**Top 10 Celebrities Whose HIV or AIDS Diagnosis Shocked Fans**

The world was shocked by DJ Kabzilla’s HIV/AIDS announcement in 2004, but unfortunately, it was not the first time fans had heard such a tragic diagnosis of the deadly disease.

This disease is not exclusive to any one group of people; musicians, actors, activists, politicians, athletes, and many more have both survived and fallen victim to this tragic disease. Today, we are counting down our top picks for the top 10 celebrities whose HIV or AIDS diagnosis shocked fans.

1. **Brown Dash**: Brown Dash’s mother dropped a bomb no one was expecting when she said, “My son died of AIDS.” The star died in 2012 after contracting pneumonia. From the minute Brown Dash died, people started speculating about what had led to his failing health and untimely death.

His real figure during a performance with Manchester United raised concerns. Speaking at the 18th Summer Awards on April 30th, rumors that he was indeed very ill began to circulate.

Those in the know say he had been in and out of the hospital since 2010. His wife had also succumbed to the disease and died a year before he did. Perhaps the most tragic fact was that he was 32 at the time of his death.

2. **Zombo**: Zombo’s large appetite for the good life sent him to his death early in his life. Before his fall, he kept tabloids busy with his shenanigans. The talented singer-songwriter made headlines for his baby-making spree and his drug use. Before his death, Zombo confessed to Sunday World that he had been sexually promiscuous and had no recollection of who might have infected him.

For a long time, he kept his cards close to his chest, but two weeks before his death, we all read with broken hearts the news of his HIV status and watched him on SABC One’s Life, a shadow of his former self. He was discovered to be suffering from the disease after undergoing a series of tests at Sunninghill Hospital in 2007, where he was admitted after falling sick. He passed away in 2008 at 28.

3. **Stitch**: Two weeks after Zombo’s passing, his former Triple 9 friend Stitch revealed he was also dying. “I have AIDS. I am dying,” Stitch told Also Written. He discovered his status in December 2007 when he started losing weight after being diagnosed with TB. “I was not surprised when I found out because I was very promiscuous. I had too many girlfriends and I did not choose condoms all the time,” Stitch said.

He was living with his jobless mother, who survived on a government pension. “My mother pays my medical bills. My friends from the music industry often visit and bring me goodies,” he said. He was saddened by the death of Zombo because they used to talk a lot about their statuses and comforted each other. Fortunately, since receiving treatment, Stitch is still alive and well.

4. **Koyo Bala**: The late Threesome singer, who passed away in early 2016 after battling with cancer, had publicly disclosed his HIV status in 2011. He then used this platform to help instill a sense of hope to those struggling to come to terms with their status.

Speaking to Drum Magazine at the time, Koyo spoke on living with HIV, saying, “I am HIV positive, and as a celebrity and someone who is openly gay, it is important to come out. I want to use my bubbly personality to help those struggling to come to terms with their status and instill a sense of hope.”

5. **Chiefs and Orlando Pirates Star**: The soccer star died of HIV/AIDS complications in 2012. The family disclosed the 38-year-old’s cause of death and spoke on behalf of the Lewis family.

They told National radio station Metro FM that the player had planned to reveal his status once he was discharged from the hospital. The family wanted to end speculation regarding what had led to Liberty being admitted to the government hospital a month before he died.

He would have wanted it this way. Shortly before he died, he told his mother that he had something big to tell her, but unfortunately, he was not able to make it. He denied living with the disease when the media asked him about it, obviously not ready to share it with the public.

6. **DJ Kabzilla**: Rising to fame in 1999 and blowing up on YFM back in the day, the late DJ had started antiretroviral drugs but stopped after a few weeks. Instead, he went on a special diet program and other remedies that were meant to save him from the toxicities of ARVs. On January 4th, 2004, Kabzilla succumbed to the virus at the Johannesburg General Hospital at the age of 34.

7. **Actress**: On the morning of World AIDS Day in 2011, a sitting actress went public with her HIV status in a revealing interview with Bob Mapena. She tweeted later in the morning, “Out and proud in more ways than one.

God is love, and I’m a channel to help heal the wounds infected and affected. HIV is not who I am. The virus lives in my blood for 13 years. I had known and I wanted to use the opportunity God gave me to be able to be a mentor to those who will be going through the same struggles I have gone through.”

While many rallied behind her, people were shocked when she decided to stop taking her medication against the doctor’s advice because she couldn’t bear the thought of taking pills every day for the rest of her life. This might have led to her untimely death on January 20th, 2014.

8. **Retired Footballer Tabang Sefata**: Another South African celebrity who is HIV positive and very open about his status is the former player for Tigers FC and Roses FC. He tested positive for HIV in 2018 and shortly after retired from his profession in 2016.

He went public with his status, a move which he said was meant to encourage more people, especially other footballers, to go for testing. Seasoned after starting out at Jomo Cosmos and making a name for himself at Mamelodi Sundowns, at the height of his career, he was Bafana Bafana Vice Captain. But by 2001, his former glory was just a memory as he battled AIDS.

He had also infected Ivan Koza’s daughter, Zodo, who was his wife at the time and then divorced him after she discovered that he had infected her with HIV. Unable to walk or eat, bankrupt, divorced, and living off his father’s pension, his life was snapped out in August 2001. So, it was no surprise when he eventually succumbed to the disease in 2006.

9. **Crystal Takananda**: One of the few South African celebrities who have been living with the virus for a long time, the mother of three tested positive for HIV over 24 years ago.

But she didn’t start using antiretrovirals, which she often times as harmful, until 2020 when she contracted COVID-19. She is living proof that HIV is not a death sentence but just like any other chronic disease out there.

These celebrities, through their openness about their struggles with HIV/AIDS, have played a crucial role in raising awareness and ending the stigma associated with the disease. Their courage in sharing their stories has undoubtedly saved lives and inspired others to seek help and live positively with their diagnosis.

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