Freddy Will facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Freddy Will
Freddy Will at Wansee in Berlin, Germany.
Background information
Birth name	Wilfred Kanu Jr.
Born	(1977-08-11) August 11, 1977 (age 48) Brookfields, Freetown
Origin	United States of America
Genres	Hip hop
Occupation(s)	Author, recording artist, philanthropist
Years active	2006–present
Labels	Theatre of Literary & Performing Arts Soul Asylum Poetry & Publishing African Books Collective

Wilfred Kanu Jr., known by his stage name Freddy Will, is an author, music producer, and recording artist from Sierra Leone and America. He is famous for releasing three music albums, each with its own book. He started his music career by blending hip-hop with styles like jazz, calypso, R&B, classical music, and Afrobeat.

Freddy Will writes books about history, philosophy, poetry, and stories. Some of his well-known songs include "City Boy" (2008), "Providence" (2009), "Endurance" (2010), "Mandingo Love" (2012), "2 Passports" (2014), "Livin' N' Toronto" (2014), "Girl from Happy Hill" (2017), "IV U" (2020), and "Natural Light" (2024). He has also written several books while living in Europe.

Early Life and Travels

Wilfred Kanu Jr. was born in Brookfields, Freetown, Sierra Leone. When he was two years old, he moved with his parents to Monrovia, Liberia. There, he discovered his love for music, theater, and writing. As a teenager, he lived through the difficult civil wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone. He lived in Sierra Leone, The Gambia, and Senegal before becoming a citizen of the United States.

Music and Writing in Toronto

In 2006, Freddy Will traveled to Toronto, Canada, to record his first music album. After visiting Canada a few more times, he decided to live there permanently. While in Toronto, he recorded a mixtape, two more studio albums, and an EP. He released these through his own music labels, Ghetto Breed Entertainment and Swift Nightz Entertainment.

He also began his career as a freelance writer and started his own blog. He wrote three books that were published by Soul Asylum Poetry & Publishing and his own company, Freddy Will Publishing, in Ontario, Canada. All three books were released at the same time as their matching albums. During this period, he also started The Freddy Will Hope Foundation, which helps others.

Musical and Literary Inspirations

In an interview with Ghanaian journalist Jefferson Sackey, Freddy Will shared that he began rapping when he was still living in Liberia. He mentioned several artists who inspired his music, including Kool Moe Dee, LL Cool J., Queen Latifah, Ice-T, Naughty By Nature, Jimmy B, Dr. Dre, Tupac Shakur, Scarface, Snoop Dogg, The Notorious B. I. G., Nas, The Luniz, and The LOX.

For his writing, he credits his father, John Grisham, Shakespeare, Langston Hughes, Caresse Crosby, Maya Angelou, and Pacesetter Novels as his main influences. In theater and film, he looks up to Idris Elba, Ice Cube, John Singleton, and Spike Lee.

Healthy Food For Thought: Good Enough to Eat

In 2010, Freddy Will joined many other musicians, music producers, spoken word artists, chefs, and children's book authors for a special project. They created a children's album with 60 songs, poems, and stories about food, healthy eating, and knowing yourself. This album was designed to help teach children about childhood obesity and Type 2 Diabetes.

The album was produced in Philadelphia by the New York Coalition for Healthy School Foods. In 2011, this double CD charity album was nominated for a Grammy Award by the Recording Academy.

Discography

Albums

• While I'm Still Young – The Talking Drums (2008)
• While I'm Still Young – The Talking Drums 1.2v (2009)
• Dark Horse From Romarong – a City of Kings (2010)
• Laboramus Exspectantes (2014)
• Views From The 7 (2017)
• African Black: The Unreleased Anthems & Ballads (2020)

EP

• City of Kings: RELOADED (2012)

Mixtape

• Stay True (2006)

Collaboration

• Healthy Food for Thought: Good Enough to Eat (2010)

Grammy Awards