Tony Paperz

Paballo Tshilo, known professionally as Tony Paperz, is a South African independent singer-songwriter and fashion model whose work exists between alternative R&B, storytelling, and experimental performance practice.

From an early age, Tony began singing in local community gatherings as part of a cappella groups, developing a strong foundation in vocal performance, harmony, and collective sound. This early exposure shaped his understanding of music as both emotional expression and shared experience.

In 2013, while in high school, he joined the school choir. Initially singing from the back due to shyness, he later grew into the role of lead singer and conductor. During this period, he received his first award for Best Male Singer of the Year in a school production. It was also where he began developing his distinctive writing style—creating message-driven songs using figurative language and narrative techniques, which he described as “singing poetry.”

In 2016, Tony released his debut EP Scar Notes, followed by Scar Notes 2. These projects marked his early independent breakthrough and helped establish his presence within digital audiences drawn to his emotionally expressive and storytelling-led sound.

His growing artistic visibility led to wider opportunities, including a performance on e.tv’s Sunrise breakfast show. These experiences deepened his understanding of performance, audience connection, and independent artistry within the South African music landscape.

Alongside music, Tony Paperz developed a parallel career in fashion and street modelling, signing with Blaze Models, a Randburg-based modelling agency in 2019. His visual identity and fashion practice continue to inform his artistic direction, particularly in how he constructs mood, presence, and narrative through image and styling.

Currently, Tony Paperz is focused on expanding his practice beyond traditional music performance into interdisciplinary live art. His project “Tony Papers and the BLAK Assembly” represents this shift—an experimental live performance concept that merges alternative R&B, ritualistic performance, improvisation, and spiritual storytelling.

The work positions music as a living system shaped through collaboration, presence, and emotional exchange between performer and audience. Through this evolution, Tony Paperz continues to explore identity, vulnerability, love, and transformation—both sonically and visually—within contemporary experimental performance contexts.