Grammy-winning musician Zakes Bantwini has reflected on a dark chapter in his career, saying internal conflict and strained relationships led him to briefly step away from making music.

In a recent interview with Sphe and DJ Naves with Selbeyonce on Gagasi FM, Zakes opened up about how the success of his music started to negatively affect his personal and professional relationships.

"I felt every song I make, I make an enemy," he said. "Because a success of a song iyasixabanisa [creates conflict] royalties and not seeing eye to eye, it's going to bring other people into our friendship and success."

The Osama hitmaker said the tension and fallouts surrounding hit songs and their royalties took an emotional toll on him, forcing him to reconsider his place in the industry.

"I stopped making music; that's why I went to Sony Music. I was like, 'This thing is hurting me. It's making me more enemies than it's making me [happy or successful]'," he said.

"It was about 2016 to 2019." During that time, Zakes took a step back to regroup and protect his peace. He eventually made a powerful return to the industry, going on to win a Grammy in 2023 for his collaboration on the track Bayethe with Wouter Kellerman and Nomcebo Zikode.

His story is a reminder of the often-unseen emotional challenges behind the glitz and glamour of success in the music industry.