AKA is no longer partnering with the brands he had deals with, including Cruz Vodka.
AKA has put his work with the vodka brand on pause amid public scrutiny and backlash over leaked videos of him fighting with his late girlfriend, Anele “Nellie” Tembe.
Tembe, 22, died on April 11 after a fall from the 10th floor of the Pepper Club in Cape Town. Her death is being investigated.
Her father, Moses Tembe, has put on record that he does not believe his daughter committed suicide.
A video, which emerged in reports at the weekend, shows AKA breaking down a bedroom door with his hands, apparently trying to get to Tembe, who had locked herself in the room. The alleged incident happened on March 13.
AKA issued a statement saying that the videos were leaked to push a narrative that he was abusive to Tembe and to push the police to investigate the death of his fiancee.
But women’s groups and some stars called for his cancellation.
They wanted his music to be stopped playing on television and on radio stations.
In that regard, AKA announced that he wanted to put a stop to some of the gigs he had been lined up on as his comeback.
This week, it was also revealed that the “Fela in Versace” hitmaker had chosen to step back from his involvement, or working with Cruz Vodka.
AKA had been working with the alcohol company for years and one of its brands had his name.
In a statement, AKA said the past few weeks have been excruciatingly difficult for him. “Beyond dealing with the loss of Anele, the love of my life, I am also having to deal with snippets taken out of context of our relationship that found their way to social media.
“In time I will share my side of the story in a sincere and honest manner, which will afford the greatest of respect to the relationship I shared with Anele and both our families.
“I am not perfect, she was not without her flaws, but I am not what events of the last few days have painted me to be.
“We were in love and had committed to each other.”
“Having had time to reflect on the past few days, I have engaged with my business partners and I feel that it is best that I temporarily step back from my duties with Cruz Vodka as I need this time to focus on the way forward and deal with my personal matters.
“I have done this for the sake of Anele’s memory which will forever be entrenched in my heart, our families, and my fans.
“I am grateful to my business partners at Cruz Vodka for all their support and understanding of this decision to give me time.
“Daily I wake up to the reality that the person I was building a future with is no more, the pain is unbearable, with God's grace I will remain strong and pick up the pieces,” he said.
#kiernan #aka Forbes seems to have been dropped by Cruz Vodka following allegations of Abuse pic.twitter.com/36mPBLRR2C