- Nadia Nakai says she will never date another rapper or celebrity again.
- She wants her future relationships to remain private, away from the public eye.
- Losing AKA was a deeply traumatic experience, worsened by having to grieve publicly.
- AKA, real name Kiernan Forbes, was shot and killed in Durban on February 10, 2023.
- His death shocked fans across Africa, and investigations continue.
South African TV personality and rapper Nadia Nakai has opened up about how the loss of her late partner, Kiernan “AKA” Forbes, has permanently changed how she views love and relationships.
In a candid conversation with Fresh Men Magazine, Nadia revealed that she has no intention of ever dating another rapper — or anyone in the entertainment industry. For her, the grief of losing AKA was devastating on its own, but what made it even more unbearable was having to mourn under the glare of public attention.
She explained that the pressure of constantly being reminded of her pain by strangers and the relentless questions from fans and social media users left deep emotional scars. Moving forward, she says, her priority is to protect her private life. Any future relationship, she stressed, will be kept far from the spotlight to spare herself the public dissection of her personal grief.
Nadia’s decision is rooted in tragedy. On February 10, 2023, AKA was gunned down in Durban outside a restaurant where he had been dining with friends before a scheduled nightclub performance. The brazen attack, captured on surveillance cameras, shocked Africa’s music scene and was widely described as a targeted assassination. Investigations into his killing have since led to arrests, but the pain of his loss continues to weigh heavily on those closest to him.
For Nadia, the experience has left a permanent imprint: while she has not closed her heart to love, she is determined that her next chapter will unfold away from fame, scrutiny, and the unrelenting gaze of the public.
Reflective Angle
Nadia’s revelation is more than a personal decision — it shines a light on the hidden cost of dating someone in the public eye. Fame, while glamorous from the outside, magnifies every joy and tragedy. In Nadia’s case, her grief became a spectacle, one she had no choice but to share with strangers.
Her story raises a question many celebrities quietly face: is it worth sacrificing privacy and peace of mind for a relationship lived in the limelight? For Nadia, the answer is no.
After enduring the trauma of losing AKA in such a brutal and public way, she is reclaiming control of her narrative — choosing love that is private, grounded, and away from the unforgiving scrutiny of social media.
