For K.ONE aka Kaleb Vitale, this is the stuff dreams are made of. His meteoric rise from relative obscurity to one of the most prolific hip hop artists in New Zealand is unprecedented: the kind of success that many artists work towards across an entire career. But it's far from over...
Hailing from the small town of Masterton, K.ONE who is of Pacific Island and European decent has a background somewhat different to his industry peers who surround him. Making a living as a forestry worker for 7 years, he knew the meaning of hard work. It was this same hardworking ethic that he applied to his life-long passion for music, which drove him to hone his craft and record a demo that he then submitted to labels. That very same demo caught the ear of CEO and founder of Illegal Musik, Mark Arona who in turn began to work silently with the small town rapper, building his skill until he was at a level to unleash on the nation.
The rest is history. He tasted chart success within months of his release, playing part in his label mate J Williams top 5 single 'Night Of Your Life' who then returned the favour on K.ONES biggest hit 'SHE’S A KILLER' which stayed in the charts for a lengthy 10 weeks straight. Add another Top 40 single, a Top 20 debut album and countless features to the list, K.ONE crossed over with significant mainstream success. Something that had been a rarity in recent years, ever since the glory days of NZ Hip Hop. The future had arrived and K.ONE soon became one of the most heard voices on radio, no stranger to TV and performing in front of thousands became a thing of the norm. With co-signs from local legends he found himself in a tour bus or studio working with the very same artists he had idolised and aspired to be like back in his hometown.
Over the past year, K.ONE has secured his reputation as one the busiest artists around! Spending the majority of his time on the road touring the country as well as overseas, he is considered one of the best in the game on stage.
With his sights set on the Australian market, 2013 promises to be a huge year for K.ONE.