Blitz the Ambassador

Early life

Samuel Bazawule was born in Accra, Ghana, on 19 April 1982. He is the third of four children and attended Achimota School. While in school, he amassed awards for his visual art, but later developed an obsession with hip-hop music after hearing his older brother play the Public Enemy album It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back. Drawing on his love for history and social observation, Bazawule began to research and write historically loaded rhymes for which he became famous in school.

Career

After graduation from Achimota School in 2000, Bazawule was first recognized by Ghanaian Ace producer Hammer of The Last Two. Blitz was asked to come to the studio the next day after impressing Hammer with his skills. He recorded a verse on the song "Deeba" and received an award for Best New Artist at the 2000 Ghana Music Awards. In 2001, Blitz moved to the United States to study at Kent State University in Ohio, where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in Business Administration. In those years he performed at several live shows and opening for rappers such as Rakim. In 2004 he self-released the album Soul Rebel, under the moniker Blitz.

After graduation, Blitz moved to New York City. There, he recorded another album, Double Consciousness (2005), and more recently he released Stereotype. The album draws from his diverse musical background. In order to achieve the live sound he was looking for, he formed a band, The Embassy Ensemble, and brushed off his own djembe skills. He established a label, Embassy MVMT, and is now connected to The Roots community initiative Okayplayer.

In late 2009, Blitz the Ambassador was chosen as of one Beyond Race magazine's "50 Emerging Artists". In 2015, Blitz received the Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Contemporary Music. In 2011, he released "Feelin' High" with the French singer Ben Mazue, and in 2012, he was featured on the album Tetra by the French electronic crew C2C. Blitz has also frequently collaborated with Professor A.L.I. featuring on "Things Fall Apart" along with Raekwon in 2011, on the remix "Things Still Fall Apart" in 2012, and on his song "The Mic Shall Inherit The Earth" off of the "XFactor" album in 2015. In 2016 he published his fourth studio album Diasporadical and the related short film Diasporadical Trilogia, a triptych with installments set in Accra, New York City and Salvador, Bahia.

In 2018, Blitz directed and wrote his debut film The Burial of Kojo, which featured actors Ama K. Abebrese, Joseph Otsiman, Joyce Anima Misa Amoah and Cynthia Dankwa. The film was acquired by Ava DuVernay’s independent film studio Array for a theatrical and a Netflix release, and premiered at the 2018 Urban World film festival in New York. It received nine nominations at the 15th Africa Movie Academy Awards, winning for Best First Feature Film by a Director, and won the Grand Nile Prize at the Luxor African Film Festival.

In 2019, Blitz was one of the directors featured in Beyoncé's visual album The Lion King: The Gift and in the related Walt Disney Pictures's musical film Black Is King, for which he was nominated for Best Music Film at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards. Blitz starred in the 2019 Whitney Biennial curated by Rujeko Hockley and Jane Panetta. Blitz is also a 2019 Senior TED (conference) Fellow, and founded the Africa Film Society, an organization focused on the preservation of classic African cinema. He was the recipient of one of the Guggenheim Fellowships for his influence of Ghana.

In 2020, it was announced that Bazawule was set to direct The Color Purple, a film adaptation of Alice Walker's book of the same name and the Broadway musical produced by Oprah Winfrey. Winfrey herself produced the film with Quincy Jones, Scott Sanders and Steven Spielberg. The film starred Fantasia Barrino, Taraji P. Henson, Colman Domingo and Danielle Brooks. It was released in the United States on 25 December 2023 by Warner Bros. Pictures. The film earned him nominations for the Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Picture and a Black Reel Award for Outstanding Director.

Bazawule's first book, The Scent of Burnt Flowers, was published on June 28, 2022. On 17 March 2022, it was announced that FX would produce a six-episode miniseries based on the book, with Bazawule directing and producing as well as Yahya Abdul-Mateen II starring.

In March 2024, it was announced an upcoming Bazawule's project as a film director, Black Samurai, on the legendary Yasuke, an African warrior who became the first Black samurai.

Discography

Studio albums

• 2009: Stereotype
• 2011: Native Sun
• 2014: Afropolitan Dreams
• 2016: Diasporadical

Soundtrack albums

• 2019: The Burial of Kojo

EPs

• 2004: Soul Rebel
• 2005: Double Consciousness
• 2009: StereoLive
• 2013: The Warm Up

Filmography

Short film

• 2011: Native Sun
• 2016: Diasporadical Trilogia

Feature film

• 2018: The Burial of Kojo
• 2020: Black Is King
• 2023: The Color Purple

TV series

• 2020: Cherish the Day
• TBA: The Scent of Burnt Flowers

Awards and nominations

References

References

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4. Jurgensen, John. (December 27, 2023). "The Beyoncé Veteran Remaking 'The Color Purple' for a New Generation".
5. (January 4, 2024). "Variety's 10 Directors to Watch for 2024: Blitz Bazawule, Cord Jefferson and Anna Kendrick Among Noteworthy Helmers".
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14. Wakin, Daniel J.. (4 February 2013). "A $100,000 Prize for Yo-Yo Ma".
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33. D'Alessandro, Anthony. (2021-02-01). "'Black Is King' Filmmaker Blitz Bazawule Sells Debut Novel 'The Scent Of Burnt Flowers' To Ballantine Books".
34. Kroll, Justin. (2022-03-17). "FX Lands Rights To Blitz Bazawule's 'Scent Of Burnt Flowers' To Develop As Limited Series With Yahya Abdul-Mateen II Attached To Star".
35. "Warner Bros. Lands 'Black Samurai' Movie From 'The Color Purple' Director Blitz Bazawule (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety.
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43. (2021-06-17). "Black Reel Awards for Television 2021: Plenty of "Love" in the Heart of the Country!".
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