EME RECORDS CEO BANKY W FULL BIOGRAPHY

Banky W Full Biography

Olubankole Wellington  who was born on the  27 March 1981 known under the stage name Banky W, and credited in film as Banky Wellington, is a Nigerian singer, rapper and actor.

Wellington was born in the United States to Nigerian parents, but the family moved back to Lagos Nigeria when he was five years old where he began singing in his church choir at the age of 8. After completing his secondary school Education at Home Science Association Secondary School, he moved to New York to attend college on a scholarship; earning a degree in Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.While still in college, he won the ‘Albany Idol’ competition, which catapulted him into the spotlight. He overcame many personal trials and obstacles from being held at gunpoint at the age of 15 when his family was robbed to surving life threatning illnes,Hequickly become an in-demand artist on the local music scene performing alongside major acts on tour. To have a loyal following  he established the Empire Mates Entertainment (E.M.E.) record label so he could be able to get his music to his fans and began work on an EP.

Under the name Banky W, he released the EP Undeniable in 2003, as the first release on his jointly owned E.M.E Records. The EP was released on his own label, and was sold on the internet and out of the trunks of cars. The buzz around the album went around to a point it caught the ears of the executives at Fox 23 News New York who promptly dispatched a reporter with a camera crew to investigate the phenomenon sweeping the area.They were very surprised it was a three person company executing a highly successful grassroots marketing campaign.Clearly Banky was as passionate as his team.It became one of the top selling independent records, won him the 2003 R&B/Soul Artist of the Year at the Urban Independent Music Awards. His career was for a while threatened by cancer in the shoulder, but he managed to make a recovery from his illness."NOTHING CAN STOP ME HE SAID " ..we surely gree with you Brother.

In 2005 he released his first album, titled Back in the Building, containing the award-winning song “My Regret”.The R&B/Soul album was released to critical acclaim; he had crafted a classic record and solidified his status as ground breaking artist. The album spawned the award winning song ‘My Regret’ and on the strength of this enduring single he became an urban-underground-yet-international icon. The awards and accolades followed with a US Songwriting Award, 2006 Nigerian Entertainment Award – R&B/Soul Artist of the Year and 2007 International Single of the Year to name a few. Banky followed this up by winning the prestigious worldwide John Lennon Songwriting Award in the R&B Category and signing a lucrative US Publishing deal. He was also a featured artist on AOL and Cingular Wireless Hip Hop Superstar with MTV’s Xzibit, numerous magazines covers, as well as touring North America Africa & Europe.

Banky W is a Philanthropist to the core, he founded the “I am Capable” Scholarship fund which provides tuition, room, and board for indigent undergraduates who met the foundation’s requirement.Banky W is also in the fore front of the Light upNigeria project aimed at achieving steady electricity power supply. A day after Valentine of 2013, he launched his new album "R&BW" with a concert tagged the "The Grand Love Concert" at the Civic Centre, Ozumba Mbadiwe, Victoria Island, Lagos, which featured several other artistes including Iyanya, Waje and more. The first two singles from the album are "Lowkey" and "Yes/No.

This guys hustling never stops he is releasing not one, not two but THREE albums this year.He made the announcement on Snapchat while talking about Shaydee’s upcoming album. According to Banky, Shaydee’s album will be the favourite album of 2016 while his will be a close 2^nd, 3^rd and 4^th.

Official Video: Banky W - "Yes/No"