Jordan Katembula (born 1978) known professionally as JK, is a

Zambian Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are ...

singer, songwriter and record producer. He is regarded as one of the pioneers of Zambian music and the R&B genre in Zambia.

Early life

Born in 1978 in

Ndola Ndola is the third largest city in Zambia and third in terms of size and population, with a population of 475,194 (''2010 census provisional''), after the capital, Lusaka, and Kitwe, and the second largest in terms of infrastructure development aft ...

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...

, He attended his junior school at Chilengwa Basic School in Ndola and he completed his secondary education at Lubuto Secondary School. At the age of eight he identified himself as a musician.

Music career

1997-2000:Early Years

JK begun his music journey in 1997 when he first recorded a demo at savoy hotel in Ndola with a band known as the ukwa band. In order to accomplish his childhood dream of been a musician, Jk relocated to Lusaka were the grass seemed greener. Within a short while he met rapper MC Wabwino and later featured on his (MC Wabwino) popular album Yamene Yamene album. In 1999 he joined a group called

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where he was lead vocalist. Before long, in 2000 he left the group and decided to become a sole artist. because of his unblemished voice he was featured on a number of songs including Shatel's hit song naitopela of the Chikondi album.

2001-2003:The Rise

In 2001 Jk he released his own debut album, the self-titled K In 2002, J.K. received a Ngoma Award as well as a KORA Award nomination. He also performed in London and South Africa. Furthermore he received great support from the public. J.K.'s second album, the 14-track ''Helena'', was released in 2003. On one track, he performed a duet with renowned Oliver Mutukudzi, a Zimbabwean musician. This album's style varies from upbeat dance raps, ragga, to slow ballads. On ''No Pressure'', he collaborated on one song with

Hugh Masekela Hugh Ramapolo Masekela (4 April 1939 – 23 January 2018) was a South African trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, singer and composer who was described as "the father of South African jazz". Masekela was known for his jazz compositions and for ...

from South Africa. In 2010, Katembula released another album, ''Kapiripiri'', titled after the single "Kapiripiri". It features Salma Doldia, a female Zambian artist. The album was produced by Digital X, a Lusaka based studio. The "Kapilipili" music video received air play on MTVbase and channel-O. In 2014 he released a song titled "Telemundo loving" which aired on channel O and all local TV stations in Zambia. Some of his music videos are available on YouTube

Discography

Studio albums

* ''JK'' - 2001 * ''Helena (album), Helena'' - 2003 * ''Balapembela'' - 2006 * ''Akapilipili" - 2010 * ''Telemundo Loving'' - 2014

References

21st-century Zambian male singers Living people 1978 births People from Lusaka {{Zambia-bio-stub