South African Rapper, AKA Reacts To Reports Of Violent Abuse Of Late Partner, Nelli Tembe (Photos)
South African rapper, Kiernan Jarryd Forbes better known as AKA, has issued a public statement in response to reports of alleged “violence and drugs” in his relationship with his late 22-year-old fiancée, Nelli Tembe.
Recall that Nelli died on April 11 after apparently falling from the 10th floor of the Pepperclub hotel in Cape Town.
Following her death, which is being is still being investigated by the Police, News24 on Saturday released images where “AKA can be seen using his hands to violently break down a wooden door in a bid to get to his late fiancée in what seemed like an attack”.
The publication revealed that a close friend of Tembe, who spoke in a police statement said Nelli Tembe, who engaged to AKA, was a victim of severe violence at the hands of the rapper.
She said in a statement to police:
In the past few weeks, following the passing of my close friend Anele Tembe, I have been meditating and seeking guidance on what it is that I am to do in order to exercise my rights and to deliver on my responsibilities as a young adult in a country that fails to adequately protest its women and girls. The responsibility that I have is towards the many women and girls in this country, especially young women such as myself, who remain impressionable.
Read Also: South African Rapper, AKA Breaks Silence Following Fiancée’s Death
The close friend added;
Nelli was on numerous occasions physically and emotionally abused by AKA. My beloved friend was a victim of gender-based violence (GBV). As women, we are too quiet about the abuse that is happening behind closed doors. We must speak out! I am today speaking out.
According to the woman, Tembe recorded her fiance breaking down the door in their Bryanston apartment.
He allegedly smashed her face against a wall during a fight, and she ran to the bedroom to escape. Tembe allegedly gave the footage to her friend, who also came to her rescue after the attack.
The friend said;
Anele, on many nights, sought protection from those close to her whenever AKA, whom she said became extra violent whenever he had taken drugs, attacked her, We often picked up Anele from AKA’s house in the early hours of the morning following endless attacks on her by AKA. Anele reported the incident to me. She then sent the video of the attack.
She further revealed that her late friend sent her the video of the attacks she witnessed in the hands of the rapper.
However, AKA while reacting to the allegations in a statement on Instagram, described his relationship with Tembe as “beautiful, yet challenging.”
He also said he would not be drawn into exposing their troubles as a couple to defend himself against “one-sided views”.
The rapper also slammed allegations that “drug use and incidents of violence” plagued the couple’s relationship, labelling the reports an “attempt to disparage his name and Nelli’s character”.
Read Also: She Didn’t Die By Suicide – Father Of AKA’s Fiancée Says As She Is Laid To Rest
He expressed;
What makes it even sadder is the knowledge that some of the people, she and I loved and entrusted with our deepest troubles, are now using those as weapons to set a negative narrative on my character.
I am a passionate and emotional person. What I will not do and stand for is watching people attempt to disparage my name and, importantly, Nelli’s to suit a narrative we both never signed up for.
View this post on Instagram
