Who was Sipho Kaleni? Tributes pour in as South African gospel music artist dies aged 46

Sipho Kaleni passes away at the age of 46. (Image via Instagram/siphokaleni)

Musician Sipho Kaleni passed away on August 1, 2022 at the mere age of 46, following an illness. While the exact details remain vague, the official statement about Kaleni's death indicates that he passed away after battling a brief illness. Kaleni was 'allegedly' keeping sick since May 2022.

In a statement, the Crown Gospel Music Awards, which Kaleni had co-founded, announced the sad news.

The statement read:

"The World Gospel Powerhouse, is saddened to confirm the passing away of the one of the founding EXCO members of the Crowns Gospel Music Awards, Sipho Kaleni. Kaleni, a gifted minister of the word, a musician, renowned MC, radio presenter and committed member of the SDA church has been unwell since about May this year and even though he showed signs of improvement over the past couple of weeks, he sadly lost the battle during the early hours of this morning 01 August 2022."

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Exploring more about Sipho Kaleni's life and works

Born on September 21, 1975, Sipho Kaleni was a well-known South African musician, who was particularly interested in Christian music. Kaleni attended Nkumbulo Comprehensive School and Umsobomvu Primary School as a kid, after which, he acquired a degree from Mbira School of Music and Arts.

Kaleni started working as a producer and a recording artist in 1998. Later, he also delved into other skills, namely, composing, arranging, and talent spotting. Subsequently, he was in charge of reviewing fresh gospel records for Radio Pulpit.

He later founded Parousia Communications and served as the Director of Overeth Music Productions and Publishing. Moreover, Kaleni was one of the founding EXCO members of the Crowns Gospel Music Awards. He also worked as the Radio Station Manager for Adventist World Radio for a while.

The musician frequently spoke at public events besides hosting the music program Gospel Gold. A known emcee for various concerts and gospel music recordings, Sipho Kaleni worked with Lebo Sekgobela, Mabongi, Bishop Benjamin Dube during his career.

Kaleni was also a presenter and musician for Spirit of Praise. The Crown Gospel Music Awards' acknowledged Kaleni's exceptional award hosting skills in their statement. They wrote:

"Kaleni was indeed the engine of the Crowns who, unbeknown to many, Kaleni was not only our Spokesperson, he played a huge role in the planning and production of the show. He was also the voice that you heard announcing presenters of the awards before they stepped on to the stage as well as the names of the nominees before the announcement of the winners."

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Netizens pay tribute to Sipho Kaleni

Social media users and the musician's fans took to Twitter to mourn the demise of the well-known musician. There hasn't been much information about the musician's funeral other than that he is survived by his wife Brenda Kaleni, their children, and his mother.

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A few of Kaleni's most popular songs include Tall On My Knees and Lord You Are Faithful. His other well-known works are Yebo Bakithi Sombonga, You Alone Are God, Remain in God’s Pot, and Garden of Love.