Shatta Wale
Bio
Shatta Wale, real name, Charles Nii Armah Mensah Jnr. started out in music shortly after his high school education, performing under the stage name Bandana. He is regarded as one of Ghana's premier dancehall artistes and promoted by his team as the "King of African Dancehall."
After graduating from Winneba Secondary School, Shatta Wale took to music, acquiring street credibility in the Ghanaian dancehall scene. Then known as Bandana, he courted attention upon the release of the hit single, “Moko Hoo” which featured fellow Ghanaian musician Tinny.
The song earned him a Ghana Music Awards nomination. ‘No Problem’ and ‘Obaa Yaa’ followed. Both became popular songs. He then left the music scene for a while, and returned with a new name, Shatta Wale. The songs 'Dancehall King' and 'Enter The Net' ensured that he returned to prominence.
He has since become one of his country's most important stars, as famous for hit songs as he is for controversy. He was banned from the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards in 2016 after recording videos attacking the reputation of the organisers.
Shatta Wale has won a number of awards, including Best African Artiste at the Nigerian Entertainment Awards and artiste of the year award at the 2014 Ghana Music awards. According to his website, Shatta Wale has "toured Canada and USA in the year 2014, had a European tour in 2015 and has shared the same stage with celebrated global music icons including Akon, Sizzla, Shaggy, Mavado, Popcaan, Jah Vinci, Tim Westwood and several others.
"He has collaborated musically with some of the finest African acts including Davido and Patoranking (both of Nigeria) and recently with award winning Afrobeat musician, Fuse ODG."
In 2016, his song 'Chop Kiss' won Best African Song at the International Reggae and World Music Awards (IRAWMA). In the same year, he joined the campaign for non-violent elections in Ghana.