It doesn’t matter if it’s Diamond Walk Emallin’ or Gangster Love, Mr Cashtime makes sure to stay relevant and ahead of the curve.
In a few days, K.O will be Live at the Hill on Saturday, 29 July, and he speaks to Drum while making his way to a rehearsal.
K. O, real name Ntokozo Mdluli, is one of the country’s most profound lyricists and he is promising fans a night they will not forget.
“This show is going to be special,” he says while driving.
“I have got to make sure that everything is 110% ready. I will be doing songs I haven’t done in a while, and I am putting in all the effort. This one is really going to be K.O fans, I will not only be performing the popular songs.
“I hardly perform for more than an hour and this time it is going to be an hour and thirty minutes. I want to take people on a journey.”
He won’t share who the surprise acts will be who will joining him on stage.
He has had quite the contribution in the music industry and he attributes that to him being a fan.
“I really, genuinely enjoy South African music. I am a fan of the music that is made in our country as a whole. I am committed to the space, and not only being relevant for a season. As someone in the arts, I am a public servant. I view myself as though I work for government and I have to improve myself so that I can improve the quality of what I put out to the public year in and year out. I get to compete with different genres and generations.”
Before his music career blew up, he studied public relations at Vaal University of Technology and that has helped him a great deal as he navigates the entertainment industry.
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“I was privileged in that before I even got into the industry, I understood things like brand or image management, as well as business. These days, what excites people is public figures being reckless. I am not perfect, but I do not have any scandals because I am intentional about not messing with my money. I have to protect what pays my bills.”
He says he always tries to be presentable because if you look good, you feel good.
“A lot of people have gravitated towards my fashion sense. Then I found a way to monitize my fashion sense. As such, I have a fashion range that will be available at all Studio 88 stores around the country. There will be a fashion show, with a proper runaway and models. We will be in stores from the first week of September.”
On the music front, he thanks God for voice recorders on phones.
“It’s great to be able to record a lot of music on the go, whenever the inspiration hits me. Sometimes when I have a creative block I go to the gym. I write a lot of hit songs while at the gym. Sete partly came from a gym session, with me on the treadmill and all my senses heightened.”
He says he is not mad at not getting the coveted Song of the Year title for his hit track, Sete.
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“We make the music for the people. It was amazing to see people owning the song so much that they gave their own renditions of it. It feels great. During December, I also saw some people using it as their wedding song ang that is just special man. It shows the power of music.
“I did not really personalise it. I mean everyone knew. Also, that night a lot of things were happening. We had just lost AKA and he was being honoured with a lot of awards as he rightfully deserved. He was snatched away from us too soon. He was a friend and a wonderful artist. Another thing is that I am not someone who is invested in awards and things.”
Speaking of AKA, K.O did not mince his words when asked about Nota, who was on his case soon after AKA died.
The rapper was killed in a hit outside an eatery on Florida Road in Durban in February.
Nota, real name Nhlamulo Baloyi, took to social media and said K.O needed to get his brother Siya to come forward about having a hand in AKA’s assassination.
Siya was AKA’s road manager and he was present at the time of the shooting in Durban. K.O subsequently got a court order against Nota to refrain from defaming him.
“We responded legally. What he did was distasteful. First of all, AKA hated the guy’s guts after he wormed his way into his space following the passing of his former fiancée, then he went to social media about it.
“AKA had publicly distanced himself from him and now suddenly he was championing for someone he had betrayed. My brother almost died that night alongside his boss and this one wants to talk so recklessly. Also, I had nothing to do with nothing, I was not even there. It was really bad because he even went as far as insulting my mother. It was terrible.”
