not interact with me directly apart from the casting work. I want to fight for artists and for young people in the entertainment industry.”
With so many traditional healers in Mzansi, she said unfortunately you cannot identify who is legitimate and who is not, noting that there are those who go for training and others who do not, but they are able to heal people.
“I believe that people should phahla [a ritual to ask for guidance, luck and blessings from ancestors] and ask their ancestors to show them who to go to for a consultation.
“They will never point you to the wrong direction,” she said.
For Gogo Manzini, spirituality involves a recognition of a feeling or sense of belief that there is something greater than oneself.
“It is knowing that our lives have significance in a context beyond the level of existence or biological means.
“It involves exploring certain universal things and aspiring to manifest your attributes of becoming an important part of the journey through life for spiritually inclined people.”
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