Quick Facts
Biography
Akua Naru (also known as Akua Olatunji), 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.
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.
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
- 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
