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Rhian Benson

 

Rhian Benson is a new African/British artist that offers what USA TODAY calls "a rich blend of R&B, soul, jazz and reggae". Billboard Magazine calls her music "a breath of fresh air".

Rhian was born into the renowned Ashanti tribe in Ghana, West Africa. Her family is deeply involved in music - Her father, an Ashanti dignitary from Ghana, is a guitarist and her British mother is a singer. In addition, her grandfather and uncles are all musicians. This musically rich heritage inspired Rhian to begin playing the piano and writing songs as a child. She composes her songs on guitar and keyboards

 

Rhian Benson temporarily abandoned her musical roots to study at the London School of Economics. After a short stint as a banker she enrolled at Harvard in Boston for graduate school. She had to leave Harvard when her mother fell ill with cancer. She went back to London to take care of her mother and during this stressful time, she began writing songs again as an outlet for her emotions. Realizing the true importance of music in her life, Rhian continued to write songs after her mother's recovery. She also began performing at open-mic nights in London, where she was eventually discovered and signed by DKG Music, a new Los Angeles-based label.

 

Her label asked her to move to L.A., which is where she has spent the last two years recording her debut album- "Gold Coast." The title refers to her journey-from her home in Ghana (which historically used to be called The Gold Coast) to her new home in 'The Golden State' of California. She wrote all the songs on Gold Coast and also co-produced the album with Grammy-winning producers James Poyser (who has worked with Lauryn Hill, The Roots and Jill Scott amongst others) and Bob Power (D'Angelo, Tribe Called Quest, Erykah Badu).

 

Gold Coast recently hit the stores and Rhian just completed a national 20-city tour with R&B superstar Brian McKnight and has also opened for Raphael Saadiq and Musiq. Rhian was also just spotlighted in an hour Who is Rhian Benson? special on BET, and in addition, is scheduled to be hosting her own series on the network. Entitled "Gold Coast," the series will air in November and December.

 

She was also recently featured as the Sirius Satellite Radio/House of Blues Emerging Artist of The Month.




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