Apple Music today announced Afro-fusion rapper and songwriter Yung D3mz (real name Nicholas Edem Coffie) is the latest musician to be featured in its Up Next artist development program in Ghana.
“Look ma, I’m Up Next! It’s an honour to be considered amongst the new guard of Ghanaian music,” he tells Apple Music. “I’m super geeked for this major opportunity to share my story and my art. As an avid listener, it’s legit a full-circle moment to be discovered the same way I found some of my favs, a befitting milestone to my journey.”
Born and raised in Ghana’s Tema Metropolis, Yung D3mz began writing songs at the tender age of 11 as a way to focus his energy into a passion. It was only around 2017 that he threw himself into production, motivated by his intense love for music and curiosity for all things production-related.
Influenced by the sounds of Travis Scott, Burna Boy, 6lack, Wizkid, The Weeknd and a whole host of other groundbreaking artists, Yung D3mz’ built a reputation for exuding versatility with a sound that’s smooth but comprises raw melodic elements.
With his debut EP Yung (2021) he fuses his African heritage with Western pop stylings, best exuded in uptempo single “Fever” and the ballad-esque “Carolina”. His new R&B-soul single “Do What You Want” (2023), available to stream on Apple Music, further cements his status as a musical chameleon as he flexes an ultra smooth vocal.
As the latest Up Next act to be spotlighted in Ghana, Yung D3mz will be featured across Apple Music’s Up Next playlist. The curated Up Next playlist features a dynamic class of new and emerging artists, thoughtfully hand-picked by Apple Music editors from around the world. The playlist is genre agnostic and represents a line-up of artists our global editors are passionate about and eager to expose to a larger audience.
The vast global Up Next roster of past talent includes Grammy-nominated and critically lauded talent like 6lack, Daniel Caesar, H.E.R., Greta Van Fleet, Khalid, Amy Shark, Billie Eilish, Sabrina Claudio, Sigrid, Mr Eazi, Stefflon Don, Bad Bunny, Juice WLRD, Bazzi, Jax Jones, NCT 127, Summer Walker, Tierra Whack, Dean Lewis, Pink Sweat$, Koffee, Megan Thee Stallion, Burna Boy, Clairo, Lunay, Jessie Reyez, Orville Peck, Victoria Monét, Ingrid Andress, Conan Gray, Don Toliver, Rema, BENEE, Holly Humberstone, Natanael Cano, Givēon, beabadoobee, Arlo Parks, Tate McRae, Foushee and Tems.