Genesis Owusu - full biography: early years, success, singles

Genesis Owusu - Ghanaian-Australian singer, known for the album Smiling with No Teeth and a string of singles... He was born at the end of the of the '90s in Ghanabut at an older age. 2 years old. moved to Australia. The artist's real name is. Kofi Owusu-Ansah: his first studio album Smiling with No Teeth Kofi only released in 2021 but he began his career as a musician in 2017... His track "WUTD." was in an advert for headphones Bose Noise Canceling Headphones 700! In addition to that, the 2019 year Genesis Owusu performed at a benefit concert in Sydney. It's safe to say that this guy has something special for audiences: his work is dynamic, complex, but undeniably compelling... An infectious sense of style, an unpredictable live show - every performance Kofi is a multifaceted spectacle fuelled by star power... It is impossible to predict what to expect: Genesis is skilled at challenging himself! He will seduce you with funky jams and ferocious rhythms, constantly exploring new sonic territory...

"I'm just trying to do the best I can. I still don't consider myself to have a certain sound, and I like that. If something sounds interesting to me, I just want to try it. Even if it turns out to be rubbish, I'm still glad I tried it..." - recounts Kofi. "When I was younger, I didn't really think about doing music. I just really enjoyed writing and it eventually turned into writing lyrics!"

The young artist has a story to tell, and he tells it in songs like no other. His own story began around the time of 15,000 km from the city he now calls home.....

From Ghana to Canberra - the early years

Kofi Owusu-Ansah was born in Ghana in 1998 year: music had been in his blood from a young age....

"My mum has always been the leader of her church gospel choir and my dad has always loved music. He's very eclectic in his musical taste..."

By the age of three. Kofi and the family moved to CanberraBut the homeland was still a big part of their lives. He recalls the Ghanaian music that was played "all the time" at home, particularly a genre called "social life":

"It's African party music. A lot of singers can just be ordinary people - it's not necessarily a genre where you have to be a top-notch great singer. It's more to do with the emotion that you can radiate, convey with your voice. It's soul music in a kind of party glasses!"

Another big influence on Kofi was his older brother Kojowho set up an improvised home studio:

"I've met a lot of interesting characters through it... I'm sure Ben from SAFIA (an Australian electronic indie pop band) has come round a couple of times for sure!" "I started writing music almost out of choice," Kofi continues. Kojo dragged me into his studio. He would record a beat and say, "OK, now write the lyrics to this!" That's how it came out..."

In search of sound

As for the signature sound, it's been a tough road for the GenesisAs a result, each song is a "little documentary" about Genesis at that moment in his life. Perhaps that's why his music always sounds fresh and real. Like many artists who are now doing incredible things on the local scene, Genesis is in awe of the volume and variety of music:

"It sounds so different and it's really inspiring. It feels like I have a place in it and I don't have to conform to any stylistic preferences. It's nice to see people who look like me and are from the same places as me: they really embody that culture and also embody their own individualism and create new and special art..."

However, it has not always been so - for artists such as. Genesisso eagerly welcomed and honoured. In fact, Genesis became popular after the song. "Whip Cracker"who talks about the experience of racism, and how the problem is far from solved here in Australia:

"I'm not going to sit here and try to convince anyone why me and my family's lives matter..."

However Kofi Claims that seeing more and more black artists in Australian music lately is quite gratifying:

"I don't know what's happened, but it's just been a huge spurt lately. Everyone's come out of the shadows, really stretching their muscles, showing what we've got in the bag... It's great to see!"

Magic on stage

See Genesis Owusu live is a new level of experience! He is a performer who doesn't just rock the audience and sing songs: at his concerts everything is perfectly set up and thought out, so you leave with amazing emotions...

"I view live show and making music as two separate art forms. When I create a live show, I'm more interested in seeing it on the spectrum of theatre rather than just performing music. It forces me to create a kind of narrative of the songs..."

An incredible feature of his live performances are self-proclaimed Goons - his friends who are on stage with Genesisperforming in colourful outfits. His shows rotate between slower, more romantic moments and a harder, more explicit style. And that's what Kofi says can really shock and inspire people at the same time.....

"People are surprised because they could hear 'WUTD' and then come to my live show and see a group of masked people yelling at them, like, 'What did I sign up for?'"

Album time

Kofi has played festivals and concerts to full houses, and has even worked with the The Free Nationals - an American R&B band! All this led to a legendary moment, an important next chapter in his history... To create his debut album Smiling with No Teeth Kofi and his manager put together a group of musicians that included Kirin J Callinan, Touch Sensitive and Julian Sudek.

"We would get together in a little studio that was very small and very stuffy, not designed for six people. We had two week-long jam sessions, and all the tracks for the album were created from those jam sessions..."

The hectic process, according to Kofi, was worth it because he feels like they "gave birth to something beautiful..."