BLINGED out to the max in his gold chain and oversized rings, man of the moment K.O. arrives for his interview 45 minutes late.

The former Teargas star, who has since earned himself a name as a solo artist, was recently announced the hottest MC in the land by music channel MTVBase. He still glows from the compliment.

"I'm not taking it to heart, because other rappers take it as me being more talented, but the list was merely about impact. I appreciate it and will continue to work hard," he offers modestly.

With the release of his solo album Skhanda Republic, K.O. (real name Ntokozo Mdluli) is taking his music career to new heights.

His hit single Caracara hit one million views on YouTube, breaking the record for most views of a South African hip-hop video and now he sits with a thunderous five Channel O Award nominations.

"When I was nominated I didn't have an album out; it was purely based on Caracara. If I do end up winning it would be a bonus, but I'm content with the acknowledgement and nominations."

On the record-breaking views of YouTube, he comments: "I really had no idea that the video would get that many views.

"I come from a group that has had 500000 views. I am overwhelmed and motivated by this to keep feeding the market with what they love."

Looking back at the genesis of the song that made him a force in hip-hop, K.O. says: "We were in studio trying something more in line with a South African style and we stumbled on the Caracara beat purely by accident, I had no idea it would turn out to be the success it has become."

Warm and affable as he is, I struggle to get the rapper to speak about himself despite his overwhelming success as a solo artist. Every question I throw at him bounces back as he keeps referring to his group Teargas.

"I have always been a team player, coming from a group I always had someone to bounce ideas off and being a solo artist is a different ball game altogether, I had to jack up my act and fast."

With little eye contact in the beginning, his eyes wander as he tries his best not to let his shy personality get the better of him.

"I have always been shy, and my worst fear growing up was public speaking. My dad to this day wonders how I have managed to get on stage and perform."

K.O. says he has a long time girlfriend.

While his hit singles enjoy airtime on all major charts in the country, the Son of a Gun hit-maker remains humble and soft-spoken about his success.

"I am overwhelmed, humbled and motivated by the response to the album.

"South African hip-hop artists are trying to sell American-inspired hip-hop and that's where we cut ourselves short.

"It just shows that when we focus on something authentically South African we get results and that's what this album has done," he says.

Originally from Piet Retief Mpumalanga, K.O. came to Johannesburg hoping to get his big break in the music industry but it wasn't easy.

Before he burst into the music scene in 2006 when he joined Teargas with varsity mates and says his mother was worried about his unemployment for two years after completing his PR studies at Vaal University of Technology and set him up for an interview with the prospect of being a police officer.

"I was trying to make demos with funding from my parents and they believed in my dream but I eventually started giving up. My mother sent my CV to the SAPS but I didn't go for the interview.

"The day of the interview I knew I was struggling but I couldn't go through with it," he says.

Ah well, the police force's loss is the music industry's gain.

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