Kwabs

Kwabs
Kwabs performing live in Germany (2015)
Background information
Birth name Kwabena Sarkodee Adjepong
Born (1990-04-24) 24 April 1990
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
Instruments Vocals
Years active 2011–present
Labels Atlantic
Associated acts Sohn
Website kwabsmusic.com
On stage in 2015

Kwabena Sarkodee Adjepong better known by his stage name Kwabs (born 24 April 1990)[1] is a British singer and songwriter. He is best known for his international hit, "Walk".

Early life

Born in London,[2] Kwabena Adjepong was raised in Bermondsey, South London Borough of Southwark to Ghanaian parents.[3] At The Charter School his music teacher Xanthe Sarr, and manager of the Southwark Youth Orchestra, introduced him to the National Youth Jazz Orchestra. Accepted in the programme, Kwabs became the lead singer of the orchestra for four years. He also studied jazz at the Royal Academy of Music.

Career

2011–12: Beginnings

In 2011, Kwabs was in the BBC TV show Goldie's Band: By Royal Appointment of drum-and-bass musician Goldie, a UK nationwide platform to search for young talented musicians, and one of twelve artists chosen to create some musical pieces for a special performance at Buckingham Palace. This culminated in Kwabs appearing in a 2011 presentation,[3] performing a rendition of "Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child". In 2012, he released cover versions of "Like a Star" by Corinne Bailey Rae and "The Wilhelm Scream" by James Blake. The Kwabs version went viral on YouTube. He signed a recording contract with Atlantic Records collaborating with a number of artists for his debut EP Wrong or Right with critical acclaim.[4]

2014–present: Love + War

The subsequent EPs Pray for Love and Walk EP have a more pop-oriented sound, with Walk EP containing the hit single "Walk," his best known release, launched on 5 October 2014 on Atlantic Records.[5] It was a minor hit in the United Kingdom reaching number 71, but became hugely popular in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. It was also number one on the iTunes Music charts. In April 2015 he released the single "Perfect Ruin" and on 11 September 2015 he released his debut studio album Love & War.

  • "Saved" was used in a number of promotional trailers for the second series of the BBC's The Musketeers.
  • "Walk" was used in the soundtrack of EA Sports video game FIFA 15, along with promotional trailers for the BBC's coverage of the 2015 general election. It was also used in an ad for the WeAreUs August 2015 ad for Boohoo.com.

Discography

Studio albums

Title Details Peak positions
UK
[6]		 AUT
[7]		 BEL (Fl)
[8]		 GER
[9]		 HUN
[10]		 NL
[11]		 SWI
[12]
Love + War
  • Released: 11 September 2015
  • Label: Atlantic Records UK
  • Format: Digital download, CD
 26443926242312

Extended plays

Title Details Notes
Wrong or Right
  • Released: 4 February 2014
  • Label: Atlantic Records UK
  • Format: Digital download
Pray for Love
  • Released: 19 May 2014
  • Label: Atlantic Records UK
  • Format: Digital download
Walk
  • Released: 3 October 2014
  • Label: Atlantic Records UK
  • Format: Digital download

Singles

Year Title Peak positions Certifications Album
UK
[6]		 AUT
[7]		 BEL (Fl)
[8]		 BEL (Wa)
[13]		 GER
[9]		 NL
[11]		 NOR
[14]		 SWI
[12]
2014 "Walk" 71353[A]59[A]198124 Love + War
"—" denotes a single that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
Non-charting
  • 2014: "Wrong or Right"
  • 2014: "Pray for Love"
  • 2015: "Perfect Ruin"
  • 2015: "Look Over Your Shoulder"
Year Title Peak positions Album
UK
[6]		 AUS
[18]		 FRA
[19]
2015 "Willing and Able"
(Disclosure featuring Kwabs)		 7078116 Caracal

Music videos

Year Title
2014 "Wrong or Right"
"Pray for Love"
"Walk"
2015 "Perfect Ruin"
"Fight for Love"
"My Own"
"Cheating on Me"

References

Notes

A ^ Did not appear in the official Belgian Ultratop 50 charts, but rather in the bubbling under Ultratip charts. For Ultratip peaks, added 50 positions to arrive at an equivalent Ultratop position.

Sources

  1. ↑ https://www.allmusic.com/artist/kwabs-mn0003208759/biography
  2. ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/feb/04/new-band-of-day-kwabs
  3. 1 2 Lucy Brisbane (12 September 2014). "Interview with Southwark singer Kwabs: 'I always knew I deserved better'". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
  4. ↑ Spex.de: Kwabs: Soul, reloaded Archived 11 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine. (in German)
  5. ↑ Charlotte Krol (29 September 2014). "Kwabs – New Music This London talent has a voice that could shake the earth". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 "Kwabs UK Charts". Official Charts Company.
  7. 1 2 Hung, Steffen. "Discographie Kwabs". Austrian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
  8. 1 2 Hung, Steffen. "Discografie Kwabs". Belgium (Flanders) Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
  9. 1 2 Hung, Steffen. "Discographie Kwabs". German Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
  10. ↑ "Kwabs". Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Archived from the original on 20 August 2013.
  11. 1 2 Hung, Steffen. "Discografie Kwabs". Dutch Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
  12. 1 2 Hung, Steffen. "Discographie Kwabs". Swiss Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
  13. ↑ Hung, Steffen. "Discographie Kwabs". Belgium (Wallonia) Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
  14. ↑ Hung, Steffen. "Discography Kwabs". Norwegian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
  15. ↑ "Gold & Platin". Archived from the original on 1 July 2013. Retrieved 22 August 2015.
  16. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank". Archived from the original on 27 June 2015. Retrieved 22 August 2015.
  17. ↑ "Awards 2015". Retrieved 22 August 2015.
  18. ↑ "Delta Goodrem's 'Wings' Spends Second Week on Top of Australian Chart". Noise11.com.
  19. ↑ Hung, Steffen. "Discographie Kwabs". French Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).


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