Rocky Dawuni
Rocky Dawuni was born in 1969 and originally comes from the northern Yendi Dagbon
traditional area of Ghana but he was raised at Michel Camp Army Barracks near Accra, where his father was a sergeant.
He was influenced by the Hot Barrels army band. He attended the University of Ghana, where he studied psychology and philosophy. While still a student, he formed his fIrst reggae group, Local Crisis, in 1991.
ROcky later left for the USA and in 1996 he released his first album, ‘Movement’ followed by ‘Crusade’, which was recorded in Ghana as a tribute to the country’s 40th anniversary. It was released on Aquarian Records, a company run by his wife, Carey Sullivan, and by Rocky’s older brother, Bob Dawuni. Crusade was first performed at a special concert in Abidjan that also featured Steel Pulse, Rita Marley and Sister Carol. In 2000 Rocky made his first US tour, appearing at festivals, such as the Jazz and Reggae Festival and the 6th Annual Sierra Nevada World Music Festival.
In 2001 Rocky released his third album, ‘Awakening’, at the Rocky Dawuni Reggae Sunsplash on Ghana’s Independence Day (March 6th ) to a crowd of 20,000 in Accra. Rocky Dawuni works with’ AfricaLive,’ an NGO that promotes live music in Ghana and supports music education in Ghanaian schools.
Kwadwo Julius Antwi Ghanaian reggae star
Kwadwo Antwi is popular for his romantic Twi songs, backed by a ‘lovers’ rock’ form of reggae (a romantic style of reggae popularised by Jamaican singer, Gregory Isaacs.). Kwadwo began his career in two early Ghanaian reggae bands of the 1970s: the Classic Handels and then the Classic Vibes. It was with the six-piece Classic Vibes band that he first left Ghanaian shores for Denmark and then Switzerland. Since then he has been partly based in Switzerland, where he has released a string of successful records and CDs. In fact
his wife is Swiss, and often sings chorus on his records.
Kwadwo’s first albums were ‘All I Need Is You’ and ‘Saman’ released in 1986 and 1987. During the 1990s Kwadwo produced many solo albums, such as ‘Akwanoma Anokye’ ‘Don’t Stop the Music’ and ‘Akuaba’, Every Christmas, he returns to Ghana to perform live at the National Theatre for his Ghanaian fans.