Sandiso Marco Magqabi fondly known as “UmTranskei Ongekho Shy” is an up and coming hip hop artist based in Site B, Khayelitsha.
Growing up in the villages of the then Ciskei and Transkei – Marco’s love of music was born while he tended cattle in the rural areas of Ngqamakhwe and Ndakane.
When he moved to Cape Town to further his studies at Mayisile High School he was drawn to the infectious sounds of kwaito and RnB.
“I fell in love with music since I was a child, but inspired by kwaito and RnB music from the mid 1990s , I wrote my first kwaito song in 2002,” said Marco.
He recording himself on cassette tape until he was introduced to the late Abongile Kroza, a producer associated with Lampiter Clan Productions who then guided him through his first properly recorded album.
“I made my first album under Lampiter. It was titled Ndisukaphi, Ndisiyaphi?. My second album was released in 2016,” he said.
“I’ve performed in different places around Cape Town but I intend travelling around so to broaden my scope,” he added.
His latest offering, an album titled Isikhalo Sonyana, has been well received by his fans and is receiving regular airplay on many community radio stations.
You can follow @MARCOumtranskie on Twitter; @MARCO_uos on Instagram; and Sandiso Marco Magqabi on Facebook.