Rocky Dawuni

Rocky Dawuni (born 22 January 1969)^[1]is a Ghanaian singer, a three-time Grammy-nominee,^[2] songwriter and record producer who performs his signature 'Afro Roots' sound which is a mixture of Reggae, Afrobeats, Highlife and Soul music. He currently lives between Ghana and Los Angeles.^[3] Rocky is a three-time Grammy nominated musician and activist.

Rocky Dawuni
Rocky Dawuni
Background information
Born	(1969-01-22) January 22, 1969 (age 54)
Origin	Ghana
Occupation(s)	Musician and Activist
Website	www.rockydawuni.com

Music career

Dawuni got acquainted with Reggae in Ghana when he heard a military band performing one of Bob Marley's compositions in Michel Camp;^[4] a military barracks where he grew up.^[3] Dawuni started the annual "Independence Splash" festival, which is held in Ghana on Ghanaian Independence Day, March 6.^[3]

Dawuni has recorded eight full-length albums. ^[3] His sixth studio album titled Branches of The Same Tree was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album in December 2015 for the 58th Annual Grammy Awards,^[5] released 31 March 2015 making him the first nominee from his home country of Ghana.^[6] Songlines Magazine named the Branches of Same Tree album in the top 10 most essential reggae albums of all time.^[7] Inspired by the soulful beats of Fela Kuti and Bob Marley, the album highlighted Dawuni's ability to communicate uplifting messages to the hear of millions.^[8]

Beats of Zion, the 2019 single by Rocky, which was released January 25 ^[9] is a precursor to his 7th studio album which also bears the same title and featured Ghana's dancehall star, [Stonebwoy].^{[10][11][12][13]} The last video for the albums is "Champion Arise", which was named "Top Tune of the Day" on premier National Public Radio Station KCRW.^[14][15]

In June 2019 Rocky released the new single "Modern Man", remixed by Gaudi. His 8th studio release, Voice of Bunbon, Vol. 1 was nominated during the Grammy Award for Best Global Music Album in the 64th Annual Grammy Awards, making Rocky a multi-Grammy nominee in 2022. Three music videos were released for the EP including "Ghost Town",^[16] which was shot by photographer Casey Bridges (son of actor Beau Bridges). The music video "Beautiful People" from the album was shot in Rocky's home village of Bunbon by Ghanaian cinematographer, Slingshot.

Rocky released the music video for Woara (which translates as "you or it's you" in Twi) in September 2021. It was sung in the local Akan dialect, Twi. Woara is a love song with a call and response style to express the beauty and triumph of being in love.^[17]

In 2022, Dawuni got his third Grammy nomination, thus the Best Global Music Performance for his work “Neva Bow Down” featuring Blvk H3ro. He has had two previous nominations in 2015 and 2021. ^[18][19]

Activism and Goodwill

The musician and activist who is known to straddle the boundaries between Africa, the Caribbean and the U.S. to create sounds that unite generations and cultures works to foster global peace. Dawuni has shared the stage with Stevie Wonder, Peter Gabriel, Bono, Jason Mraz, Janelle Monáe and John Legend, among many others. Named one of Africa's Top 10 global stars by CNN.^[20]

Dawuni's stature as a cultural diplomat and successful melding of music and activism have led him to become a spokesperson for various global causes. He is a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for Africa for UN Environment^[21] and is a Global Ambassador for the UN Foundation's Clean Cooking Alliance alongside actress Julia Roberts and Chef José Andrés.^[22][23]

Rocky was named the Global Ambassador for the World Day of African and Afrodescendant Culture recognized by UNESCO, through which he uses his music to shine a light on crucial issues facing humanity across the globe.

Discography

Album	Year
The Movement	1996
Crusade	1998
Awakening	2001
Book of Changes	2005 ^[24]
Hymns for the Rebel Soul	2010
Branches of The Same Tree	2015 ^[25]
Beats of Zion	2019 ^[26]

Videography

Year	Title	Director	Ref
2010	Walk The Talk	—	^[27]
2010	African Reggae Fever	—	^[28]
2010	Download The Reveolution	—	^[29]
2015	Nairobi	—	^[30]
2015	African Thriller	—	^[31]
2017	Shine a Light	—	^[32]
2019	Beats of Zion	—	^[33]
2019	Elevation	—	^[34]
2019	Champion Arise	—	^[35]
2022	Neva Bow Down	Slingshot	^[36]

