K.III Credit: Photo by Jason Ryan c/o Gasparilla Music Festival
After a critically acclaimed performance at Gasparilla Music Festival just a few weeks ago, Tampa-born rapper Kenneth Lighon III—a.k.a. K.III—is hitting streaming services for the first time this week.

To celebrate K.III is playing an album release show at Crowbar in Ybor City on Friday, March 11.

A Wave Theory artist, he’s been playing live around Tampa Bay since being a poet in high school, but finally got into Dap Lyfe Studios to create his debut album with producer Mike Mass. After what feels like forever, K.III is finally hosting a release party for Chillin’ & Maintainin’ alongside Ghanian-American rapper Chael Blinya, classical cellist and composer Brianna Tam, and Intelle’q.

Way to mix it up, Ken.

This article appears in Mar 10-16, 2022.

Read his 2016 intro letter and disclosures from 2022 and 2021. Ray Roa started freelancing for Creative Loafing Tampa in January 2011 and was hired as music editor in August 2016. He became Editor-In-Chief...