Cassper Nyovest

Cassper Nyovest
File:Cassper Nyovest at a function.jpeg Cassper Nyovest in November 2013 at the MTV Base and Cîroc “Take Over”
Background information
Birth name	Refiloe Maele Phoolo
Born	(1990-12-16) December 16, 1990
Origin	Mafikeng, North West
Genres	hip hop, Motswako
Occupation(s)	Rapper, record producer, songwriter
Instrument(s)	Vocals, keyboards, sampler, drum machine
Years active	2004-present

Refiloe Maele Phoolo (born 16 December 1990 in the village of Montshiwa in Mafikeng), also known as Cassper Nyovest, is a South African recording artist and producer.

In 2004, he was a member of a group called Childhood Gangsters (CHG), but the group later disbanded due to conflict of ideas. In the same year he joined another group, Slow Motion, which comprised eight members including the production team, Ganja Beatz.

Cassper dropped out of high school in 2006. He left home and moved to Johannesburg to pursue his musical career. The following year, at the age of 17, he signed to Impact Sound, the biggest Motswako label at the time with artists like Morafe & Tuks Senganga. However, after two years of joining the record company, with no sign of his album release, he decided to depart from the label to start his own label. But this proved to be a huge setback for Cassper, forcing him to move back home.

In the months that followed, he recorded a song titled “Halla at a Pantsula”. The video was released on YouTube. As a result of this, major record labels and artists took notice of Cassper, and amongst these, was Motswako rapper, Jabba, better known as Hip Hop Pantsula.

Hip Hop Pantsula featured Cassper on his seventh studio album Dumela on the single “Wamo Tseba Mtho”, and Cassper began gaining recognition as an artist.

In 2013, he released “Gusheshe”, the first official single from his upcoming debut album, Tsholofelo. The single was well received and playlisted across various radio stations in South Africa. It was accompanied by a music video which premiered on Vuzu’s V-Entertainment.

Early life

Cassper grew up in Montshiwa in Mafikeng, the capital city of the North West province. He attended high school at Sol Plaatje Secondary School: “I was a class clown and I was smart, an academic class clown. I was that guy you’d chill with and fail, but I’d pass.”

In school, he was athletic as he partook in various sports activities including soccer, cricket and basketball. In an interview with MiCampusMag, he recalls his childhood: “I used to hang out with thugs in the township, but I was a softie. So because I hung around thugs at home, I was a hard ass at school. I always got into trouble; I was gambling (zwipi) and doing other stuff. I used to spin cars too. I once messed up my dad’s car. I was known as that guy, I’d get to a party, people would start whistling and you’d know that Cassper has arrived.”

Cassper started rapping when he was in grade 5, at age 13: “I started rapping in school to get attention. In grade 9, I started thinking about dropping out of school. The following year in grade 10 I failed, and then I moved to Potchefstroom. I was contemplating dropping out of school. Then the next year, at age 16, I dropped out. I had to explain to my parents, who are both teachers, that I not dropping out of school to sit in your house or the corner, but I’m chasing this thing (rap). I told them that I’d rather chase my dream, which I believe is going to work out, rather than keeping it safe (going to school and getting a good job) and regret it my whole life. So I dropped out of school and came to Jo'burg to pursue rap.”

Controversy

Cassper Nyovest and Vth Season artist, AKA were involved in an indirect Twitter brawl.

The beef began when Cassper claimed he had the number one song in the country. AKA wasn't pleased with this statement and tweeted, “There’s a rapper running around saying he got the biggest song in the country…I challenge you to find his song in the iTunes Top 100” referring to the fact that Cassper's Doc Shebeleza was up for free downloads while his song, Congratulate, was actually purchased.

Cassper initially chose to ignore AKA but eventually responded by tweeting, “You’re lying nigga!!! #DocShebeleza is the biggest record out!!! That’s not an opinion!!! That’s a fact!!! You’ve got Napoleon Complex!!!”

AKA then went as far as posting a picture of all the awards he had received throughout his career, with the caption, “Thought I’d post this …. Just to remind you who you fuckin’ with”

Awards and nominations

SA Hip Hop Awards

• Song of the Year (2013) (Won)
• Best Collaboration (2013) (Won)
• Video of the Year (2013) (Won)
• Best Freshman (2013) (Won)

Discography

Albums

• Tsholofelo (2014)

Singles

• "Girlfriend featuring Riky Rick"
• "She Loves Me"
• "I Can Say Whatever featuring L-Tido"
• "Bullshit"
• "Above the Water"
• "Ke Summer Boss"
• "Wahala featuring Young Slugz"
• "#BMK"
• "Gusheshe featuring Okmalumkoolkat"
• "Doc Shebeleza"

Guest appearances

• HHP - Wam Tseba Mtho featuring Thasman

• HHP - Past Time featuring Omar & Kaygizm

• Chad Da Don - Hola

• DotCom - Izapha

• Major League DJs - The Bizness featuring Riky Rick & Siya Shezi

• L-Tido - Steve Kekana (Remix) featuring Maggz & Ma-E

• Heemal Gangaram - Our Voice featuring Young Slugz

• Young Slugz - Funky featuring Zeus and Heemal Gangaram