Akua Naru

Akua Naru (also known as Akua Olatunji),[1] is a hip hop MC/rapper from the United States. Naru has been particularly successful in Europe, where she has resided since 2008. Naru's music blends various instruments and music styles, notably Ghanaian drums, soul, jazz, and hip hop beats. In 2018, Naru started conducting research on archiving the achievements of women in hip hop at Harvard University as a Nasir Jones Hiphop Fellow at the Hiphop Archive Research Institute.[2]

Akua Naru
with The Digflo Band in Vienna in 2015
NationalityUnited States of America
Other namesAkua Olatunji
Occupationhip hop MC, rapper, poet
Websitehttp://www.akuanaru.com

Life

Naru was born and raised in Connecticut in a family that went to church and played gospel music. At the age of nine, Naru's uncle introduced her to hip hop music. It was Akua's grandmother who took her to church, where she met strong, assertive women in the community, which led to her interest in the revolutionary ideas of Angela Davis, Malcolm X and Assata Shakur.[3]

By the time Naru completed her formal education at Rutgers University and the University of Pennsylvania, she had learned her skills as a member of a repertory company where she was able to use recording equipment and perform publicly. Akua left the U.S. to travel to China, ultimately moving to Cologne, Germany, in 2011, where she created her first album "The Journey Aflame" which was produced by "The Drumkidz". Later that year Naru returned to the USA on a 22-date tour. Naru's work is inspired by Toni Morrison and the history of Black women in the United States. Akua Naru has been a guest speaker at universities throughout the USA, Germany, Nigeria, Tanzania, Kenya, and Sudan. She has performed on the continents of North America, South America, Europe, and Africa.

Discography
Her Digflo Band in 2015
EP
  • 2011 : Poetry: How Does It Feel?
Albums
  • 2011 : The Journey Aflame
  • 2012 : The Live & Aflame Sessions
  • 2015 : The Miner's Canary
  • 2018 : The Blackest Joy[4]

References
  1. "Bergische Universität Wuppertal: Anglistik und Amerikanistik" (in German). Retrieved 2019-05-07.
  2. "Colloquium with Akua Naru". Retrieved 2019-09-09.
  3. "Akua Naru - Band on the Wall". Band on the Wall. Retrieved 2018-11-27.
  4. "Mama, she made it!". laut.de (in German). Retrieved 2018-11-27.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.