Kenyan rapper King Kaka has revealed more details about his highly publicized illness saying that not even his friends knew about it.
The rapper spoke in a YouTube interview hosted by his wife Nana Owiti, disclosing that his troubles started with a severe sore throat following a family trip to the coast.
King Kaka said he sought medical attention and was given some antibiotics.
“I have never been that sick with such a bad sore throat. I was being injected four times a day. Three weeks later the sore throat came back. I lost my sense of taste. At first, I thought it was Covid. My skin became abnormally smooth and I realised I had lost weight,” he narrated.
As he continued to lose, King Kaka said he had to lie to Nana Owiti that he was okay because he did not want her to worry.
“My trousers could no longer fit. I started coughing…sweating at night. I talked to a doctor friend called Stanley and I told him something was very wrong.
“I usually weigh 85kgs but I had dropped to 68kgs. I told Nana that I was 74kgs because I did not want her to get worried. It was a good lie,” he said.
The rapper said he became so thin that he would experience discomfort while sitting.
“I would look at myself in the mirror and wonder. I used to place light pillows on my seat since I would experience pain whenever I sat down,” he said.
Kaka also revealed how he hid his condition from his friends.
“My boys hawakuwa wanajua, nothing. I think walijua only three weeks before niende hosi. If you go back to all my posts, I was concealing, every time I put on a jacket, a hoodie and a mask. At this point I was 65kgs. I was worried,” King Kaka said.
He explained that he kept his friends in the dark because he is the type of person that helps other people instead of seeking help.
“It goes back to personality, mi nakuwanga msee mwenye hutaka kusolve kwanza. I want to solve the problem first, sitakangi kuburden watu. I’m the person people come to; I don’t go to people,” he said.
Adding: “So this one time I was tested and everything I had, na ilikuwa ni either mimi niende kwa wasee, which I was not willing to let that personality go. It’s just me being me. Kwasababu, mi ndio husaidia wasee, msee akiwa kwa noma mi ndio natoka home, niende kuwasaidia.”
King Kaka also opened up about feeling helpless and getting worried for his family and friends.
“The scariest bit was you (Nana Owiti) and the kids, the people in my circle, people I love and people who love me.”
Nana recalled an emotional moment when she found King Kaka gazing at their family photo.
“There is a time you (King Kaka) looked at our family photo and just broke down. That scared me…because you do not cry. I have seen you cry only twice. I went to a pastor who lives nearby and together with other preachers came with anointing oil. We prayed and everything was peaceful,” said Nana.
King Kaka responded: “As a man, there are things you hold dear. I live for my family.”
