Samini
Ghanaian dancehall musician
Emmanuel Andrews Sammini (born 22 December 1982, in Accra, Ghana), known by his stage name Samini (formerly as Batman Samini), is a Ghanaian reggae and dancehall recording artist from Wa, Ghana. His genre of music is a melodious mixture of high life, dance hall, reggae and hip-hop. He terms his brand of music "African dance hall". He signed his first record deal with Ashanti International. Samini started his record label after he left the aforementioned label.
Samini has released seven studio albums, with all being highly successful on the commercial market. Samini's success and recognition began when his first single, Linda, was released and subsequently appearing on other successful singles by other artists.
On 13 December 2018, Samini was en-skinned as a Chief in his home town. The title given to him by the WaNaa (Paramount Chief of Wa) is `Pebilii Naa’, which means `King of the Rocks’ in Wa.
Samini holds a bachelor's degree in Project Management from Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA). He served as President of GIMPA Students Representative Council (SRC) during his final year at the institution.
After completion, Samini had his first major performance at the 'Re-ignition Concert' at the Kwame Nkrumah Mausoleum in Accra. He said that "it felt great, it's a good way to come back, it's a good way to get started again after a three and a half year break of active music."
01Background information
Sammini started singing in a church choir at the age of 14 and became a professional musician after a musical collaboration with another musician in 1999. His debut studio album, Dankwasere, was released in 2004; it topped the local music charts for weeks and won two awards at the Ghana Music Awards. The album was supported by the single "Linda". He has performed alongside Sean Paul, Akon, Kevin Little, Shaggy, Wayne Wonder, Damian Marley, Beenie Man, Jay-Z, Chaka Demus & Pliers, Culture (Joseph Hill), and Steel Pulse. He collaborated with Steel Pulse and Etana from Jamaica. He has received international recognition and toured the UK, Germany, Italy, Canada, and the Netherlands.
He received international recognition when he won the "Best African Act" at the 2006 MOBO Awards. After releasing his second self-titled studio album, Samini, he won three awards at the then 2007 Vodafone Ghana Music Awards. In February 2008, Samini won the "African Artiste of the Year" award at The Headies. His third studio album, Dagaati, was released in 2008. After launching his 7th studio album on 22 December 2018 titled UNTAMED he won the Reggaeville 2018, Album of the Year.
02Personal life
Samini was born to Mr G.A. Samini and Theresa Nusala, who were residing in Dansoman when Samini was only 9 years old. The names of his children are Haile Micaiah Yidaana Gansonye Samini, Ayana Samini, Toyila Samini, Emmanuel Andrew Tafari Samini Jnr, and Yelisung Samini.
03Discography
Studio albums
- Dankwasere (2004)
- Samini (2007)
- Dagaati (2008)
- C.E.O (2010)
- Next Page (2013)
- Breaking News (2015)
- Untamed (2018)
- Origin8a(2026)
04Singles
- Tsoobi featuring Rowan, Senario & Razben
- Good Vibes
05Videography
| Year | Title | Director | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Enkasa As featured artist | , N/a | |
| 2016 | Ye Ko Paapi | , N/a | |
| 2015 | New Style | , N/a | |
| 2017 | My Own | , N/a | |
| 2018 | Obaa | , N/a | |
| 2019 | tsoobi | Slingshots |
06Awards and nominations
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MOBO Awards
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Himself | Best African Act | Won |
The Headies
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Himself | Best African Act | Won |
Channel O Music Video Awards
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Himself | Most Gifted Reggae Dancehall Video Artist | Won |
Bass Awards
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Himself | Kwame Nkrumah Award (Artiste of the Year) | Won |
| Best Performer(Reggae/Dancehall) | Won | ||
| Best Dancehall Artiste | Won |
MTV Africa Music Awards
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Himself | Best Performer | Won |
Ghana Music Awards
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Himself | Artiste of the Year | Won |
| HipLife Artist of the Year | Won | ||
| 2007 | Himself | African Magic Artiste of the Year | Won |
| Pop Song of the Year | Won | ||
| Record Song of the Year | Won | ||
| 2011 | Himself | Album of the Year | Won |
| 2021 | Himself | Reggae Dance-hall Song of The Year | Nominated |
Nominations
- 2006 MTV Europe Music Awards 2006, Best African Act
- 2008 MTV Africa Music Awards, Best Performer
- Black Canadian Awards 2014, Best International Act
- Ghana Music Awards 2014, Artist of the Year
- Ghana Music Awards 2014, Reggae Dance hall Song (scatter bad mind)
- Ghana Music Awards 2011, Artist of the Year
- Ghana Music Awards 2011, Afro Pop Song of the Year
- Ghana Music Awards 2011, Album of the Year
- Ghana Music Awards 2012, Reggae Song of the Year
- IRWM Awards- Best African Entertainer
- Bass Awards 2013, Most Popular Dance hall Song
- Bass Awards 2013, Best Collaboration (Time Bomb ft wiz kid)
- Bass Awards 2013, Best Dance hall Music Video
- MOAMA Awards 2010, Best African album
- Ghana DJ Awards- Song of the Year 2010
- Ghana Music Awards UK 2018, Reggae/Dance hall song of the year
- Ghana music awards UK 2019-Special recognition award
- Ghana Music Awards 2020-Reggae/Dance hall artist of the year
- Ghana Music Awards 2021- Reggae/Dance hall song of the year
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Samini”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- Emmanuel Andrews Sammini 2.jpg by Esthee2010, CC BY-SA 4.0
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