Black Coffee – real name Nkosinathi Maphumulo – has broken his silence on the Constitutional Court’s ruling on customary marriages and antenuptial contracts.
The Grammy Award-winning DJ is appealing the divorce judgement he received from his ex-wife, Enhle Mbali Mlotshwa, issued by the Gauteng High Court last year.
In the ruling, the hitmaker’s antenuptial contract with the actress was declared invalid. The court ruled that the couple was married under customary law, which, by default, is set to a community of property contract.
BLACK COFFEE BREAKS SILENCE ON CONCOURT RULING
This week, the Constitutional Court issued a landmark ruling declaring that antenuptial contracts entered into after customary marriages are invalid.
The court ruled that antenuptial contracts signed after customary marriages are treated as postnuptial contracts and require the High Court’s approval to take effect.
It emphasised that customary or traditional marriages are treated as civil marriages and, by default, are set to community of property contracts.
Legal experts have since advised South Africans to sign antenuptial contracts before the cultural practice of lobola – regarded as the onset of a customary marriage – takes place.
Reacting to the news was podcaster Penuel Mlotshwa, who argued his opinion that lobola did not constitute marriage, but merely a proposal and the intention to marry. Referencing Black Coffee, he suggested the DJ take his case to the Constitutional Court, proposing that prenups be recognised after customary marriages take place.
To his surprise, Black Coffee commented on the video, agreeing with the outspoken media personality’s stance.
The DJ shared his opinion, claiming it would “probably gonna get me in trouble with my legal team.”
He posted: “This isn’t just about me anymore, and keeping quiet with this hasn’t helped me in any way.”
Black Coffee claimed that he and his ex-wife, Enhle Mbali, did not have a customary marriage, despite the couple hosting a traditional wedding ceremony in 2011.
He posted: “Here are a few important points to note and some of the reasons for my appeal.
1. Intention (We both never intended to do a customary marriage). All the details supporting this are in our case, from both of us.
2. Prenup. We signed this as our 1st step to the agreed civil marriage (even our prenup states that we were unmarried).”
He added, “I obviously won’t divulge more than this, but I hope this carries enough weight to keep the conversation going for all.”
WHAT NEXT?
News of the Constitutional Court’s ruling comes amid Black Coffee’s plans to take his divorce judgement from the Gauteng High Court to the Supreme Court of Appeal.
He is opposing the October 2025 ruling that upheld his 2011 traditional Zulu wedding as a civil union and subsequently deemed his 2017 and 2019 antenuptial contracts invalid.
He is also opposing the judgement that he pay his ex-wife, Enhle Mbali Mlotshwa, over R60 000 per month in spousal support, until her death or until she remarries.
According to the ruling, in the absence of a valid antenuptial or postnuptial contract, Black Coffee and Enhle’s marriage is classified as a community of property marriage. This means that the couple shared a joint estate until the dissolution of their marriage, which was finalised last year.
Images via X
As the Constitutional Court is the highest in South Africa, and its rulings are legally binding, the Supreme Court of Appeal will therefore have to apply the landmark ruling when addressing Black Coffee’s leave to appeal his divorce judgement.
If the 49-year-old wins his challenge, the High Court’s ruling will be overturned. However, if he loses, he could apply for leave to appeal to the Constitutional Court.
The Constitutional Court may hear his argument, as it could be deemed in the public interest and in the interest of justice under customary law.
