Veniana Leba Vulaono Akafa has emerged as one of the last torchbearers of the Akafa Gospel sound, carrying a family ministry that has survived personal loss and political barriers. With the recent death of sister Paula Temo Akafa last year and the earlier loss of Junior Jitoko Akafa in 2021, Veniana and her brother Tevita are now custodians of a musical and spiritual legacy forged by their late father, Reverend Jitoko Vulaono Akafa.
Veniana’s path into gospel music began at 12, she says, when a single hymn revealed her calling. “There’s an English song that we always sing, ‘Jesus knows how it feels to be lonely’ – that’s the first song I sang and then I knew I had that talent,” she recalled. Her father, who had long prayed for musical gifts in his children, saw her voice as affirmation and pushed for recordings that would spread their ministry beyond the pulpit.
The Akafa repertoire includes songs tightly woven with biblical imagery. Veniana highlights “Dau veibuli,” a reflective piece she says is rooted in the potter-and-clay motif of divine healing: “It’s like God created us like a potter. And when we are broken, God heals us.” Another signature track, “Na cakacaka rui dredre,” addresses the weariness of a world exhausted by labour and loss; the song, recognised with awards, appeals for rest and spiritual renewal for those worn out by life’s labours.
Beyond singing, Veniana has assumed the organisational and spiritual duties that sustain the group. She leads worship at her church’s 8am English service, mentors the worship team, coordinates rehearsals and curates setlists, but insists the essential work happens before music reaches listeners. “I fast and I pray to the Lord. You must pray and read the Bible every day. It is our duty. This ensures the music is anointed before it reaches the congregation,” she said, framing the stage as an altar where success is measured by transformed lives rather than applause: “If one person gives their life to the Lord, that’s enough for me.”
The family’s musical ministry was shaped by Reverend Jitoko’s own conversion and creative practice. A former soldier and nightclub performer who turned to faith, he composed many songs while fasting and praying at Nacilau Point in Rakiraki, often with his accordion. That discipline became a family inheritance and helped the Akafas minister in places where preaching was curtailed. In the 1990s, during missions to Nabua, Vanua Levu, where preaching faced restrictions, Veniana says music opened doors that words alone could not: broadcasts on AM and FM radio led to revivals and conversions that preaching had failed to achieve.
The Akafa family also maintained worship through the pandemic, singing together at home when churches were closed—another testament to their commitment to ministry in every season. Looking ahead, Veniana is open to collaboration that preserves the message at the heart of her work; she hopes to sing with local gospel group Eagles Wings, blending voices while remaining anchored in the spiritual purpose her father modelled.
As the Akafa name narrows to a smaller circle, Veniana’s stewardship keeps its sound and theology alive: disciplined preparation, songs that speak to human frailty and divine repair, and a ministry that measures its worth by lives changed rather than by acclaim.
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