Desmond Kwesi Blackmore (born January 12, 1987), known by his

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

D-Black, is an anglophone hip-hop and

Afrobeat Afrobeat is a Nigerian music genre that involves the combination of West African musical styles (such as traditional Yoruba music and highlife) and American funk, jazz, and soul influences, with a focus on chanted vocals, complex intersecting ...

musician and entrepreneur from Ghana. He has been described as "a successful entertainment mogul"

Early life

Born Desmond Kwesi Blackmore on 12 January 1987 to Ghanaian & English parents, Blackmore attended

Ridge Church School The Ridge Church School is an independent and parochial co-educational preparatory day school in Accra, Ghana. Situated between the Gamel Abdul Nasser Avenue and Guinea Bissau Road and opposite the Efua Sutherland Children's Park, it was found ...

then to

Pope John Senior High School and Minor Seminary Pope John Senior High School and Minor Seminary (formerly St John's Seminary and College, nicknamed POJOSS), is an all-boys boarding school, located at Effiduase, Koforidua, in the Eastern Region of Ghana. It was established in 1958 by Bishop ...

before the

University of Cape Coast The University of Cape Coast is a public collegiate university located in the historic town of Cape Coast. The campus has a rare seafront and sits on a hill overlooking the wide Atlantic Ocean. It operates on two campuses: the Southern Campus (O ...

to study B.A Economics and

University Of Ghana The University of Ghana is a public university located in Accra, Ghana. It the oldest and largest of the thirteen Ghanaian national public universities. The university was founded in 1948 as the University College of the Gold Coast in the Br ...

Legon Legon , a suburb of the Ghanaian city Accra, is situated about north-east of the city center in the Accra Metropolis District, a district in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Legon is home to the main campus of the University of Ghana. Ghanaia ...

to study BFA Theatre Arts / Music.

Career

In 2009, D-Black began his career as an independent artist in the group ''D-Black & Kwaku T'' releasing a group album ‘''Target Practice''’. In 2010 D-Black and his rap partner both went solo. He went on to release three albums (Music, Love and Life, The Revelation, Lightwork’ 1 E.P (Smoke and Mirrors) and 1 mix-tape (Hunger & Thirst) over the years. He has been nominated for numerous awards and won several, including the 2011 BET Awards. He has collaborated with some of African acts including Davido, Mayorkun, M.I, Phyno, Ice Prince, Seyi Shay from Nigeria, Cassper Nyovest, Bucie, HHP from South Africa, Stanley Enow from Cameroon, Stella Mwangi from Kenya and Vanessa Mdee from Tanzania as well as Sarkodie, Shatta Wale, StoneBwoy, Castro, Bisa Kdei, Efya, King Promise, Kuami Eugene E.L, Kwabena Kwabena, VVIP and more from his homeland Ghana.

Black Avenue Muzik

D-Black is the CEO of record label Black Avenue Muzik, with act including himself,

DJ Breezy DJ Breezy is a Ghanaian DJ, Songwriter, record producer and audio engineer. He was nominated in the "Producer of The Year" category at the 2015 All Africa Music Awards and won "Producer of The Year" at the 2015 Ghana Music Awards. He is currently ...

, Sefa, Ms. Forson, Osayo & rapper Nina Ricchie, as well as music producer Rony, Turn Me Up. Former acts include

Joey B Darryl Paa Kwesi Bannerman-Martin (born 20 August 1989), known under the stage name Joey B, is a Ghanaian hip hop recording artist. He is well known for his single "Tonga". Early life and career Joey B was born in Cape Coast, Ghana. He realized ...

, Freda Rhymz, Dahlin Gage & Wisa Greid. It won record label of the year at the 2018 Ghana - Naija Entertainment Awards in Lagos, Nigeria. and was nominated for the record label of the year at the 2019 Ghana Entertainment Awards in New York.

Other ventures

Black Avenue Clothing

Founded in 2012, a design company, marketer and importer of men and women's apparel.

Livewire Events

Livewire Events is an events management company founded in 2015. In 2015 they produced the Bukom Banku vs Ayittey Powers boxing match at the Kumasi Sports Stadium. It included performances from Sarkodie, Shatta Wale and Efya. Other notable events include the 2018 Kundum Festival Jam in Axim for the Ministry of Tourism.

Black Avenue Films/TV

Produced ''Why Should I Get Married'' movie starring

John Dumelo John Dumelo (born 3 February 1984) is a Ghanaian actor, farmer and politician. On 1 April 2014 he emerged as the first Ghanaian to hit a million likes on Facebook. His parents are Mr. John Dumelo who was a Civil Engineer and Mrs. Antoinette Dumel ...

, Maria Nepembe, Princess Shyngle, Eya, Prince David Osei, and ''The EFGH Show'' hosted by Peace Hyde in 2015.

Discography

Albums

*''Target Practice'' (2009) *''Music, Love & Life'' (2010) *''The Revelation'' (2012) *''Lightwork'' (2016) *''Hunger & Thirst Mixtape'' (2017) *''Smoke & Mirrors E.P'' (2019)

Singles

*"Move" w/ Kwaku T (2009) *Breathe" w/ Kwaku T (2010) *"Somebody" ft. Kwabena Kwabena (2011) *"Get On the Dancefloor" ft. D Cryme (2011) *"Ma Me Five" (2011) *"Asabone" ft. Reggie Rockstone (2011) *"My Kinda Girl" ft. Sarkodie (2012) *"Change Your Life" ft. E.L (2012) *"Vera" ft. Joey B (2012) *"Black Clouds' ft. Waje (2013) *"Conference Call" ft. Kwaw Kese, Sarkodie (2013) *"Woara" ft. Kesse (2013) *"Setewaa D3nky3" (2013) *"Party Gbee" (2013) *"Carry Go" ft. Davido (2013) *"Personal Person" ft. Castro (2014) *"Seihor" w/ Castro (2014) *"Kotomoshi (2015) *"Champ" ft. M.I Abaga (2016) *"Omega" ft. Sarkodie (2016) *"Bottles" ft. Medikal (2017) *"Julie" ft. Bisa KDei (2017) *"Makoma" ft. Mayorkun (2017) *"Nobody" ft. King Promise (2018) *"Badder" ft. Kuami Eugene(2019) *"Dat Ting" ft. Joey B (2019) *"Obiba" ft. Kidi (2019) *"Miracle" (2019) *"Falaa" ft. Medikal (2019) *"Heaven Or Hell" ft. Sefa (2019) *"Stay" ft. Simi (2019) *"Sheege" ft.

Gyakie Jacqueline Acheampong (born 16 December 1999), known professionally as Gyakie, is a Ghanaian R&B and afro-fusion singer. In 2019, Gyakie released her first single titled "Love is Pretty", which paved the way for another single, "Never Like Thi ...

(2021)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:D-black 21st-century Ghanaian male singers 21st-century Ghanaian singers Ghanaian songwriters Ghanaian record producers 1987 births Living people People from Accra Pope John Senior High School and Minor Seminary alumni Ridge Church School alumni