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Dancehall musician Sonni Balli has been reported dead. A friend of the artiste, Mark Darlington, made the announcement on Facebook on Thursday, June 9. Sonni Balli who died at the age of 40 reportedly passed away after a cardiac arrest.<\/p>\n
The news comes as a shock for many, especially since he celebrated his birthday on Monday, June 6.<\/p>\n
\u201cSonni Balli how could you do this bro! I wished you a happy birthday just this past Monday! This is not fair! I am devastated and heartbroken! How???\u201d Mark wrote in his post.<\/p>\n
Born Sonny Kwabena Amoako Akoanor, the Dancehall legend started his music career at the age of 17 after singing in church from his childhood.<\/p>\n
Although his parents were against the decision, Sonni Balli was determined to make his mark in the industry.<\/p>\n
His first taste of success came at the age of 18 when he was discovered by American based producer, Nana King who worked with him on his first single.<\/p>\n
Sonny then went on to start a musical group called \u2018G Life\u2019 with three other friends. The group made two successful albums together namely; Kotoho-\u2018take a bow\u2019 and Abrabo in Ghana- \u2018Life in Ghana\u2019 but disbanded shortly after.<\/p>\n
For another few years following \u2018G Life\u2019, Sonny carried on making successful collaborations with major Ghanaian artistes such as Mary Agyapong on a hit single called Adede meaning \u2018sweet taboo\u2019.<\/p>\n
He also teamed up with other artistes such as Slim Buster on the single \u2018Georgina\u2019 as well as collaborations with Lord Kenya to name a few. In 2001, Sonny migrated to England to expand his musical opportunities.<\/p>\n
After a few years of networking, Sonni Balli teamed up with London-based producer, Eugene Nartey and CEO of \u2018Bad Habbit\u2019 records Bright Okah to begin work on his debut album entitled \u2018First Scene Second\u2019.<\/p>\n
A singer, songwriter, poet and avid storyteller, Sonni Balli incorporated all his talents in his debut album while successfully managing to balance the traditional with the contemporary.<\/p>\n
His songs were drawn from his personal life experiences and his guiding Rastafarian principles.<\/p>\n