RAPPER: aka Ma-e
Ezee ‘Ma-E’ Hanabe was born in Pimville, Soweto. Together with his bother and
fellow Teargas
2
member, Ntukza, got into rapping and built the street buzz by free styling at kasi
sessions like
Black Sundae and Slaghuis then later started doing their own sessions in
Chiawelo, Soweto.
Ma-E first got a taste of the limelight when he was chosen to act in the play
Shaka Zulu and
even got to tour Scotland with the play in 2004. It was upon his
return that him and his brother Ntukza joined forces with fellow Vaal University of
Technology (VUT) student K.O and thus Teargas was born. To date Teargas
has released four critically acclaimed, award winning and commercially
successful albums which scored them a BET Awards Nomination; ‘K'shubile
K'bovu’, ‘Wafa Wafa’, ‘Dark Or Blue’ and ‘Num8er Num8er’. The success and
popularity of Teargas has helped built Ma-E into an African star and through his
various collaborations with other artists Ma-E has become one of the most
prominent Hip Hop artists in South Africa.