UK-based Maskandi gospel singer Mantongande brings “Echoed Mercy” home, sharing cancer survival and mental health message

UK-based Maskandi gospel singer Mantongande brings “Echoed Mercy” home, sharing cancer survival and mental health message
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United Kingdom-based Maskandi gospel artiste Mantongande has returned to Zimbabwe for a tour combining live performances, ministry sessions and media engagements as she promotes her latest EP, Echoed Mercy.

Mantongande, born Simangenkosi Nkala and raised between Lupane and Bulawayo, said the six-track project carries messages of healing, redemption, gratitude and restoration, and reflects a personal journey shaped by grief, illness and faith.

Speaking during the tour, she described the EP as a testimony centred on recovery through difficult seasons. “This project is about gratitude to God. Every song carries a testimony. I wanted people to know that even when life wounds you, God’s mercy still echoes through every broken place. Healing is possible spiritually, emotionally, and physically,” she said.

She is known for a Maskandi and Mbhaqanga gospel sound and for songs such as Sibiziwe, Wongilonda and Inhlanhla, which she says are intended to encourage listeners dealing with trauma, loss and emotional pain.

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Mantongande said she views music primarily as ministry. “My calling has always been bigger than entertainment. I believe music is one of the most powerful tools God can use to heal broken hearts. People come carrying burdens, grief, depression, trauma, and hopelessness. Through worship, some begin to breathe again,” she said.

She also reflected on the making of her Healing Project album, which was launched at FOG Church in Bulawayo after the death of a team member, Eric Moyo, four days after he took part in the recording. “Losing Eric Moyo was devastating. He was part of the vision, part of the ministry, and part of the family. Recording while carrying grief was not easy, but God turned the pain into purpose. The Healing Project became more than an album — it became therapy, prayer, and testimony,” she said.

Outside music, Mantongande said she is a qualified mental health specialist and uses that background in her ministry and advocacy, particularly around emotional wellbeing in African communities. “A lot of people are silently suffering. In our communities, emotional pain is sometimes dismissed or misunderstood. My background in mental health has helped me understand how deeply people need safe spaces, compassion, prayer, and support,” she said.

She has also spoken publicly about surviving cancer, saying the experience tested her faith and resilience. “There were moments of fear and uncertainty. But prayer sustained me. Worship sustained me. My family sustained me. God reminded me that purpose does not end because of pain,” she said.

According to her account, her musical gift was first noticed while she was at primary school in Lupane. She later attended Entumbane High School in Bulawayo and hoped to study nursing while continuing to sing, but said financial limitations led her into retail work.

In 2000, she relocated to the United Kingdom with her husband, Pastor Obert Nkala, and later recorded her debut album, Behold the Lamb of God, in 2007 after being encouraged by Zimbabwean businessman Million Songanga Moyo of Ngonyama Music Promotions.

Mantongande said her tour will also extend to South Africa as she continues promoting Echoed Mercy, adding that her aim remains to minister healing through worship. Quoting Psalm 147:3, she said: “He heals the broken-hearted and binds up their wounds,” adding that she prays her music continues to do the same.

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