Daniel David John Adams-Ray (born 18 August 1983 in

Nairobi Nairobi ( ) is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The name is derived from the Maasai phrase ''Enkare Nairobi'', which translates to "place of cool waters", a reference to the Nairobi River which flows through the city. The city proper ha ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

) is a Kenyan-Swedish singer and fashion designer.

Background

Daniel Adams-Ray was born in

Kenya ) , national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

to an Indonesian mother and a father of

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

/ Scottish heritage. His mother was a school administrator and his father a medical surgeon. In 1996 the family left Africa for Europe and lived for a year in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, where he played

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

(soccer) with a very young

Arjen Robben Arjen Robben (; born 23 January 1984) is a Dutch former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Winger (football), winger. He was known for his Dribbling#Association football, dribbling skills, speed, ball control and long ...

. Later the family left to Sweden, where they lived in

Lidingö Lidingö, also known in its definite form ''Lidingön'' and as ''Lidingölandet'', is an island in the inner Stockholm archipelago, northeast of Stockholm, Sweden. In 2010, the population of the Lidingö urban area on the island was 31,561. It is ...

, an affluent suburb of

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

. His parents owned and operated a plastic-surgery clinic in the area. Daniel Adams-Ray says he felt very much like an outsider and says he was

bullied Bullying is the use of force, coercion, hurtful teasing or threat, to abuse, aggressively dominate or intimidate. The behavior is often repeated and habitual. One essential prerequisite is the perception (by the bully or by others) of an im ...

and called racist slurs. After switching high schools, he started at

Viktor Rydberg Gymnasium Viktor Rydberg Gymnasium (VRG) is a group of four gymnasium (upper secondary schools) in Stockholm, Sweden named after the famous Swedish author Viktor Rydberg. The four upper secondary schools are VRG Djursholm, VRG Odenplan, VRG Jarlaplan and V ...

Odenplan and met

Oskar Linnros Hans Oskar "Kihlen" Linnros (born August 15, 1983 in Sundbyberg, Sweden) is a Swedish musician. He was part of the alternative hip hop band Snook alongside Daniel Adams-Ray, before going solo and releasing his solo studio debut album '' Vilja bl ...

, his future partner in the band

Snook Snook, Snooks, or Snoek may refer to: Fishes * Family Centropomidae (snooks) ** Common snook * Family Esocidae (pikes) ** '' Haplochromis insidiae'' ** Northern pike * Family Gempylidae (snake mackerels) ** Blacksail snake mackerel or black ...

. He is fluent in English, French,

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

, German and

. He also speaks quite a bit of Italian and Swahili. He is related to Swedish journalist Kersti Adams-Ray.

Snook

The schoolmates and Oskar Linnros started an

alternative hip hop Alternative hip hop (also known as alternative rap) is a subgenre of hip hop music that encompasses a wide range of styles that are not typically identified as mainstream. AllMusic defines it as comprising " hip hop groups that refuse to confor ...

duo group calling it

. The duo released two albums: ''Vi vet inte vart vi ska men vi ska komma dit'' in 2004 and ''Är'' in 2006 receiving both praise and heavy criticism. The band's unorthodox hip hop was met by comments that the band wasn't "keeping it real" and the fact that Adams-Ray spent his teenage years in Lidingö caused critics to label them "upper class rappers". Despite some critics, the band had many hits, received awards from radio station P3, The 2003 ''Swedish Hip-hop Awards'' 2003, and best Swedish band at the

MTV Europe Music Awards The MTV Europe Music Awards (originally named MTV European Music Awards, commonly abbreviated as MTV EMA) are awards presented by Paramount International Networks to honour artists and music in pop culture. It was originally conceived as an al ...

2006. Daniel Adams-Ray won the Swedish freestyle-rap championship in 2004 and was awarded the prize for best Swedish rapper in 2005.

Post-Snook

Adams-Ray and

drifted apart. Adams-Ray attended the design school Berghs School of Communication and started the fashion label Lagom. During a fashion show in 2009 he produced some music and this led to new songs (with him singing, not rapping). He says his music might be called Kenyan pop-

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming *Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies *Indie game, any game (board ...

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

. Influenced range from

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

afro beat 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 ...

, hip-hop and early 60's surf pop. Recently he has also collaborated with fellow swede Avicii in a new song ''Somewhere in Stockholm'', which belong to his album Stories. 3 years later, he collaborated with Avicii again on a song titled "Ghost". For this single, Adams-Ray is credited under the name HUMAN.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Featured singles

Other charted songs

Notes

References

External links

*http://www.lagom-sthlm.com/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Adams-Ray, Daniel Living people 1983 births 21st-century Swedish singers Swedish hip hop musicians Swedish pop singers Swedish songwriters Swedish-language singers English-language singers from Sweden Swedish people of Kenyan descent Swedish people of Scottish descent Swedish people of Indonesian descent Musicians from Stockholm Singers from Stockholm 21st-century Swedish male singers