Ghana's musical fireball celebrates the release of his third album with a live performance on stage, inviting Afriquoi (live) and Karen Nyame KG (DJ) to share this special moment.
K.O.G
“I view MUSIC as a major WEAPON in the BATTLEFIELD for PEACE of MIND in the world” – K.O.G
“Ghana’s finest” – Jools Holland, Later with Jools Holland, BBC2, March 2021
Kweku Sackey aka K.O.G (Kweku of Ghana) is a multi-dimensional creative force, combining exquisite writing skills with shamanistic live performance, fierce raps, perfectly on pitch singing across a massive vocal range and some absolutely wicked dance moves. Not to mention his skills as a percussionist, arranger, bandleader and art director. A true poet and storyteller, he uses a mix of English, Pidgin and Ga to paint sonic pictures that reach deep into the souls of everyone ready to listen.
“I love to make music that CONNECTS, REVIVES , EDUCATES and ENTERTAINS, drawing on the spiritual, physical, emotional and mental well being of us as individuals and our quest to maintain balance with the universe.”
Born in Accra, Ghana, to a nurse mother and marine engineer father who had studied in England, he grew up with a diverse range of international influences alongside Ghanaian styles: Tom Waits, Quincy Jones, Bob Marley, Sizzla, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Ebo Taylor, Gyedu Blay Ambolley, Atongo Simba, George Clinton, Pavarotti, Warsaw Village Band.
Resident for over 10 years in Sheffield, UK, music has taken him to perform on huge stages all over the world, from Glastonbury’s legendary West Holts stage to Fusion (Germany), Sauti Za Busara (Zanzibar), Kabardock (Reunion) and the Commonwealth Games (Gold Cost, Australia), winning the 2018 Young Commonwealth Performer and performing for Nelson Mandela’s family.
A prolific writer and collaborator, he needs a range of projects to showcase the different sides of his unique talent. He is the lead vocalist for afro-futurist project Onipa (Strut Records, Wormfood) and hi-life/hiphop/funk band K.O.G (Heavenly Sweetness), as well as collaborating extensively with Nubiyan Twist; his song ‘If I know’ off the Freedom Fables album (Strut, March 2021) was performed live on Later with Jools Holland and A playlisted twice on BBC6 Music.
Kweku is deeply aware of his heritage and of his role as an ambassador both through space and time, negotiating culturally both between African and Western influences and between the traditional and the modern: always open to new innovations and ideas while firmly rooted in a deep lineage. This openness has informed recent collaborations with a wide wide range of producers and writers, including Léon Phal, Jembaa Groove, Zed Bias, iZem, Afriquoi, Congo Natty, Scrimshire, Dark Sky, Dizraeli, Chiminyo, Umoja and many more in the pipeline. Third album on French label Heavenly Sweetness, produced by master French producer Guts (Alliance Ethnik) and longtime friend and collaborator Tom Excell (Nubiyan Twist, Onipa), will drop September 2024.
AFRIQUOI
Live African dance music, fusing Congolese guitar + Gambian kora virtuosity with UK electronic sensibilities to create uplifting, dancefloor- friendly new music for a new generation of music fans.
Afriquoi are an underground sensation, bringing an uplifting fusion of African music and live electronics. The masterful 5-piece live show combines Gambian kora, Congolese guitar + Mandinka percussion styles with electronic music drawing on house, garage, disco, soul + jungle to create something entirely unique.
Based in London, Afriquoi is a UK afro supergroup, with every musician a band leader in their own right. With members ranging in age across 3 decades, originating from Africa, the Carribean and the UK, Afriquoi is true fusion music in the best sense of the word, bringing together a vast depth of musical knowledge, culture and life experience.
Formed in 2011 out of London’s cultural melting pot, they have established a cult gobal fanbase, loved by fans both of African and electronic music. Their afro house classic ‘Kudaushe’ has become an established favourite in clubs all over the world, and they have toured all over Europe, with huge crowds singing along to their songs on major stages at Glastonbury, WOMAD, Dimensions, Fusion, Boomtown, Shambala, Bestival, Secret Garden Party and the London 2012 Olympics.
The debut album ‘Kolaba’ was released on 11th September 2015 on Wormfood Records, followed up by ‘Abobo Nation Part 1‘ in May 2016 and ‘Starship/Can I Know You‘ (featuring acclaimed jazz saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings and Ghanaian drumming troupe Kakatsitsi) in May 2017. 2nd EP ‘Time is A Gift Which We Share All the Time’ dropped in 2020 on French label Mawimbi, with new EP ‘Leave Your Vanity’ coming out in early 2023, including remixes by Zed Bias, Shy One, WheelUP and others.
The Afriquoi DJ set with live percussion has become something of a phenomenon in its own right, tearing up the floor with a wide spread of Afriquoi’s influences, from Oumou Sangare and Francis Bebey right through to Louie Vega and Midland. Check out DJ mixes for Dimensions Festival and Rinse FM.
KAREN NYAME KG (DJ)
Ever since KG’s childhood, percussion has been the sole force backing her reciprocity to music. Animated about programming electronic music at a young age, she quickly learned how to construct beats with drum machines. By eight years old, she was well accommodated with house loop patterns and soon after advanced to producing music using jungle or acid house presets in early music-making software. KG later became the official drummer of a steel pan group and was known by her friends as the musical one. She simply could not escape music; her affinity evolved from her early introductions to US garage, metal, and reggae into a love for uptempo beats with a soulful temperament.
