With no more musicians signed to his record label Skhanda World, rapper and businessman Ntokozo ‘K.O’ Mdluli has shared the reasons why the talents have left after the departure of his last two artists.
K.O had five signed artists under his name – Just Bheki, MaE, MrX, and Loki, Roiii.
“As it stands, I am the only [artist] left,” revealed K.O to ZiMoja. “We had gotten into a partnership with Universal Musi Group (UMG) as a joint venture. They were fronting 50% of everything that had to do with the business, and they wanted to see results but unfortunately, some of the music and stuff that came out was not yielding the results that both anticipated.”
With UMG and the artists leaving on good terms, K.O shared that they felt the artists would do well at another label. “We didn’t want to hold anyone back from thriving elsewhere and that is what happened.”
The rapper noted that his partnership with UMG is still in place, although, the artists did not bring the investment.
Earlier this month, Roiii released a joint statement with Skhanda World on his departure.
Not revealing the reason, a portion of the statement read, “After much success in our contractual agreement, we came to a mutual understanding and no animosity is shared … This is not the end of the brotherhood but an opportunity for individual growth.”
Forever respect what @MrCashtime & @tsholo did for me as an individual. After successfully collaborating I’m happy to say that I’m leaving without any animosity. Young boys gon’ do what you young boys gotta do! ❤️ Big Love to @Skhandaworld_ZA , always going to rep! pic.twitter.com/Jp3JhIXRnQ
— Roiii (@1Roiii_) February 1, 2024
K.O further shared with ZiMoja, “I can’t sit there and complain about time and money wasted, it’s business. You need to be frugal with money and make wise decisions. Despite some of the efforts, the financial knock and PR aspect was not good.”
He added, “But it was all about opening doors for people. Even if that artist who left became the biggest thing, I was the spark, and it will make me proud. That feeling is bigger than the money in my pockets. So, for the culture, I have no regrets.”
Also see: K.O says he misses industry mates AKA and Riky Rick
