Livingstone Etse Satekla (born 5 March 1988), better known by his stage name Stonebwoy, is a

Ghanaian Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

Afropop, dancehall and

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

musician. He is the CEO of Burniton Music Group. He won the Best International Act: Africa category at the 2015 BET Awards and Artist of the Year at the 2015

Ghana Music Awards The Ghana Music Awards, currently known as the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards (VGMAs) for sponsorship reasons, is an annual music awards event in Ghana established in 1999 by a local event organizer and planner company known as CharterHouse to origi ...

. He is also a recipient of two Billboard plaques. He has been described as the king of

and

dance hall Dance hall in its general meaning is a hall for dancing. From the earliest years of the twentieth century until the early 1960s, the dance hall was the popular forerunner of the discothèque or nightclub. The majority of towns and cities in ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

. Stonebwoy is also an actor, having appeared in the movies ''

Happy Death Day ''Happy Death Day'' is a 2017 American black comedy slasher film directed by Christopher Landon, and written by Scott Lobdell. It stars Jessica Rothe and Israel Broussard. The film was produced by Jason Blum through his Blumhouse Productions ...

'' and ''My name is Ramadan''. He is a global ambassador for sanitation. In September 2019, he was made the brand ambassador for Voltic Natural Mineral Water. He is the brand ambassador of Tecno mobile in Ghana. In 2022, he signed unto

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...

’s

Def Jam Recordings Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The l ...

, and it's flagship Def Jam Recordings Africa. He’s poised to make three albums under the labe

Life and music career

Stonebwoy pronounced "stoneboy" was born in

Ashaiman Ashaiman (often wrongly spelled as "Ashiaman") is a large town in Greater Accra Region of South Ghana and is the capital of Ashaiman Municipal District, a district in Greater Accra Region.Greater Accra region of Ghana and began making music in his early school days. He realized his talents and abilities as a

lyricist A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's incom ...

and scriptwriter at an early age, remembering writing and acting drama pieces as far back as the fourth year in primary school. He studied at Methodist Day Secondary School the same year with rapper Sarkodie where he obtained his high school certificate. He continued his tertiary education at University of Professional Studies to earn a degree in marketing in 2013. Satekla is married to Louisa Ansong Satekla, with two children. Louisa is a dentist.

Recognition and musical style

Stonebwoy normally ragga in Jamaican

Patois ''Patois'' (, pl. same or ) is speech or language that is considered nonstandard, although the term is not formally defined in linguistics. As such, ''patois'' can refer to pidgins, creoles, dialects or vernaculars, but not commonly to jargon o ...

(Patwa or Patwah), and is considered a "multifaceted artiste" due to the various musical styles he possesses. In 2015, he received many awards and nominations ranging from ''"Artist of the Year"'' to ''"Album of the Year"''. His sophomore album, Necessary Evil, was the recipient of 3 Ghana Music Awards from 6 nominations.

Nana Appiah Mensah Nana Appiah Mensah popularly known as NAM1, is a Ghanaian business man known for the menzgold fraud. He is married to Rose Mensah, who was charged by the state as a coconspirator. Education Nana Appiah Mensah had his secondary school educatio ...

, CEO of gold dealership company Menzgold, sent out words of encouragement to Stonebwoy on

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

for Stonebwoy being supportive. On 18 April 2019, Nana Appiah Mensah posted a photo of Dance hall act Stonebwoy saying he is proud of the Bhim Nation president for defending him and that God bless him. He was listed as part of the 2019 50 (fifty) young CEOs, by YCEO and Avance media. The list which was launched earlier in 2018, was set out to honor distinguished young individuals pursuing the course of providing solutions to some of Ghana's pertinent problems.

Philanthropy

Stonebwoy established the ‘Livingstone Foundation’. In January 2017 the foundation announced a sponsorship package for five students of the

Tema Tema is a city on the Bight of Benin and Atlantic coast of Ghana. It is located east of the capital city; Accra, in the region of Greater Accra, and is the capital of the Tema Metropolitan District. As of 2013, Tema is the eleventh most populo ...

Methodist Day Senior High School, his alma mater. As part of celebrations for Stonebwoy's 30th birthday, the foundation donated a sum of GH¢5,000 to the accident ward of the

Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) is a public teaching hospital located in the Ablekuma South Metropolitan District in Accra, Ghana. It is the only public tertiary hospital in the southern part of the country. It is a teaching hospital affiliate ...

in March 2018. Stonebwoy has also opened the official BHIM merch shop in Ashaiman. Proceeds from the shop are used to fund activities of the Livingstone Foundation. In 2020, the Livingstone Foundation in collaboration with the BHIM Merchandise Shop gave out free sanitizers as parts of efforts to combat the coronavirus spread in Ghana. Stonebwoy also donated sanitizers and other items to the Police Department in Ashaiman to aid them in discharging their duties during the coronavirus pandemic in Ghana.

