Tears of both joy and sadness as Amapiano star Killer Kau is laid to rest
By Siyamthanda KaNyambane
Amapiano sensation Killer Kau was laid to rest on Sunday afternoon. Killer Kau whose real name was Sakhile Hlatshwayo died last week in a car accident while on a trip to a gig in Rustenburg.
He died along with six other people he was travelling with. Killer Kau’s funeral service was held at the Protea South Hall in Soweto.
He was later laid to rest at Westpark Cemetery. Speaking during the funeral service, Killer Kau’s aunt Sally said that his nephew will forever be a hero in the family.
“Sakhile promised me to pass matric and pursue music full time and he did. I’m hurting but at the same time, I’m happy that he passed away doing what he loved the most – music.
“He told me that he wants to get out of Bhungulane and wants to go and stay in Jabulani. I advised him to complete his matric first, which he did.
“I still can’t believe that I’m standing here saying my final goodbyes to my son. You are our hero and you will forever be the hero even to the next generation,” she said sobbing.
Killer Kau’s uncle, Mlilo said that he was still finding it hard to process his sudden death. “I’m standing here on behalf of our grandmother Selina who was supposed to speak here about Sakhile.
“She could not make it because of her health. The news of Sakhile’s passing really hurt her. I can’t believe that I was standing here a few years back talking about my late sister Nomaswazi.
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“And today I’m standing here again talking about you mchana (slang for nephew). As a Christian I console myself with the fact that God knew before we were born and he knows when one will die,” he said.
Explaining how his name came about in an interview on Ukhozi FM recently, Killer Kau said he got it by chance.
“My younger sister could not call me Sakhile so he ended up calling me Khile. My father took it a step further and called me Killer.
“The name caught on and everybody started calling me by that name. The Kau part came when I wanted to open a Twitter account.
“I found there were too many Killers out there so I wanted something that would stand out,” he explained just a few days before his demise.
His sendoff would of course not be done properly without some entertainment from the sounds of Amapiano.
Showstoppers and Retha were amongst those that entertained the mourners at Killer Kau’s funeral. Killer Kau rose to fame in 2017 after a video of his Tholukuthi song with Mbali went viral on Twitter.
He recently released his single titled Amaneighbour and Kataliya. DJ Tot whose real name is is Thanda Sibisi was laid to rest at Westpark Cemetery on Saturday.
