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In his Own Words:
Emmanuel “Wanlov” Owusu-Bonsu Tells his Story
By Linda A. Annan
Ghana has bred a countless number of talented individuals, some of whom have gained world fame, others still working their way there, and then there are those who have gone only as far as Ghana or have never been discovered. Emmanuel Owusu-Bonsu, known among his fans as Wanlov, is one such individual who falls into the second category.
Music has always been a part of Owusu-Bonsu's life. His father's keen interest was exhibited through a habit of compiling records; his mother on the other hand, was fond of the performing arts and art collectibles. “She liked the whole vibe that Ghana had and so she kept it around us lot,” he said, noting this to be a reason for his deep appreciation of his father's native land as well as his interest in the Arts. Despite his love for performing, Owusu-Bonsu was set on pursuing other areas of interest like Business Administration and Computer Science in college. It did not take long, however, for him to realize that his heart did not lie in the monotonousness of office life but in music. Like most people, he grew up with the influences of legends such as UB 40, Bob Marley, and Peter Tosh. He was intrigued not only by their mode but also by their approach to music as a whole; a style and approach he incorporates into his own music.
Owusu-Bonsu recently landed a record deal with Tantrum Records in July, hoping the move elevates his music career. The label is currently re-recording some of his work and creating and adding new tracks to his CD. The debut album is set to be released in December of this year although a specific date has not yet been determined. His music, which is smeared with some reggae influence calls for a reasoning that goes beyond the fact that reggae is a music genre with fun rhythms. “When I was fully into hip-hop, I wasn' t fully conscious but reggae (always) helped me stay conscious of my subject matter, ” he fervently explained. And then continued to add that, “Reggae is always pure in a way...being the person I am, I like reggae more and so I try to make more of the music also.” Most of the people Owusu-Bonsu looks up to also fall under this umbrella: Damien Marley, K'naan, Sizzla, Fela Kuti, and many more including Bjiork, whom he admires for the same reasons as the others. “I look up to them because they look beyond the money aspect of things, they just look for the music and the social impact of it,” he said.
Owusu-Bonsu was born in his mother's native land of Ploiesti, Romania on September 8th, 1980 but was raised in his father's, Ghana, where he lived almost all of his life. After graduating from high school at Adisadel College, where most of his performances as a musical artist set in motion, he moved to the United States in January 2000 to pursue his college education, a decision that opened a door to the side of life most people scurry away from: its
vindictiveness.
His Nightmare
In the beginning, life for Owusu-Bonsu represented the quintessential story of most African immigrants who come into the United States to obtain higher levels of education. For 2 years he attended the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, Texas in pursuit of a degree in Business Administration and a minor concentration in Computer Science. That dream however, began to deteriorate when in fear of receiving a ticket one day, he attempted to evade authorities. This decision, a s he soon found out, would have serious consequences: He received two tickets, one week jail time and close to $6000 in fines and lawyer fees. To top it all off he was marked absent on the final exam roster, which placed him on the academic probation list in school. Even though the incident impaired his immigration status as an international student, he was determined to go back to school and thus, began to save money. However, another oh-so-familiar story reared its head when he was pulled over by cops for unpaid tickets
from the previous case. Owusu-Bonsu was given two options: either he paid the tickets or spent the weekend in jail as payment for the money owed. “I chose to go to jail because I didn't have the cash to pay them,” he said, but the weekend of this second arrest turned out to be more of a nightmare than he had anticipated. On the last day of his serve time in jail at Belton, Texas, Border Patrol authorities were waiting to question him about his immigration status. He was then transported to Boston for a full day processing before being taken to
San Antonio's immigration facility to meet with an immigration judge. “I came clean with him, and told him I was a student…I told him my situation,” he said of his meeting with the judge whose final decision dropped his bail from $20,000 to $3 ,000.
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