Endorsements

Stonebwoy has recently been named the Brand Ambassador for 'Big Boss', a new energy drink. In September 2020, Stonebwoy was named

Tecno Mobile Tecno Mobile is a Chinese mobile phone manufacturer based in Shenzhen, China. It was established in 2006. It is a subsidiary of Transsion Holdings. Tecno has focused its business on the African, Middle East, Southeast Asian, South Asian, Lat ...

brand ambassador and unveiled the Camon 16 Series in October 2020.

World tours and notable performances

Stonebwoy kicked off his world tour in the Euro-zone in August 2014. He performed in Germany, Italy, Spain and

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. His 2016 Canada-America tour saw him perform in New York City,

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, Philadelphia and

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. In the same year, he rocked

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, Melbourne, Brisbane and Sidney all in Australia. His second Euro tour saw him travel to the Nordic to thrill fans in Denmark, Finland and Sweden in last quarter of 2017. Stonebwoy performed at

Reggae Sumfest Reggae Sumfest is the largest music festival in Jamaica and the Caribbean, taking place each year in mid-July in Montego Bay.Johnson, Richard (2014)All Set for Sumfest, ''Jamaica Observer'', 8 July 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014 Sumfest started in 19 ...

, Afro nation festival in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, Rotterdam reggae festival,

Uppsala Reggae Festival Uppsala Reggae Festival is the largest reggae festival in Scandinavia. It has been active since 2001, with a number of notable artists performing. It was first held in 2001, but the name was used as early as 1995. Uppsala Reggae Festival attract ...

Rototom Sunsplash Rototom Sunsplash is a large European reggae festival which takes place every summer at Benicàssim, a few miles north of Valencia in Spain. Since 1994, it attracts thousands of reggae fans from all over the world, thanks to a vast cultural and m ...

. Stonebwoy performed at the

Global Citizen Festival The Global Citizen Festival is an annual music festival started in 2012 and organized by Global Poverty Project. It was founded by Ryan Gall and Hugh Evans. Gall said he was inspired by visiting Austin City Limits and seeing the branding on the ...

held at the

Black Star Square Black Star Square, also known as Independence Square, is a public square in Accra, Ghana, bordered by the Accra Sports Stadium and the Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park. The square often hosts the annual independence celebrations as well as other nat ...

in Accra on 24 September 2022. Stonebwoy was one of the headliners for the festival which was aimed at advocating for the end of extreme poverty in Africa and performed alongside the likes of Usher, SZA, Sarkodie etc. He was adjudged as one of the best performers on the show by patrons and critics alike.

Controversy

On the eve of 18 May 2019, during the 20th edition of Vodafone Ghana Music Awards, a brawl erupted between the followers of Stonebwoy and his music rival

Shatta Wale Charles Nii Armah Mensah Jr., (born 17 October 1984) is a Ghanaian reggae-dancehall artist. He is known by his stage name Shatta Wale, formerly Bandana. His best-known singles are "Dancehall King", "My level" and "We taking over" .He is also kno ...

and his fans, which lead to Stonebwoy pulling out a gun on stage. They were both arrested and detained the following day. They both appeared in court where they pleaded not guilty to both their respective charges after which they were granted bail of GH¢50,000 each. They were stripped of the awards they picked up that night and were indefinitely banned from the program by Charterhouse, the organizers. They made peace by the 30th day of the very same month. His ban from the Awards show was lifted in the 2022 edition of the show.

Discography

Satekla has so far released four studio album and many other singles since 2012.

2012: ''Grade 1 Album''

Under "Samini Music", Stonebwoy recorded his first hit single "Climax" featuring

Samini Emmanuel Andrews Sammini (born 22 December 1981 in Accra, Ghana), known by his stage name Samini (formerly as Batman Samini), is a Ghanaian Reggae and Dance hall recording artiste from Wa, Ghana. His genre of music is a melodious mixture of h ...

and mad "Ghetto Love" featuring

Irene Logan Irene Logan (born February 16, 1984) is a Liberian-born Ghanaian singer, songwriter, philanthropist and entrepreneur. She was just a child in the early 1990s when her family moved to Ghana in search of refuge from the Liberian civil war. Irene bro ...

. Both songs earned him nominations at the Ghana Music Awards. After this exposure, he released his debut album "Grade 1 Album". The album contains seventeen tracks which featured prominent Ghanaian artists in.