Music featured in movies

Soundtrack	Movie title	Movie Genre
Shine a Light^[37]	Fist Fight	Comedy

Music featured on television

Track	TV Program	TV Station
Wake the Town	ER	NBC
Jammin Nation	Weeds	Showtime
Jah Be For Us	Weeds (TV series)	Showtime
Shashemane	ER	NBC
Jah Be For Us	Dexter (TV series)	Showtime
Knockin on Heaven's Door	ER	NBC
Turn it Up	Animal Kingdom (TV Series)	TNT (U.S. TV network)
Burn One	Animal Kingdom (TV series)	TNT (U.S. TV network)

Music featured on video games

Track	EA Games	Year
African Thriller	2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil	2014
African Soccer Fever	2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa	2010
Download the Revolution	FIFA 10	2009
The One	The Sims 2: Castaway	2008
Wake Up the Town ft. Nana Ama x Shee	FIFA 08	2007

External links

• Official Website
• Official Youtube Page

References

1. "Rocky Dawuni music, videos, stats, and photos". Last.fm. 2023-05-09. Retrieved 2023-11-07.
2. "as of 2023 Rocky became a three-time Grammy Nominee". theafricandream.net. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
3. "'Ghana's Bob Marley' spreads message of brotherhood". CNN. 23 August 2011. Retrieved 9 March 2015.
4. "Rocky grew up in Michel Camp, Ghana". katc.com. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
5. "Branches of the Same Tree album". iTunes. Retrieved 10 December 2015.
6. "Rocky nominated for a Grammy". theafricandream.net. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
7. "Roots Reggae Albums | The Essential 10". Songlines. Retrieved 2022-06-27.
8. "Rocky Dawuni". Cumbancha. Retrieved 2022-06-27.
9. "2019 single release". TheAfricanDream.net. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
10. "2019 album". TheAfricanDream.net. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
11. "Beats of Zion". PopMatters. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
12. "Beats of Zion album". PopMatters. Retrieved 22 June 2019.
13. "Rocky Dawuni Aims to Re-energize the Forces of Love and Hope on "Beats of Zion" (premiere), PopMatters". PopMatters. 2019-01-22. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
14. "Rocky Dawuni: "Champion Arise" | Today's Top Tune". KCRW. 2020-06-30. Retrieved 2022-06-27.
15. "Rocky Dawuni 'Champion Arise' video premiere". Music-News.com. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
16. Rocky Dawuni "Ghost Town", retrieved 2022-06-28
17. Rocky Dawuni "Woara", retrieved 2022-06-28
18. Nwafor (2023-01-22). "Sheila O fetes Grammy nominees, Tobe Nwigwe, Rocky Dawuni". Vanguard News. Retrieved 2023-01-31.
19. Francis-Pitt, K'Shema (2023-01-30). "Who will win the Grammy for Best Reggae Album?". IrieFm. Retrieved 2023-01-31.
20. "Rocky featured on CNN". cnn.com. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
21. "UN Goodwill Ambassador". unenvironment.org. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
22. "Rocky works with Clean Cook Alliance". cleancookingalliance.org. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
23. "Rocky Clean Cook Alliance". theafricandream.net. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
24. "Book of Changes". iTunes. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
25. "Branches of The Same Tree at 58th Grammys". Grammy. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
26. "7th album". TheAfricanDream.net. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
27. "Walk The Talk video". sonichits.com. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
28. "African Reggae Fever video". rastafari.tv. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
29. "Sownload The Revolution video". biafranunity.tv. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
30. "Music Video Rocky Dawuni - Nairobi". Pulse.com.gh. David Mawuli. Retrieved 16 February 2016.
31. "African Thriller video". TheAfricanDream.net. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
32. "Shine a Light video". www.axs.com. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
33. "Beats of Zion video". TheAfricanDream.net. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
34. "Elevation video". RockyDawuni.com. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
35. "Champion Arise video". TheAfricanDream.net. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
36. "Rocky Dawuni releases 'Neva Bow Down' video ft Blvk H3ro". Ghana Weekend. 2022-10-08. Retrieved 2022-10-11.
37. "Fist Fight soundtrack". soundtrackmania.net. Retrieved 6 February 2019.