In an exclusive interview with eNCA’s Abigail Visagie, Lynn Forbes, mother of late rapper Kiernan ‘AKA’ Forbes, shares how she broke the news of AKA’s death to granddaughter Kairo.
Lynn told the television channel that Kairo’s mother, DJ Zinhle, could not tell her the heartbreaking news. It was then that Lynn decided to tell her granddaughter about her father’s passing.
Before explaining how she told Kairo, Lynn mentioned that she spoke to the school psychologist and was told how to deal with death and tell a child when someone has died. “We have to be to the point and not say, ‘He went to Jesus’ or ‘He went to heaven.'”
Lynn then said that she, along with her sister and son Steffan’s girlfriend Brittany, went to Zinhle’s house the morning after the shooting.
“[Kairo] was there with her mom and Zama, the lady that works with them, and I just said to her, ‘We have some really sad news.’ I said, ‘Your dad died.”
Lynn told eNCA that Kairo did not have much of a reaction, but only asked how her father had died or what had happened. Lynn responded, “Some bad people hurt him.”
Kairo then asked what the bad people had done. “They shot him,” Lynn explained.
“[Kairo] cried terribly… I don’t think she understood. We gave it some time and we held her and you know, we… I thought we should go downstairs and maybe get some hot chocolate or something, just to take her mind off things.”
“I told her that she could ask questions and she played and I think she went out, and at that point, I just couldn’t. Zinhle and Brittany they were all consoling me,” says Lynn.
Kairo then came back to her grandmother and asked, “But he’s coming back, right? He’ll be okay?” Lynn’s response was, “No, he’s not going to be okay. He will never be back. We have to bury him.”
When asked about the investigation into AKA’s murder, Lynn said, “Because it’s an ongoing investigation… even if they have information, they can’t share information with us that will jeopardise the investigation. But we are updated.”
She continued, “What we know is what we need to know. I don’t want to rush them [the police]. Kiernan is gone for me and nothing that is going to be rushed will bring him back.”
Also see: Lynn Forbes opens up about AKA’s last words to her
