BLACKSHEEP,
Naka Shimwino, was born 20 May 1981. He is a talented,
lyrically-gifted, up and coming kwaito/hip-hop artist who was born in
exile in Kwansa-Sul, Angola. He attended Centaurus High School in
Windhoek.
His love for hip-hop music came when he was 12
years old when he was exposed to gangster rap, listening to rappers
like Snoop Dogg, 2PAC, West Side Connection, Eazy E, Bone Thugz, etc.,
artists who would later influence his own music. His favorite artist
growing up was undoubtedly 2PAC, who had a lot to say, which is exactly
what he likes about someone. Back in school, when they would have
talent shows, he was too shy to go on stage, but his friends and
classmates knew that he was very good at writing lyrics, as is
demonstrated in his lyrically rich music.
Blacksheep’s natural athletic abilities led him to
become a household name in Namibian soccer and the fastest guy at his
school, which laid a carpet for him to represent his country at all
junior levels and receiving a call up to the senior national team.
However, things did not go well for him, as he was suspended from the
national team, for being too out-spoken. He then went to Cape Town,
South Africa to further his tertiary education and that’s when his
soccer career started to slow down. Upon returning to Namibia after
completing his studies, he continued playing for two more years and won
the league with Civics Football Club.
He ventured into other projects that were more
business-related, as football was a not a way of life for him anymore.
He was introduced to Qonja, with whom he did his first ever song on his
album, the song is titles “Plaak”, meaning “in the mood”. The song
featured Gazza, who is considered to be the best kwaito artist to come
out of Namibia. He was then invited by Gazza to do a few tours with
him, although he was still signed with LOWKEY productions at the time.
Before he knew it, he was signed to the Gazza’s production label, GMP.
Things then took off positively for Blacksheep, as his music career
started to take shape, winning over a lot of fans with his lyrical,
metaphorical and seemingly controversial style of rapping. He then
teamed up with Gazza on a song called “Sixxa” which enjoyed a lot of
airplay on Namibian radio stations.
Blacksheep released his highly-anticipated, debut album, titled “The
Blacksheep Show” in October 2010. His slick and unabashed charm
offstage has led him to the forefront of the Namibian kwaito scene,
despite him only having released very recently. We certainly can’t wait
to see what he has in store for us next…
