Genesis Owusu

Born in Ghana as Kofi Owusu-Ansah and raised as a child in Canberra, Australia, Genesis Owusu has developed a project at the crossroads of hip-hop, funk, post-punk, soul and an experimental pop with shifting contours. He emerged in the late 2010s on the Australian scene with a string of singles that drew attention for their rhythmic songwriting, the interplay between rapped and sung vocals, and an aesthetic that blends rock tension, nervous grooves and melodic choruses. His debut album, Smiling with No Teeth (2021), brings these influences together around themes of identity, isolation and social relations, in a format where confrontational rap, tight funk, more danceable passages and punk accents coexist. With STRUGGLER (2023), Genesis Owusu pushes further the fusion of angular rock, danceable rhythms and spoken word, while maintaining a very physical approach to the tracks. Present on hip-hop, independent and festival stages alike, Genesis Owusu occupies a singular place in the contemporary Australian landscape by linking rap writing, band energy and pop forms without confining himself to a single register.