By: Lebohang Maluke

Maseru – That’s a tragic and speaks of the strength and resilience of [U1] an artist. Tumelo Seliane known as T Born lost her mother at the young age which is a devastating experience that left lasting impact on his personal emotional well- being and development.

“The thing that led me to help others, I lost my mother, she was murdered and I grew without knowing my father so I know the pain and struggle of growing up without knowing those people”. T Born says, that his faith impact the broken souls and mends the broken hearts.

It is amazing for T Born to be able to transform his pain into the positive force of change, using his music and work to make a difference in the lives of orphanage children.

“I decided to give back to the community because I love people and I found joy when I help the vulnerable”, he says.

He established FREEDOM KNOCKOUT CHARITY which registered last year September. That is really impressive! Starting an NGO and employing 10 people is no small feat, especially when driven by personal mission to support orphaned children. It shows that hip- hop gospel did not only affect his own experiences, but he is also dedicated to making a positive impact on others.

He says that this steps of creating the NGO, it is a concrete steps to support the well- being and resources of orphanages in his country, and providing them with the resources and support they need to thrive.

FREEDOM KNOCKOUT CHARITY aims to donate to all orphanages and enhance life of the orphans. Their objective is to build school facilities and orphanages in all ten districts of Lesotho.

It is wonderful to witness the hip- hop gospel artist using their platforms to make a positive impact in their communities. It is often that hip- hop gospel artists experience personal struggles and hardships, which inspire their music and amazing work. For some artists, growing up as an orphans or experience similar forms of loss and abandonment can be powerful source of motivation to help others who are in the same situations.

Many hip- hop gospel artists have significant following and are able to raise funds through concerts, merchandise sales and crow- funding campaigns. These funds support the daily needs of orphanages, like food, clothing and education. They have a strong connection with their fans and leverages their popularity to make a real difference. In addition to the monetary donations, they can also use concerts or event to raise awareness about orphanages and the needs of children in their communities.

Connecting with others who are in same situation of struggle through his music and different platforms to share his stories to create a powerful bond between the artist and the audience. It also inspires others to overcome adversity and achieve their goals.

He is a song writer, and performer. Tumelo got this name of T Born while he was reading John chapter 3 verse 3 where Jesus tells the priest that unless they repent they cannot enter the kingdom of God. He now has three albums:  SON RISE 1, SON RISE 2 and THE PASSION (third album) that he aims to give hope to the hopeless, he lost everything but did not give up because the Holy Spirit guides him. His song TRIBUTED TO THE LOVED ONES consoles the nation, during covid-19 many people lost their loved ones, also regular accidents that leads to deaths.

“It is the great pleasure to be nominated under such a big awards of Republic of South Africa as the BEST GOSPEL HIP- HOP SONG under INDEPENDENT NATIONAL MUSIC AWARDS (INGOMA)”,  he says.

He emphasizes that his music is the gift from God while the dedication is from God. He faced many challenges in the church before he convinced them that hip- hop gospel is not evil. His music has a great impact to the young and old school couples.

The message he conveys to other artists is to stay relevant to what they do, encourages them to work hard and one day they will bear the fruitful benefits even when they face challenges and obstacles they should stay humbled and put their work first. People should show love to one another and care for those in need.


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