Video: Rocky Dawuni, ‘Beats of Zion’

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Rocky Dawuni
Rocky Dawuni

Growing up with a father in the military and United Nations forces, Rocky Dawuni was inspired by a confluence of music from different African nations. From the days of his DIY college band Local Crisis to his 2016 Grammy-nominated album “Branches of the Same Tree, (Cumbancha),” Dawuni, now himself a UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador for Africa, has had a mission to share the music of the African diaspora with the world, his signature being an “Afro Roots” blend of reggae, Afro-beat, soul and pop. 

In 2003, Dawuni (based in both L.A. and Ghana), his partner/manager Cary Sullivan and KCRW DJ Jeremy Sole began running Afro Funke’ nights at Zanzibar in Santa Monica, a multimedia celebration of African art, music and culture still running today. Throughout this time, Dawuni has continued recording and performing. For his seventh solo studio album, “Beats of Zion,” out March 8 via Aquarian Records/Six Degrees Distribution, Dawuni expands his musical focus to his native Ghana.

Written, arranged and produced by the ambassador humanitarian-musician in Accra, Nairobi, and L.A.’s Village Studios (in the same room once used by Fleetwood Mac), the singer says, “’Beats of Zion’ was born out of my desire to use my diverse global musical influences … to paint a multi-cultural musical vision … inspired by a vision of the drumbeat of awareness and elevation of consciousness; a musical call to arms for my audience to be proactive in this day and age as to each person’s responsibility to be an active instrument for positive change… ‘Beats of Zion’ is the drumbeat of war against apathy and re-energizing the forces of love and hope… the rhythm of change beating from a distance and getting louder to awaken positive consciousness.”

Get woke with video for the title track, directed by Lex McCarthy and shot in Ghana, West Africa.

||| Watch: The video for “Beats of Zion”

||| Live: Rocky Dawuni will play at Townhouse & the Del Monte on Thursday. Magatte Fall & Generation Percu open, with Garth Trinidad deejaying through the night. Info

||| Also stream: “Burn One”

||| Also Watch: The 360º video for “Let’s Go”