Cape Town diva Salome Damons Johansen has one more reason to celebrate Women’s Day this week.
This month, the Mitchells Plain songbird will be nine years clean from her addiction to tik.
On Tuesday, the singer said that Women’s Month signals a special time in her life.
Nine years ago, on Women’s Day, which is celebrated on 9 August, she decided “genoeg is genoeg” and started claiming back her health and wellbeing.
Salome, 40, has opened up about her addiction, hoping it will inspire others to stop using drugs and turn a new leaf.
“The journey to reaching nine years clean from drugs was one of the hardest, yet liberating, times of my life,” she says.
“It’s really changed my life and there are so many people struggling with it every day.
“Drugs took everything from me, it stripped me from myself, and I had to rebuild myself financially and emotionally. Today I own a house and a car.”
Salome says she had great support from her family and her wife, Rosie.
“I want to tell someone who is in that space, to take a stand for yourself, you need to ask for help or else nothing will happen for you,” she says.
“My faith in God helped me, I prayed to God to help me get through this.
“It might sound clichéd but it’s the truth, it’s a mind over matter thing where you just have to be strong.”
Salome is one of the artists that will perform at the Daily Voice Diamonds and Divas 2 event on 24 August at GrandWest.