Coolie Ranx (born Obiajula Ugbomah; 9 March 1965) is a British-Jamaican actor and singer best known for his membership in the

third wave ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a w ...

bands

The Toasters The Toasters are one of the original American second wave of ska bands. Founded in New York City in 1981, the band has released nine studio albums, primarily through Moon Ska Records. History Englishman Robert "Bucket" Hingley relocated to New ...

and

Pilfers Pilfers are an American ska band formed in 1997, when former Toasters vocalist, Coolie Ranx, at the urging of Pietaster's vocalist Steve Jackson, joined with former Bim Skala Bim trombonist, Vinny Nobile. To complete the lineup, they recruit ...

. He is a long-time resident of New York City.

Biography

Ranx was born in London on 9 March 1965 and was raised in New York City. His mother is from

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

and his father is from

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

. He was discovered in 1990 when the lead singer and guitarist of The Toasters, Rob "Bucket" Hingley, heard Ranx's dancehall reggae EP. Joining the Toasters in the early 1990s, he toured and recorded two albums with the band, including ''Dub 56'', which features two songs he wrote. After leaving the Toasters, Ranx co-founded a band called Pilfers. In Pilfers, he shared vocal duties with Vinny Nobile. Pilfers played a combination of third wave

ska music Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a w ...

, punk rock, and reggae that they called "raggacore". After self-releasing their first album, the band signed to

Mojo Records Mojo Records was a California-based record label founded in 1995 by producer Jay Rifkin. It became a joint venture with Universal Records in 1996 and then sold to the Zomba Group in 2001, who placed it under their subsidiary Jive Records.

, who released the band's second album, ''

Chawalaleng ''Chawalaleng'' is the Pilfers' second full-length album, and their first and only to be released on a major label. It was released on September 21, 1999 through Mojo Records. ''Chawalaleng'' is a record that blends pop, metal, reggae, dub, har ...

''. He made frequent guest appearances on the albums of other

bands, such as

Spring Heeled Jack Spring-heeled Jack is an entity in English folklore of the Victorian era. The first claimed sighting of Spring-heeled Jack was in 1837. Later sightings were reported all over the United Kingdom and were especially prevalent in suburban Lo ...

, Metro Stylee and Mojo labelmates

Reel Big Fish Reel Big Fish is an American ska punk band from Orange County, California. The band gained mainstream recognition in the mid-to-late 1990s during the third wave of ska with the release of the gold-certified album ''Turn the Radio Off''. Soon af ...

. After a lineup change, which saw the replacement of the rhythm section, Pilfers disbanded in 2001. Ranx began a solo career, recording and playing shows around the world with Fear Nuttin' Band as his new backup band. In November 2005, he and the other four original members of Pilfers, reunited at the

Knitting Factory The Knitting Factory is a nightclub in New York City that features eclectic music and entertainment. After opening in 1987, various other locations were opened in the United States. The Knitting Factory gave its audience poetry readings, perform ...

in New York City for a sold-out performance. Ranx provided the voice of Little Jacob in the 2008 video game ''

Grand Theft Auto IV ''Grand Theft Auto IV'' is a 2008 action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the sixth main entry in the ''Grand Theft Auto'' series, following 2004's '' Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas'', and the e ...

''.

Discography

*1990 The Toasters – ''Frankenska'' *1993 The Toasters – ''Live in L.A.'' *1994 The Toasters – ''Dub 56'' *1995 Magadog – ''Magadog'' – "Smoke" *1996 The Toasters – ''Hard Band For Dead'' *1996 ''The Pietasters'' – ''Comply'' – "Tell You Why" *1996 Pilfers – ''Rude by Association'' (self-released 5 song demo tape) *1997 Magadog – ''Daze... (1992–1997)'' – "Smoke (Remix)" *1998 Metro Stylee – ''Soul Garage Ska'' – "Back Again" *1998 Eastern Standard Time – ''Second Hand'' – "Mad Dog" *1998 Spring Heeled Jack – ''Songs From Suburbia'' – "Man of Tomorrow" *1998 Pilfers – ''Pilfers'' *1999 Reel Big Fish – ''Why Do They Rock So Hard?'' – "Song No.3" & "Thank You for Not Moshing" *1999 Pilfers – ''Chawalaleng'' *1999 Aks Mamma – ''Jolly Holidays'' – "Get Together" *1999 Nicotine – ''Carnival'' – "Bad Breath" *2000 The Toasters – ''The Best Of...'' *2001 Catch 22 – ''Washed Up And Through The Ringer!'' – "Straight Forward" *2004 " Rankin Don" – ''It's Time'' – "More To Me" *2006

Sonic Boom Six Sonic Boom Six (often shortened to SB6) are an English five-piece band from Manchester, United Kingdom. Their eclectic sound combines different elements of several genres and has been described by ''Kerrang!'' as "taking ska, pop, grime, dubs ...

– ''The Ruff Guide to Genre Terrorism'' – "All In" *2006 The WBC (Wuda Bang Clan) – ''Hi-Fidelity Offbeat'' – "Better Left Unsaid" *2007 Babylove and the van Dangos – ''Big Big Baboon'' 7" – "Big Big Baboon" *2007 More Than Me – ''1.0'' – "Love You More" *2007 " Father Goose Music"- ''It's a Bam Bam Diddly!'' – "Bam Bam" *2010 Exes Of Evil – ''Take My Number *2010 Across The Aisle ''In Ska We Trust'' EP – "Beer Song" *2012 Reel Big Fish – ''

Candy Coated Fury ''Candy Coated Fury'' is the eighth studio album by the American ska punk band Reel Big Fish, released on July 31, 2012. The cover art was made by artist Thom Foolery. The album was recorded at the band's personal studio in Orange, California. ...

'' – "Hiding in My Headphones" *2013 Big D and The Kid's Table – '' Stroll'' – "Put It in a Song" *2014 Father Goose – ''Bashment Time'' – "Constant Sorrow" *2015 Doped Up Dollies – ''The New Way Out'' – "Be Free" *2015 Pilfers "From Far" *2016 Pilfers "Zimbabwe" Specialized Project *2016 Sonic Boom Six "Train Leaves Tomorrow" *2016 Eric Best "Linoleum" *2018 " Father Goose Music" – King of the Dance Party (61st Annual GRAMMY Awards Ballot) *2019 " Father Goose Music" "Rise Up Now"(61st Annual GRAMMY Awards Ballot) *2020 Coolie Ranx for song off his debut music project entitled "Days Gone By" All Dem Ah Try" *2022 Coolie Release The Intro to "Days Gone By" announcing his arrival of his Raggacore debut project

External links

*
The Official Coolie Ranx MYSPACE Profile

The Official Coolie Ranx FACEBOOK Profile

The Official Coolie Ranx website

The Official Toasters website

Artist marketing , management Scott Waldman Agency
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ranx, Coolie British ska musicians English people of Jamaican descent Singers from London English people of Nigerian descent Living people 1965 births English video game actors