Just days after ending his engagement to Malefu “Mel” Ntsala, Grammy award-winning composer Lebohang “Lebo” Morake is newly engaged to American Tatiana Dixon, also known as Besso.
This Heritage Day, Lebo M is hosting the African Icons concert in Durban in honour of the late Ladysmith Black Mambazo founder Joseph Shabalala.
His new sweetheart, based in Los Angeles, has flown all the way from the United States to attend the celebration in Durban. The couple is currently staying at a five-star beach hotel while he promotes his concert.
An informant shared with Sunday World how Lebo M proposed to Dixon immediately after he ended things with Ntsala. “To say she is the cause of him breaking off the engagement would be undermining his intelligence. It all boils down to choice, and he chose Besso – she won.”
Lebo M broke off the engagement with Ntsala just over three months ago when he started seeing red flags,” the source said.
“He thought he had made the right choice, but Mel was not living up to Lebo’s standards. He needed someone who really wanted to settle down. She was still going out until the early hours of the morning. Spending money recklessly; there was a lot.”
The insider said the straw that broke the camel’s back was when Ntsala arrived significantly late for the The Dream and The Dreamer event, which he had hosted in Rosebank, Johannesburg, in August.
“You should have seen his face on the red carpet. It was not good. So, ultimately, love was there, but the values were unaligned.”
The informant said Dixon, on the other hand, is calm and graceful. “She is in no rush and is just a chilled somebody.”
The insider said Dixon had been “lingering in the lobby” disguised as a business associate while he decided if he wanted to settle with her.
“She has always been in the picture, and he just needed to choose someone who was grounded.”
Dixon, a beauty and lifestyle influencer living in Los Angeles, recently showed off her glitzy engagement ring with a massive rock in a video on social media, receiving all the congratulatory messages from close friends. “Every love story is beautiful, but ours is my favourite,” she said in the caption.
After his breakup with Mel, Lebo M said he will never stop believing in love. Another tipster revealed that in April 2025, Dixon supported Lebo M’s concert with Hans Zimmer in Cape Town at Grand Arena at GrandWest.
She stayed at an upmarket hotel at the V&A Waterfront, as they kept their relationship a
secret.
“She flew all the way, attended the concert and gala dinner, keeping things very low-key,” the insider said.
“To be fair, being Lebo M is a dangerous game. You always need to see who genuinely loves you or is in it for the money and fame,” the insider said.
While on vacation in Cape Town in April, the couple went sightseeing and had long romantic drives up Devil’s Peak.
They are said to have met through a mutual friend in the US.
“They met in the US, and she has been visiting South Africa several times to keep their long-distance relationship alive. She was in the country in November 2024. She’s been around since the end of 2023.”
Lebo M’s publicity manager, Simphiwe Majola, responded, saying that the relationship between the two was business-related. “The lady in question, Besso, is in fact Mr M’s business partner from Los Angeles, a creative powerhouse who has been working closely with him on upcoming international projects.
“The real story of significance here is the groundbreaking work Mr M is doing, opening doors for South African talent on global stages, finalising new international co-productions, and cementing his legacy as a world-class creative entrepreneur. That’s where the focus should be.”
Lebo M has had quite the eventful month, from breaking off his engagement to getting engaged again. He has also cut ties with a business associate who is unable to account for R25-million sent to his business and personal accounts. He has sought legal advice from his lawyers and is dealing with the matter.
