One thing showbiz is never short of is its fair share of scandals.
Over the past year, there have been plenty of celebrity scandals unfolding week in, week out.
Here are the 10 that stood out:
Cheesecake saga
I doubt Sonia Booth anticipated the fallout that would unfold after she decided to make public her husband Matthew’s alleged affair.
In exposing him for being unfaithful, Sonia inadvertently turned herself into the butt of public criticism as their relationship drama quickly became a public spectacle.
Part of Sonia’s evidence of her husband’s infidelity included an image of that now-infamous Tupperware and the missing cheesecake.
That very same cheesecake spawned some of the funniest memes of the year and some of the most creative marketing campaigns we’ve seen all year.
Kanye West loses his marbles
Controversy has trailed Ye, the artist formerly known as Kanye West, throughout his career.
But things have gone wildly off script for the rapper this year thanks to his rampant use of anti-semitic rhetoric online and during interviews, and his decision to wear a White Lives Matter T-shirt during his fashion show.
Ye then took to his Instagram stories the following morning to make clear his position, “Everyone knows that ‘Black Lives Matter’ was a scam. Now it’s over. You’re welcome.”
This controversy all culminated in adidas cutting their losses and ending their hugely lucrative Yeezy collaboration with the rapper.
Msaki and Smash Afrika entanglement
Last month, a Sunday gossip paper published a story that alleged that musician Msaki and presenter Smash Afrika were in an entanglement.
The publication reported that a relative of Smash’s wife, Kefiloe Chuene, had revealed details about his affair.
“Smash Afrika’s wife, Kefiloe, has accused him of cheating on her with popular singer Msaki after she stumbled upon a picture of the 5FM presenter giving the musician a kiss,” it read.
Fans were shaken that Msaki, who is about as unproblematic as they come, was involved in such a saga. “Let’s call it a year,” one quipped.
Berita divorces Nota
Berita has crafted a successful musical career while remaining low-key and out of the public spotlight.
Unfortunately for the afro soul singer, her ex-husband, Nhlamulo “Nota” Baloyi, transformed into a social media menace.
When people started to question Berita about his behaviour, she announced that they were now divorced before criticising him publicly for the first time.
“This man is extremely irresponsible, reckless and unruly. He simply does not listen to anyone.”
Seemingly jaded by rejection, Nota has since proceeded to embark on a social media rampage against black women.
Sithelo Shozi takes on Andile Mpisane
Earlier in the year, Sithelo Shozi sparked a media frenzy when she alleged that her former partner and baby daddy, Andile Mpisane, had physically abused her during their relationship.
Adding fuel to the fire, Sbahle Mpisane, who is Andile’s older sister and was at one point a close friend of Sithelo’s, joined Musa Khawula's Twitter Space shortly after to question why Sithelo had never opened a case of abuse against Andile if the allegations were accurate.
Businesswoman Shauwn Mkhize, who is Sbahle and Andile’s mom, also released a statement refuting her abuse claims.
Kelly Khumalo implicated in Senzo Meyiwa court case
It’s long been thought that those in the house, including singer Kelly Khumalo, when Senzo Meyiwa was shot dead in 2014, were hiding something from us.
This year, as the former Bafana Bafana captain’s trial got under way, those implications have turned into a full-on scandal as the trial has unfolded.
In September, the defence in the trial claimed they had an eyewitness who said Meyiwa was killed in a scuffle involving Khumalo and Longwe Twala.
While nothing conclusive has come up yet, one senses a lot more will be revealed when the trial resumes next year.
Will Smith slaps Chris Rock
Will Smith had a lot of “bottled rage” when he stormed the stage and slapped comedian Chris Rock during the 94th Academy Awards in March, after Rock made a joke about Smith’s wife’s shaven head.
During an interview with Trevor Noah for “The Daily Show”, Smith explained how he wasn’t in a great emotional space at the time.
“It was a lot of things, it was the little boy that watched his father beat up his mother,” he said.
“All of that just bubbled up in that moment. That’s not who I want to be.”
The actor’s road to redemption got under way last week when his latest film, the American historical action film “Emancipation”, debuted on Apple TV+.
Nia Long dumps Ime Udoka
When it was first revealed that NBA basketball coach Ime Udoka had allegedly been unfaithful to actress Nia Long, men took to Twitter in their numbers to express their disappointment in Udoka for being unfaithful to the gorgeous actress.
Udoka has since been suspended from the Boston Celtics for breaking the team’s rules by having an inappropriate relationship with a team staffer.
After months of speculation, it was recently revealed that the couple had ended their 13-year relationship.
Long told “The Hollywood Reporter” last week, “I think the most heartbreaking thing about all of this was seeing my son’s face when the Boston Celtics organisation decided to make a very private situation public.”
Mihlali Ndamase’s relationship with Leeroy Sidambe
Popular influencer and content creator Mihlali Ndamase has been heavily targeted by trolls after it emerged that Leeroy Sidambe, the local businessman she’s dating, was allegedly the estranged husband of Mary Jane Sidambe.
At some point a few months ago, the trolls became so rampant that Sidambe said: “In March of this year after many months of trying to make things work, I took steps towards separation from my marriage and the marital home,” he said.
“The constant defaming of those who work in the public space has to stop. In my view, cyber-bullies are spineless and hateful people, who hide behind the keyboard to strip others of their success with untruths coated as facts.”
Depp vs Heard Trial
Amber Heard has filed an appeal against the libel trial verdict that granted her ex-husband Johnny Depp millions of dollars in damages.
Earlier in the year, the former Hollywood power couple were embroiled in a controversial six-week trial in which the actor was awarded $10.35m in damages.
Depp’s case was that Heard defamed him when she wrote a Washington Post article in 2018 in which she described herself as a victim of domestic abuse.
While she did not mention him by name, Depp argued that the implication was clear.