Emmanuel Owusu Bonsu (Wanlov) was born to Romanian mother and a Ghanaian father. He was raised in Ghana, he is fluent in Twi, English, Romanian, and Pidgin. He has been residing in the states for the last five years, from east to west coasts and everywhere in between. Ten years ago, he began paving the way for his upcoming music career. As many young Hiphop heads, he began rapping his favorite lyrics with high school friends and performing the local circuit in Cape Coast & Takoradi, Ghana while attending Adisadel College.
Known as Spooky, he was well known for his performances in which he emulated popular acts, from Busta Rhymes' vivacious delivery to Snoop's debonair flows. With his pure, unadulterated talent, charisma, and lyrical skill, he is taking his message of awareness, to the masses. Upon immediate arrival in the states (to pursue higher education) Wanlov proved his skill in the freestyle circuit of the south. Within two years of residence in Temple, Texas, Wanlov, then still known as Spooky, won over the respect of local emcees in the Central Texas area.
After performing at local events and shows he eventually ventured out of Texas making his imprint on both coasts. One of his most memorable experiences was performing with Boundleczz of the Rapskallyonz for DJ Hi-Tek in Cincinnati, OH who personally let them know how awed he was after their performance and that he was looking forward to working with them. That stroke of good luck went bad right after Wanlov left Boundleczz in Ohio and headed back to Texas. Boundleczz had to re-locate to Chicago for personal reasons losing important contacts in the process especially D.J Hi-Tek.
Wanlov on the other hand went through I.N.S abduction to a private holding facility in Laredo, TX for school status reasons. A transformation took place during this ordeal and Wanlov came out feeling the pain of injustice inflicted on him and most of the detainees he met in there and along the way.
This spurred the independent release of Bail Money which is a cry for help to his friends, family, and fans, giving a detailed account of the hardships he went through during that period. The song got the attention of Source Magazine Editor Geo Hagan, then freelance writing for The Ave Magazine, who decided to give Wanlov exposure he felt he deserved. A few months later he was featured in the Spring 04 edition of The Ave Magazine as a trilingual conscious emcee to keep an eye on.
Seeing how hard it was to get into the music industry, with positive, socially conscious messages while maintaining secular appeal, Wanlov decided to start an indie record label with his childhood best friend and fellow Hiphop junkie Gerald Hagan. This has provided Wanlov the base to promote himself as well as seek other conscious artist to work with. Though a young label, Roar Entertainment is getting recognized by the fans and its future looks bright.
In the early months of 2005, Wanlov performed religiously at Project Blowed in Los Angeles’s Leimert Park (an African American cultural hub in LA) every Thursday night. He has earned the respect from the local and visiting emcees, deejays, and breakers alike. Project Blowed is one of the most demanding assemblies of underground Hiphop artists on the planet; Wanlov has had several performances there and unlike many emcees new on the scene, Wanlov has never been asked to 'please pass the mic.' Each performance says a lot about Wanlov as an emcee. He captivates audiences regardless of the coast. The people see he's got what it takes and he keeps them coming back for more.
After enjoying success among the Ghanaian communities in the US, Wanlov has recently returned to Ghana to promote his music. He released his first album, 'Green Card' as 'Konkonsa' in Ghana due to the popularity of his said title track in Ghana. He has already performed in several venues throughout Ghana and collaborated with several artists including his Pidgen Records mate King Ayisoba.
AKA Kwame Nwia Kofie Nkrumah
