KO out, AKA very much in

Despite his smash hit Caracara , rapper KO has not received a single nomination in the upcoming SA Hip-Hop Awards.

But it's not a case of KO being snubbed by the organisers. The rapper - real name Ntokozo Mdluli - was simply not interested in submitting his music for consideration, the CEO of the Cashtime Life label, Thabiso Khati, said.

Said Khati: "The [Cashtime] team sat down and we felt for the past few years the awards have been shrouded in controversy and didn't represent what was happening in this country.

"In previous years there has been a lot of bias and the auditing was not up to scratch."

KO released his album Skhanda Republic on iTunes last week.

Even five-times SA Hip-Hop Awards winner AKA, who is up for nine awards this year and boycotted the show two years ago, was shocked to hear of KO's omission.

He tweeted: "No song of the year nomination for Caracara? Why must there always be controversy? ... *sigh* ... We all know that's the song of the year."

The awards ceremony will be at Gold Reef City's The Lyric Theatre on December 17.