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Bahati defies Khaligraph’s warning to postpone ‘Matamu’ release amid Hip-Hop beef
20th February, 2026 02:29 PM
He’s the king of clout chasing, but on Friday, February 20, 2026, Bahati proved he’s also the king of defiance.
Despite a public warning from rap heavyweight Khaligraph Jones to ‘stay in his lane’ while the hip-hop community is at war, Bahati officially unleashed the music video for his new single ‘Matamu’.
The move has sparked a fresh clash between the singer and the rapper, with the former refusing to let a trending rap beef swallow his first major release of the year.
The friction began earlier this week when Khaligraph Jones jokingly ‘advised’ Bahati to postpone the release.
The rapper pointed to the intense digital battle currently raging between Toxic Lyrikali and the Buruklyn Boyz, suggesting that a love ballad would be buried by the rap fans’ appetite for blood.
Bahati, however, wasn’t having any of it, dismissing Khaligraph in a blunt response on social media.
In a surprising twist, Bahati also used the release to distance himself from his recent viral mother-search drama.
Critics, including producer Wuod Fibi, had claimed the singer was using a fake DNA test with a woman claiming to be his mother just to build kiki (clout) for the song.
“New Song inaitwa #MATAMU na haihusu DNA wala Mama so Tulieni (The new song is called Matamu and it’s not about DNA or Mom, so relax),” Bahati wrote, attempting to separate his professional work from the personal soap opera that has dominated headlines for weeks.
While the rap world trades barbs, ‘Matamu’ takes a decidedly softer approach.
Filmed at the luxurious Waterfront Country Club in Juja, the visuals – directed by Nezzoh Montana – show Bahati in a series of high-fashion romantic scenes with lead model Rahab Tins.
