K.O aka Mr Cashtime

Growing up in Piet Retief in Mpumalanga, K.O (real name Ntokozo Mdluli) dreamt about becoming a world-renowned MC, looking up to West Coast greats like Dr Dre and Snoop Dogg from an early age, in the hopes of forging a similar path that spearheaded his culture.

It was only when K.O met future Teargas members Ntukza and Ma-E at Vaal University of Technology, that the Soweto-born rapper made the decision to pursue music as a full-time career. Without a blueprint for success, Teargas blazed their own trail and laid the foundation for the next generation of SA hip hop to thrive.

Their four critically acclaimed, award-winning and commercially successful albums K’shubile K’bovu (2006), Wafa Wafa (2008), Dark Or Blue (2009), and Num8er Num8er (2012), ensured their status as SA hip hop royalty and established K.O as a charismatic, breakout star.

Alongside Teargas member Ma-E, K.O formed entertainment and lifestyle company Cashtime Life in 2013, releasing his scene-changing SAMA-winning debut album Skhanda Republic (2014) soon after. But it was the album’s second single “Caracara” that completely changed the game, capturing a mood and signalling the birth of The Skhanda sound. Mixing kwaito and hip hop, The Shkanda sound defined an era that many consider to be the peak of SA hip hop.

Township slang for the VW Caravelle minibus, “Caracara” is K.O’s ode to the legendary vehicle and its prominent feature in SA township lifestyle circa 1990. Just like its namesake, “Caracara” ushered in a new era of cool, changing the landscape of SA urban youth music. It also became the first song to top all 5 EMA charts – SA Local Music Top 40 Playlist, SA Local Music Top 40 RAMS, SA Television Top 40 Playlist, SA Top 100 Playlist and SA Top 100 RAMS, at the same time. It was also the first SA hip hop song to reach 1 million views on YouTube.

Picking up the SAMA for Best Collaboration and Record of The Year (a first for a hip-hop song) in 2015, “Caracara” became the biggest song in SA that year and over time, the most significant SA hip hop song ever released.

As a consummate risk-taker, K.O. continued to push the envelope sonically on his socially conscious second album, SR2 (2017), and R&B, pop and amapiano-tinged third album, PTY unLTD (2019), with the evolution of his sound at the core of every release, ultimately influencing the culture and impacting the game.

Now, with his newly launched imprint and clothing line, Skhanda World, K.O has emerged enlightened and invigorated, ready to take on the airwaves and stages with his future music and entrepreneurial endeavours, proof that the streets will always find a way.