Tony Forbes gets candid about waiting for SAPS to get justice for his son AKA

Tony Forbes is still processing his son's death.

Kiernan “AKA” Forbes was shot dead outside a restaurant in Durban on February 10. 

The rapper's father opened up about his grief at the recent platinum plaque handover to the Forbes family and Vth Season by Sony Music Entertainment Africa after his album Mass Country raked in 35,404 units, equivalent to 40,972,588 streams. 

“I feel emotional, proud and also grateful that we had him. Though he died at 35, when he left this life he had made a mark on the world,” he told TshisaLIVE.

“It's not about the volume of sales. For me it's that people want to hear his music, to remember him and feel inspired by him,”

With his son's death still under investigation, Tony said he's trying to be patient to ensure the process is thorough and justice is done. 

“There are days where one hopes to hear the news that something happened. But we still want to give the process space. We are in touch with investigators and they keep us abreast, it does seem slow, but it's only [been] six months.”

He admits that while some people might have mixed feelings seeing him going to Soho Night Club, Drama Bar Lounge or Coco, it has been a part of his grieving.  

“Through what I post on Instagram I hope to bring the good memories and tell the stories, that is the intentional side. The unintentional side is I struggle with the loss and I'm not the type of person who can sit at home and cry all day. I cry all day because I miss him so much, but then I go to where he used to work, I feel closer to him. I'm not saying that is the right way for me to grieve and deal with the loss.”

Speaking of his relationship with rapper Nadia Nakai, Tony said she would always be part of the Forbes family.

“That is the person Kiernan was closest to outside his immediate family; for us Nadia is family, it's not a question of whether they were married, for us she is part of the family and there's no debate about that.”

Tony's on a mission to keep AKA's legacy alive for fans and family members, but most importantly for AKA's daughter Kairo, who AKA shared with DJ Zinhle. 

In the week leading up to AKA's funeral at Westpark Cemetery in Johannesburg, friends and artists close to the Sponono hit maker gathered to speak about the journey they shared with the star. Some of the stories, Tony says, he hopes to have written down by his friends and fans so he could turn them into a book. 

“As much as we were sad at that point, just hearing those stories lifted us. It's still difficult, but I thought, 'what if we take those stories and capture them in a book?', so that's what I'm going to do. It's a coffee-table book which will be like my Chicken Soup For the Soul, that when I'm down, I think about what they said and one day Kairo will read the book as well.”