‘I was confused!’ Diamond on his mother, Bi Sandra, when she was paralysed
Tanzanian artist Nasibu Abdul Juma aka Diamond Platnumz has revealed that his mother, Bi Sandra, suffered paralysis at one point in her life.
The renowned superstar spoke of a time when financial hardship was prevalent.
He said poverty prevented his mother from even paying his school fees as he sought to establish himself in the music industry.
“I witnessed my mother’s hardship, which caused me to stop my education,” he said. In 2013, before Tiffah was born, my mother suffered a stroke that left her paralysed. It was a confusing and challenging time for me; I didn’t know what to do,” said Diamond in a recent interview with Wasafi FM.
Diamond is currently one of Africa’s leading and most influential artists.
He has since bought mansions and flashy cars for his mother.
Diamond grew up in the western parts of Tandale with his mother in his grandmother’s house.
His grandmother shared a single room with Diamond and his mother and was forced to rent out the other two rooms to make ends meet.
Diamond is a lone child being raised by a single mother. His parents separated due to unresolved differences.
Diamond, who now goes by the street name Chibu Dangote, started showing an interest in music when he was in primary five.
His supportive mother bought him albums by various artists, helped him write lyrics and took him to talent shows in the hope that her son would be given a platform to showcase his talent.
To record his first song, Diamond stole his mother’s gold ring and sold it to raise money for the studio.
Diamond sold second-hand (mitumba) clothes, worked as a petrol station attendant and was also a freelance photographer, which he did in 2007 to raise money for studio sessions.
His breakthrough song was ‘Kamwambie’, which he recently revealed was a dedication to his first girlfriend Sarah.
“I wrote that song from a very personal experience. There’s a lady that I hold dear and I saw her here, her name is Sarah. She is the real reason why I sang ‘Kamwambie’.