Well-known music executive Sipho Sithole’s record label, Native Rhythms Records, has been hit with a tax bill exceeding R1 million after the South African Revenue Service (SARS) secured a default judgment against the company in the Johannesburg High Court.
Africa Daily can exclusively reveal that SARS approached the court after the record label allegedly ignored a final letter of demand to settle its outstanding tax debt.
According to the default judgment, seen by Africa Daily, Native Rhythms Records owed SARS more than R540,000 in Value Added Tax (VAT). The amount ballooned to more than R940,000 after interest of more than R380,000 and penalties exceeding R18,000 were added. SARS also imposed administrative penalties of about R10,000.
Court papers further show that the company owed SARS more than R28,000 in unpaid Pay As You Earn (PAYE). That amount increased to more than R61,000 after additional interest and penalties were levied, bringing the total debt across all tax products to more than R1 million.
Before approaching the high court, SARS issued Native Rhythms Records with a final letter of demand on 22 May 2026, giving the company 10 business days to either settle the debt in full or apply for relief measures, including a payment arrangement, suspension of the debt pending a dispute or a compromise.
At the time, the outstanding debt stood at R940,569.01.
In the letter, SARS warned that failure to pay could result in the appointment of a third party to recover the debt, the obtaining of a civil judgment and the attachment and sale of the company’s assets by the Sheriff of the Court.
Despite the warning, the debt remained unpaid, prompting SARS to obtain a default judgment against the company.
Speaking to Africa Daily, Sithole confirmed that SARS had been pursuing the company over the outstanding tax debt but said he had asked the revenue collector to reconsider the assessment.
“I have applied for reconsideration. We were badly hit by Covid-19 and had to retrench eight employees. That’s all I can say.
“Kubi kule industry but we keep our heads high, nsizwa yakithi. I hope you do understand the sacrifices we get into to build this industry and the artists for which we do not necessarily reap any benefits. It looks lucrative on the outside but definitely not,” Sithole said.
SARS’s final demand also warned that interest would continue to accrue on the outstanding debt until it was settled.
