Why we need Ozi F Teddy in the hip hop game
Dumisani Ncube | Friday February 3, 2017 14:25
Taking swipes at other rappers and making diss tracks has surely pulled him up the ladder. In 2016 Ozi F Teddy, real name Ted Phaphane, created some of the memorable beefs that helped shape the rap and hip hop game in Botswana and that is the main reason why we need him in 2017 going forward.
We heard of Ozi F Teddy for the first time around 2011 when he was still at Rimzy Productions with former friend and current rival ATI. At the time he was just making covers of American Rappers’ songs.
Ozi F Teddy then stepped up when he released his first official single, Always from his 13-tracked debut album titled While I’m Here released in November 2011. Still in the same year, he collaborated with ATI, and released a track called On My Way and that is when other people started to recognise him. That was before he found himself entangled in controversy because of the comments he makes on social media. In 2012 he collaborated with Zeus in the track On My Grind and the latter was still making headlines at the time. Ozi was then featured in the remix of ATI’s Lekhete, a song that was a national anthem during that year.
Ozi F Teddy decided to take the game to another level. The hip hop game was silent and too boring up until he started his social media rants. His first controversial comment engulfed the industry when he posted on his social media page, “Local music is trash”. Through the post Ozi created a lot of enemies within the industry but he kept going despite the criticism. In 2015, he posted “BW rappers are boring, they only entertain themselves” and the post further attracted a lot criticism especially from local rappers.
After his bitter breakup with female rapper Sasa Klaas, Ozi made a diss track this time around aiming shots at Nigel Amos who at the time was rumoured to be dating his ex-girlfriend. Ozi was now all over everyone, after insulting Bang! Gae record label for over a year, he was involved in a Twitter rant with Zeus over a song they share. Even though it did not lead anywhere, Zeus won the round.
Last year he released a diss track directing shots at ATI and Young Black. The brutal diss track called Body Bag 3 received a lot of attention on social media. Young Black responded in two tracks, while ATI has not responded until now. The rapper from Thamaga then had another feud with Vee over contractual issues at Fill Up Stanbic Bank Piazza. Late last year Ozi released yet another track called Same Ho*s.
On the song the rapper calls out almost everyone in the rap industry stating that people within the industry, himself included, are sleeping with the same circle of women which he refers to as ‘same ho*s’.
He called different names such as Vee Mampeezy, Apollo D, Drama Boi, DJ Izzy Zeus, Cassper Nyovest, Ban T, Peter Butler and Nijel Amos.
In the opening line of the track he says “me and Vee Mampeezy fu*k the same ho*s, me and T Izzy fu*k the same hoes, me and Ban T fu*k the same hoes”.
“I was just having fun on that song its not like I meant what I said on the song, most of the people I mentioned are my friends. I was just trying to bring out something fresh coz most of these guys are sounding too American. I am that guy who tells local stories that are relevant to our people and the industry,” Ozi F Teddy told Arts & Culture.
With hip hop being an industry of conspiracies, beefs, competition and strength there is no reason to crucify Ozi F Teddy, he is actually taking the hip hop standards to other heights with his own style and energy.
We have always seen international rappers doing controversial things and getting accepted because they are rappers, a vivid example is when Casper Nyovest called out some OGs such as Amu, Slikour and K.O on one of his songs saying that he is richer than them.
Ozi noted that this year he will be releasing an album called Lord Summer, “this is my biography I will be talking about my life, surroundings and everything relevant to me”.
He performed Same Ho*s at the Rick Ross show, but fans were super cold. Ozi who is now using WWE’s HHP theme song during his performances ended his performance by saying, “My name is Ozi F Teddy and I am the best rapper in Botswana”.
To some he may not be the best rapper in the country, but he is surely a rapper you cannot ignore. He throws insults randomly and that is perhaps the trait that makes him more unpredictable. He is talented and while his attitude may derail him from reaching his level best, we certainly need him in the game.