Get to know dance superstar Kananelo N: from a tragic life becoming a force to be reckoned with
The dance culture in Mzansi (and around the African continent) has taken flight, with dancers making a real names for themselves as professionals. One of these budding names, consistently claiming her space as a prolific dancer, is Kananelo Ngaleka, popularly known as Kananelo N.
The 25-year-old has already graced prominent stages and platforms like dancing at the South African Idols stage, the Feather Awards, and Amapiano Awards; and was also casted to form of Netflix’s Jiva cast. The girl has been booked and busy.
But beyond moving her feet, Kananelo N has a story to tell and we dig a little deeper to get you closer to one of Mzansi’s talents, who is making moves across the continent.
As far back as 9 years old, Kananelo recalls dance being a part of her life, starting off with ballet as an extracurricular activity at school. That small activity to keep a child busy and active was the beginning of her love for dance. Not forgetting where she grew up, in Cape Town’s Gugulethu where the dance culture was a huge part of the township’s heritage. Being a dancer was already written in the stars. Umajaivane!
“I don’t remember a time when I did not dance, from dancing at school to coming home and having to switch up the dance style for ekasi. Since forever really,” she said, giggling.
The passion was so immense that Kananelo took it further to enroll in a dancing institution after high school where she wanted to further hone her craft, even before social media made dancing the new cool thing.
“I just always knew that the arts would be a career path that I followed, whether it be acting, being a professional dancer, or a director. I just knew this is where I belonged and that I could do something with my talent. And looking back, dance has done so much more than I could have anticipated. It has literally taken me out of a lot of things. I’ve been able to escape so many things because of it. Dance saved my life, literally, and has taken me to places that I never thought I could ever be. It makes me happy,” she said.
Kananelo was raised by her mother, single-handedly, whom she describes as her best friend.
“God, we used to do everything together. We used to do our own dance battles, and at that time I had not established myself as a professional dancer. And I must admit, she used to at times outdance me,” she said, reminiscing of the great life they shared together.
“Unfortunately, when I was 16 years old during my ninth grade, my mother passed away in the week of my birthday, which changed my life drastically because it was just the two of us. Now I had to move from home-to-home amongst my extended family, but I never felt like I fit in anywhere. That affected my studies for the remainder of my schooling career. My goal, I remember, was to finish school regardless of how the situation looked because of how much I loved school. But those years were tough; I would skip school sometimes because there would either be no money for transportation or lunch, but when I completed my matric year, I knew I needed to make the most of my life.”
She shares that she even had to go look for her dad to build a bond with him and today considers him as one of her best friends.
“Looking back, it wasn’t easy being thrown around, not lasting a year in a place, trying to seek out that motherly love wherever I went but it just didn’t feel as authentic as what one would get from their own mother. Life definitely changed for me, and that meant I had to be a hustler. I couldn’t relax; I knew I didn’t have a mother to baby me and guide me. So I had to be an adult at a very young age and make very serious decisions by myself. The hustling spirit started then, and I think that is how I ended up in Johannesburg,” adding that she moved to the City of Gold in 2020, taking the leap of faith to see what was out there for her.
That decision has been the best decision of her life,she said, coming to Jozi to experience the dance culture here which she describes as always being-on-a-constant-high and has produced shows like Jika Majika and housed franchises like So You Think You Can Dance. All of which seemed very distant to her in the past.
Kananelo is also a dance teacher and identifies as a dance influencer. If dance wasn’t her chosen career, she would have probably been a teacher. Her entire career is inspired by her dance teachers from the schools she had attended, who taught her the discipline of dance and helped her become a professional. When she got the opportunity to audition for Netflix’s Jiva, Kananelo took a leap of faith, danced for judges Bontle Modiselle and Tom London, and won over their hearts so much so that she was awarded the role of Ntokozo, a character that was established in episode 3 of the dance series.
“Taking that leap to come to Johannesburg opened so many doors for me. I’ve been able to travel to so many different countries and have created so many connections, all thanks to dance. Dance has taken me out of the pits, because when I lost my mother, I felt I had lost myself and had no sense of belonging. This simple craft has placed me in a position where I am now able to provide for myself and my loved ones as well. I am really grateful for that because I never saw myself escaping that dark place before dance started making money for me,” she said.
But the reality still remains that moving to Jozi Maboneng wasn’t easy. But with tenacity, she knew where she wanted to go to create her own life.
Dance consumes her life so much that she feels her entire life revolves around this art form.
“My story is that ‘don’t stop dreaming’ and I hope whoever reads this article or follows my life takes just that. Don’t stop dreaming, and that everything is possible. In today’s times, it has become so evident that anyone’s life can change in an instant. Don’t stop dreaming; don’t stop showing up, because that is what I did; I never stopped. There is always someone watching,” she adds.
Through it all, she hopes to become an inspiration through her layered story, which is full of twists and turns.
“I’ve always loved moving around and not remaining in one place for long. So the big dream is to be an international dance teacher or dancer. Not just to be known in Mzansi, but I am working my way up to be known all over the world,” adding that recent trips to Russia and Ghana have opened her eyes to how welcoming the world is.
“It is possible to be known not only in South Africa but all over the world. I want to be called to these big dance shows to share my ideas and be part of the process. I do acknowledge that I have a lot to do, but I am willing and ready,” she said.
