Nhlanhla Mafu who was introduced to Mzansi as a member of the iconic music group, Mafikizolo has turned her hearing loss ordeal to her strength in teaching and raising awareness to others.
After suffering from a condition called noise-induced hearing loss (NHIL) for years, as diagnosed by an audiologist, the muso decided to use her experience to educate others about her condition.
Nhlanhla revealed that she was sceptical and ashamed to speak up about her hearing challenges due to the stigma associated with hearing loss.
Speaking to the entertainment publication, TshisaLIVE she said, “From my diagnosis, I have decided to use my platform to educate about NIHL. I speak in mining communities, music conferences and industries to promote the importance of hearing. I was recently invited to the Coal Safe Conference where I addressed mining delegates on the importance of hearing,” said Nhlanhla.
The musician recently took to her Instagram page to share a snippet of when she was granted an opportunity to share her insights and solutions on noise-induced hearing loss at the Coal Safe 2024 conference which was hosted by the South African Colliery Managers’ Association.
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The muso suspects that her hearing loss was sparked by being exposed to a lot of noise in the 27-years that she has been in the industry.
Speaking to the publication, Nhlahla said, “When I came into the music industry, there was no education about the importance of hearing and being provided with hearing protective equipment. I have had to perform at stages around the world for the past 27 years exposed to high levels of noise during my stage performances, studio sessions and music listening sessions, where music would be played at very high volume levels.”
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