K.O
| K.O | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Ntokozo Mdluli |
| Also known as | Skhanda Gawd |
| Origin | South Africa |
| Genres | Hip hop |
| Occupation(s) | Rapper, record producer |
| Years active | 2005–present |
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Ntokozo Mdluli (stage name K.O) is a South African hip hop artist, rapper, songwriter and businessman from Mpumalanga. He was a member of Teargas, a hip hop group which released its debut album titled K’shubile K’bovu in 2006, followed by Wafa Wafa in 2008, Dark or Blue in 2009 and Num8er Num8er in 2012. He released his debut album Skhanda Republic in 2014, followed by Skhanda Republic 2 in 2017 under Sony Music Entertainment Africa.
K.O was born Ntokozo Mdluli in the Soweto township of Johannesburg in the Gauteng province of South Africa. He is the son of Thembisile Mdluli and Jabulani Mdluli. K.O moved to Piet Retief in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa with his family while he was an infant. He completed his matric and went to Vaal University of Technology where he studied a National Diploma in Public Relations Management. While at Vaal University of Technology K.O met his would be band mates, brothers; Ezee "Ma-E" Hanabe and Bantu "Ntukza" Hanabe. K.O completed his studies and graduated with a Public Relations (PR)Management National Diploma from Vaal University of Technology. Initially he struggled to find employment, according to a Sowetan article he spent two years unemployed before his mother sent his CV to the South African Police Service but he never followed up. "I was trying to make demos with funding from my parents and they believed in my dream but I eventually started giving up. My mother sent my CV to the SAPS but I didn’t go for the interview. The day of the interview I knew I was struggling but I couldn’t go through with it," K.O was quoted in the Sowetan. He went on to work in the field of his studies with a dream of becoming a musician.
In 2005 while employed in the Public Relations, K.O and brothers from Soweto; Ma-E and Ntukza, they decided to form a Hip Hop group called Teargas. "We realised it would be better to join since we were already good friends who knew each other’s rhyming style", K.O was quoted by the City Press. In 2006 Teargas released their debut album, K’shubile K’bovu, the album was a smash hit and a runaway success. The fifteen (15) track album featured a timeless smash hit titled "chance". "Chance", a Hip Hop song chronicling a life of a township gangster seeking redemption, was reminiscent of the early days of Kwaito. In 2008 Teargas released their second studio album titled "Wafa Wafa"; in the sixteen (16) track album the group worked with Bongo Riot on two songs, "Champions" and "Sunshine".
In 2009 they released their third studio album titled "Dark or Blue", in the thirteen (13) track album Teargas collaborated with Tamarsha on the song titled "Life", with DJ Tira and Liesl Penniken on the song called "Party 101", with Hip Hop Pantsula and Pro (formerly Pro Kid) on the song "Goodfellaz" and with Danny K on the song "T.L.C. (Tender, Love and Care)". In 2012 Teargas released their fourth studio album called "Number Number" (stylized "Num8er Num8er"); in the fifteen (15) track album they worked with 2Face "Turning Tables", Lilly Million on "Forgive Me", Toya Delazy on "Paradise" and Ziyon on "Put U On".
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