Artist news
KO named 2014 Top SA MC
K.O has been named by MTV Base as SA’s hottest hip hop MC for 2014. The news was revealed during the broadcast of MTV Base Roundtable: SA's Hottest MCs 2014, a no-holds-barred discussion and countdown which premiered on MTV Base in November.
MTV Base Roundtable: SA's Hottest MCs 2014 was put together by MTV Base in celebration of the biggest year in South African hip hop history by gathering together industry experts to judge hip hop’s “King of the scene” for 2014.
The top 10 countdown, decided by a panel of industry veterans, tastemakers and influencers, included:
- K.O.
- Cassper Nyovest
- AKA
- Khuli Chana
- Riky Rik
- Reason
- Kid X
- Da L.E.S.
- Kwesta
- Maggz
Mediated by seasoned MTV Base VJ and hip hop head, Sizwe Dhlomo, MTV Base Roundtable: SA's Hottest MCs 2014 assembled a panel packed with hip hop expertise for a heated end-all discussion that cut to the heart of the beats, the rhymes, the beefs and battles shaking up SA hip hop.
Around the table were MC and producer Amu, who has been a hip hop stalwart since the ‘90s; Metro FM master mixologist Naked DJ; YFM afternoon drive DJ and Club 808 TV Presenter Mo Flava; music TV presenter and ardent hip hop fan Loot Love; veteran record label A&R man Kevin Mdubeki; and celebrated deck master and MTV Base music scheduler DJ Vigilante. Also adding their SA hip hop knowledge to the mix were established rapper and labelhead Slikour and MTV Base’s music programmer Melanie Triegaard. Providing even more cred to this historical TV occasion was legendary master lyricist Tumi, who broke down the criteria on what makes a hot MC.
Says MTV Base channel head Tim Horwood, "The debate about the top 10 SA MC’s was – as expected - very intense, and sparked some heated exchanges among the panelists who ultimately named K.O number one, but the vote was very close and all of the top 10 are worthy representatives of SA’s burgeoning hip hop scene."