2014: ''Necessary Evil''

Released on November 23, 2014; it is a 29 track album which featured the likes of Sarkodie. It includes tracks like Baafira, Sneaky, Gbedegbede, Candy, Pull up remix, and Cant Coo

2017: ''Epistles of Mama''

Released on 12 December 2017; the Epistles of Mama was dedicated to Satekla's late mother by name Mrs Catherine Lucy Aku Ametepe Satekla. The 24 track album features Sean Paul, King Promise,

Burna Boy Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu (born 2 July 1991), known professionally as Burna Boy, is a Nigerian singer, songwriter and record producer. He rose to stardom in 2012 after releasing "Like to Party", the lead single from his debut studio album, ''L.I. ...

. The album peaked at Number thirteen (13) on

Billboard chart The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...

top 200 albums worldwide. In 2018 ‘Epistles Of Mama (EOM)’ was rated the second-best album in the world according to reggaeville. The Album was honoured by

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

for hitting over 10 million views.

''2020: Anloga Junction''

On 24 April 2020, Stonebwoy released his fourth studio album which featured the likes of

Keri Hilson Keri Lynn Hilson (born December 5, 1982) is an American R&B singer, songwriter and actress. She was born and raised in Decatur, Georgia and spent most of her youth working with producer Anthony Dent as a songwriter and background vocalist for ...

(US),

Nasty C Nsikayesizwe David Junior Ngcobo (born 11 February 1997), known professionally as Nasty C, is a South African rapper, songwriter, and record producer. After releasing three mixtapes, one being "Undisputed" and two EPs, Ngcobo released his debu ...

(SA),

Diamond Platnumz Nasibu Abdul Juma Issack (born 2 October 1989), popularly known by his stage name Diamond Platnumz, is a Tanzanian bongo flava recording artist, dancer, philanthropist and a businessman of Ha heritage. He is the founder and CEO of WCB Wasafi R ...

(Tanzania), Alicai Harley (Jamaica), Jahmiel (Jamaica),

Zlatan Zlatan ( sr-Cyrl, Златан) is a male given name of Slavic origin meaning ''Golden''. The name is common amongst all South Slavic countries, namely in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, North Macedonia and Serbia. The name is found i ...

(Nigeria),

Kojo Antwi Kojo Antwi, also known as "Mr. Music Man", is a Ghanaian Afro pop, highlife and reggae musical artist. Born Julius Kojo Antwi into a family of 13 siblings, he grew up in Darkuman a suburb of Accra. He has 22 albums to his name, with "Tom & Jerry" ...

(Ghana), Chivv (Netherlands) and Spanker (Netherlands). He also worked with producers like Mix Master Garzy, Streetbeatz, M.O.G. Beatz, Spanker, Riga, Phantom,

iPappi Prince Fosu, professionally known as iPappi is a Ghanaian record producer and sound engineer who hails from Kumasi in the Ashanti region. His major productions include "Ololo" by Stonebwoy featuring Teni and "Up and Awake" by Kojo Cue and Shake ...

and others.

Singles

;Featured in *2021: "Guns of Navarone" ( Sean Paul feat.

Jesse Royal Jesse Te Ahukaramu Royal (born 22 March 1980) is a professional rugby league footballer from New Zealand who currently plays for the Kurri Kurri Bulldogs in the Newcastle Rugby League. He has previously played in the NRL for the Newcastle Knigh ...

, Stonebwoy &

Mutabaruka Allan Hope (born 1952), better known as Mutabaruka, is a Jamaican Rastafari dub poet, musician, actor, educator, and talk-show host, who developed two of Jamaica's most popular radio programmes, ''The Cutting Edge'' and ''Steppin' Razor''. His ...

)

Awards and nominations

Entertainment Achievement Awards

In March 2021, his album ''Anloga Junction'' won the Album of the Year award in the Entertainment Achievement Awards. He also won the Male Artist of the Year Award.

3Music Awards

In March 2021, his album ''Anloga Junction'' won the Album of the Year award in the

3Music Awards The 3 Music Award is Ghanaian music awards ceremony held annually since 2018 to celebrate Ghanaian music. It was established by the 3Music Network with Media General TV3 as broadcasters. The Multimedia group became the media right holder in th ...

. His song ''Putuu Freestyle (Prayer'') won the Viral Song of the Year.

International Reggae and World Music Awards (IRAWMA)

In May 2021, he was nominated for the 'Best African Dancehall Entertainer Award'.

References

External links

{{authority control 21st-century Ghanaian male singers 21st-century Ghanaian singers 1988 births Living people Male singer-songwriters Dancehall singers People from Volta Region People from Greater Accra Region 21st-century philanthropists Ghanaian philanthropists Ghanaian chief executives 21st-century Ghanaian male actors Ghanaian male film actors University of Professional Studies alumni Ghanaian business executives Ghanaian reggae musicians