Skwatta Kamp MC is now a prophet

Rapper Bozza's career is back on track after a year of a sobering rite of passage at the All Nations Apostolic Church in Nigel, east of Johannesburg.

The 35-year-old musician, of Skwatta Kamp fame, born Nkosana Nkosi, underwent a lengthy ritual called tironi in the African Apostolic church, which is similar to ukuthwasa (a traditional healer rite of passage) except it is church-based and has a combination of ancestral rituals and prayer, according to him.

He has now graduated as a prophet and will also be making a comeback on TV as the host of Big Up, an SABC1 youth education show. He has already shot seven episodes.

Bozza replaces Wright Ngubeni, who failed to finish the season. Reasons for this could not be established.

The entertainer told Sowetan: "I did my rituals last year and the year before, which is why I was not visible to the public. I underwent tironi for about a year so I can prophesy. One can never say the process is over because one always gets dreams to get certain things. I graduated from that level to a level where I can get back to work.

"I get asked where I have been everywhere I perform, so I think it is only fair that I tell everyone. It is a sobering experience and the lifestyle now demands that I pray every day at midnight, noon, 3pm and 3am."

The now bulkier Bozza said that he also took up physical exercise to match his quest for a healthier mind.

He explained: "I got other offers for TV shows but I could not say no to this one because I have been doing my best to motivate and uplift the township youth."

Bozza recently recorded a song with Metro FM's Naked DJ and DJ Semitone. But he is still a member of Skwatta Kamp which has been performing and recording new material since the death of another member, Flabba, earlier this year.

The executive producer of the show, Thokozani Nkosi of Eclipse Productions could not be reached for comment.