Long before the viral clips and the millions of likes, Kericho-based TikToker Khesir Johnson was fighting a very private war.
In an exclusive interview with Newsunplug.co.ke, the creator behind the handle @tallman085 opened up about how addiction nearly derailed his life and how an unlikely combination of fatherhood and a global rap icon helped pull him back.
“I discovered TikTok during a challenging period in my life when I was struggling with addiction and trying to find my way through some personal difficulties,” Khesir told Newsunplug.co.ke.
For him, those early videos, filmed amid the lush banana plantations of Kericho, were less about clout and more about survival.
What was Khesir’s motivation?
The clearest motivation to change came through his daughter.
“My daughter saved me. I knew I had to get clean for her,” he said. That decision to turn his life around quietly laid the foundation for everything that followed.
Today, Khesir commands over 860,000 followers and has accumulated 17 million likes, but perhaps no single moment captures his extraordinary journey quite like his recent encounter with Cardi B.
He posted a selfie-style video outdoors, energetically lip-syncing to the rapper’s track “Check Please” from her album AM I THE DRAMA?, surrounded by the greenery that has become his signature backdrop.
The clip drew 7,818 comments, but one in particular stopped everything. Cardi B herself, posting from her verified account, left a two-word response that set the internet alight:
“Period uncle.” The comment alone attracted 153,700 likes.
Khesir admitted he could barely believe what he was seeing. He replied directly to the superstar:
“Ooh, thank you so much, our queen, for such appreciation. I love your music and style. God bless you girl.”
Even that response resonated widely, pulling in 36,000 likes of its own.
The exchange is a striking illustration of how TikTok continues to bridge the gap between creators in small towns and some of the biggest names in global entertainment.
A man filming in a tea-growing region of Kenya had, without a publicist or a record deal, earned a public nod from one of the world’s most followed artists.
Now clean and building his platform steadily, Khesir told Newsunplug.co.ke he hopes his story reaches others still caught in cycles of addiction. His message is simple: there is a way through, even when it feels impossible.