Every release is surefire to showcase the evolving sound of London’s club music hybridity and bounce. Deserving the title as the “Goddess of Rhythm”, it’s so easy to get transported by KG’s plethora of African polyrhythms, low-end sub-basses, and energetic drum patterns. Although her trademark lies in the unique sprawling melodies that smoothly roll out over weighty basslines.
After self-releasing several tracks in 2007 (circulated online via UK Funky message boards), KG felt that success in electronic music, especially for women, was somewhat of a chimera. As her early tracks (808 and Midnight) were hoisted into acclaim, this was a time where men dominated UK Funky, and only a handful of women could achieve career stability in electronic music. With this realization, she withdrew from making music. From 2011 up until 2017, she was producing in secret alongside her nine-to-five, working with radio stations here and there, and ventured a bit into podcasting. But KG’s tracks were timeless and they frequently resurfaced in mixes by notable DJs and producers for nearly a decade.
In 2018, Goon Club Allstars reissued these long-lost tracks on their label, a comeback that revived her innovative percussive mastery. Soon after her resurgence, KG collaborated with Scratcha DVA for the 2019 Hyperdub release, Touch–lending her breathy ad-libs over cascading snares and claps that echoed markers of UK Funky and South African Gqom. Later work with Dance System and Simbad is what spurred her to start incorporating her voice into her productions. In 2020, she released her EP, Sensei on Goon Club Allstars, and her high-energy rhythms and melodic overtones, once again, instantly resonated.
KG’s music went on to receive support from BBC radio presenters such as Mary Anne Hobbs, Jamz Supernova, Benji B, and Tom Ravenscroft. With accolades in numerous press outlets like Mixmag, Dummy, DJ Mag, Fader, and Fact Mag, her Exhibition mix for Insert made rank as Resident Advisor’s mix of the day. As RA aims to reconcile with the industry’s history with a lack of representation, they celebrated Karen’s contribution to dance music in their ‘Re-record’ feature where she was given a platform to speak out on the misogynoir she faced in the last decade. Now KG noticed a shift for more opportunities to work with and alongside women producers, and at the end of 2020, Jamz Supernova’s Future Bounce
In 2021, KG made her acclaimed and long-awaited return to the global dance music scene, with the glorious, star-making EP Sensei II. Featuring the widely-celebrated sound of the summer, ‘Koko’, the project reached over 2 million streams, and truly reignited the flame for KG, with widespread support from Resident Advisor, Mixmag, DJ Mag, Pan African Music to name but a few. Collaborating with a host of incredible artists from across the African diaspora including Aymos, Toya Delazy, Taliwhoah and Mista Silva, KG wanted the essence of ‘back home’ to be felt throughout the whole project. While delighting long-standing fans as far back as the UK Funky days, Sensei II also heralded a new era, and with that a new dedicated and loving fanbase.
After tearing the house down at Primavera Sound Festival with her iconic Boiler Room session, and the guest RA’s first ever filmed Exchange, KG has also turned in widely acclaimed mixes for tastemakers including FACT, Dekmantel, Trippin’, as well as radio shows for BBC 1Xtra, NTS, Foundation FM, Worldwide FM and more. A keen collaborator, KG has traversed global sounds from Amapiano, Afrohouse, UK Funky, US Jersey Club and beyond, working with prolific artists including Uniiqu3, Dance System, Toya Delazy, Mista Silva, Aymos and many more. As well as previously having run a series of production workshops with Red Bull Music, in 2021, KG received a PRS Grant as part of the new PRS Power Up initiative – a long-term initiative created to support Black music creators and industry pro’s, as well as addressing racial disparities in the music sector.
In 2022, KG made her highly-awaited follow-up to Sensei II with the powerful statement single, ‘Taboo’. Featuring KG’s own lush vocals and her signature percussion, the sensual offering blends elements of Amapiano, Afro-House and Afrobeat for the dancefloor, with unapologetic self-expression and reflections on desire. An artist known for her deep beliefs, having covered everything from the empowerment of women, to love, sexuality and queer desire, to high vibrations, partying and more. The single landed on the BBC 6 Music C List, Rinse FM A List, plus supported by Jaguar, Jamz Supernova, Jeremiah Asiamah, Mary Anne Hobbs amongst many others.. It had coverage in The Wire, The Face, Crack, NPR & was included in DJ Mag & Complex’s Top Tracks of 2022. ID Magazine also featured KG as an Artist to Watch in 2023 in their Mixtape feature curated by Benji B.
2023 has seen KG become a further in-demand tastemaker DJ, with multiple bookings at the esteemed Panorama Bar in Berlin, Benji B’s Deviation party at LFW, Notting Hill Carnival & Amsterdam, plus appearances, Koko Electronic, Borderline Festival Athens & All Points East Festival. September sees her launch the brand new imprint ‘Rhythm In the City’, with its first release the ‘RED EP’ a sentimental, candid insight to KG’s deepest musings on romance, passion and lust.
Self-described as “a party for the grown and sexy”, Rhythm in the City began life as an event, carefully curated by Karen herself. Developing into a sell-out event series, the strong community around RITC is a testament to Karen’s bold creative vision and her much sought-after sonics. The evolution of the platform into a label, (Rhythm in the City / RITC Records), was a no-brainer – the label sonically is a reflection of Karen Nyame KG and the parties – it’s all about soul, percussive bounce, mood and melody. In her own words,” it will make you dance, seduce, but better yet, feel.”
TIMES:
2100 - 2200 Afriquoi (Live)
2230 - 0000 K.O.G (Live)
0000 - 0200 Karen Nyame KG (DJ)