DenG
Background information
Birth nameDaniel Tom George
Born (1984-09-01) September 1, 1984 (age 39)
Bong County, Liberia
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter

Daniel Tom George (born September 1, 1984), known professionally as DenG, is a Liberian singer and songwriter from Bong County.[1] He started his music career in the early 2000's as an R&B artist before making a guest appearance on Emma Smith's single "I Want to Go". DenG rose to prominence after being featured on Queen V's 2013 hit single "Jue You Bad".[1] Following the success of "Jue You Bad", he switched from R&B to Afro pop.[1]

Life and career

A descendant of the Kpelle tribe, Daniel Tom George was born on September 1, 1984, in Bong County, Liberia.[1][2] He developed an interest in music at the age of 10 and joined his church's choir. DenG's family relocated to Ghana during Liberia's second civil war; he attended Achimota Secondary School at JS level and Buduburam Community School at SS level while living in Ghana. DenG returned to Liberia to studied Economics and business management at the United Methodist University.[2] He started his music career as an R&B artist before venturing into Afro pop music, and was featured on Emma Smith's single "I Want to Go".[1] DenG gained prominence in 2013 after being featured on Queen V's hit single "Jue You Bad", which also features vocals by Tan Tan B.[1][3] In 2014, he released the single "They Vex", a song that addresses the jealousy associated with fame and recognition.[1] His management team announced that a tee-shirt collection, featuring the phrase "If they vex, let them buss", would arrive in Liberia.[4] DenG collaborated with F.A and Soul Fresh to record "Ebola is Real", a hipco track that informs Liberians about ways they can protect and prevent the spread of Ebola.[5] Recorded in colloquial English, "Ebola is Real" was created in partnership with Liberia's Ministry of Health & Social Welfare and the radio station Hott FM.[5]

In 2015, DenG won Artist of the Year and Song of the Year for "They Vex" at the 2015 Liberia Music Awards.[1] He also won Best Artist and Song of the Year for "They Vex" at the 2015 Liberian Entertainment Awards.[6] DenG signed a $50,000 endorsement deal with Novafone Liberia, a GSM carrier.[1] He released "Kemah" in 2015; it earned him a nomination for Best New Artist at the African Entertainment Awards that same year.[1]

In April 2016, hit duo Ruff N Smooth featured DenG on their single call "NOT THE WAY YOU THINK", a song that speaks against stereotyping women as "Prostitutes" because they are in the club having fun. Liberian musical sensation artist DenG signed a management deal with African Entertainment Music Group (AEMG) in 2016 and released a debut single call "LET DEM TALK" featuring Kcee, the Limpopo hit maker from Nigeria. "LET DEM TALK" addresses the human phenomena that says 'anything you do people must talk- whether good or bad'.

In 2017 June, DenG released two singles again under (AEMG) tagged "GREATFUL" (a song appreciating God for all the achievements he has enquired musically) and "JANJAY" featuring one of Africa's biggest rapper Sarkodie from Ghana, jointly produced by Stone LuckShine from Liberia and Possigee from Ghana. This song title "JANJAY" simply means gift in the Liberian Bassa vernacular which acknowledged Sarkodie's presence on the song as a gift to the Liberian music industry. [7]

In 2015, DenG won Artist of the Year and Song of the Year for "They Vex" at the 2015 Liberia Music Awards. He also won Best Artist and Song of the Year for "They Vex" at the 2015 Liberian Entertainment Awards respectively. He won Artist of the Year and Song of the Year for "KEMAH" at Liberian Music Awards in 2016. DenG also won Artist of the Year in 2016 at Liberian Entertainment Awards held in USA, that same year, He also won Afro-pop Artist of the Year at Liberian Music Awards held in Australia. In 2017, DenG won Artist of the Year and Song of the Year at Tunes Liberia Music Awards, He also won Best Video of the Year for "MAKE DEM TALK" at Liberia Entertainment Awards that same year where he featured Sarkodie and Afro-pop Artist of the Year at Liberian Music Awards.

In 2018, DenG won Best Artist at Liberian Entertainment Awards. In 2019, DenG won "Outstanding influential Artist of the Year" at West African Citizens Awards and also won the "Personality Impact Awards" at the National Event Planning, in 2022 He won "Legendary Award" at Paynesville Entertainment Awards. DenG signed a $50,000 endorsement deal with Novafone Liberia, a GSM carrier in 2014 and he has done several musical tours in USA, Europe and Australia.


In May 2018, DenG organized his American tour; it concluded with a concert in Washington DC.[8] DenG's management contract with African Entertainment Management Group (AEMG) ended in June 2018; the announcement was made via a press release.[9] In August 2018, he performed at the One Africa Music Fest, becoming the first Liberian act to perform at the festival.[10] Held at the Ford Amphitheater at Coney Island, the festival featured additional performances from Wizkid, Flavour N'abania, Tekno, Sarkodie, Cassper Nyovest and Diamond Platnumz.[10] DenG was one of the Liberian acts who performed at a concert headlined by Nigerian singer Davido; the concert was held at the Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex in November 2018.[11]

In 2020, DenG collaborated with Takun J, Sundaygar Dearboy, Tan Tan, Soul Smiter, Odemz, and Amaze to produce the hipco song "Sanitize". The artists released the song in order to raise awareness about Covid-19 and encourage Liberians to practice good hygiene.[12]

Personal life

In January 2018, The New Dawn newspaper reported that DenG's brother Smith George died in Margibi County.[13] George's body was discovered with foam around the mouth.[13]

Awards and nominations

Year Event Prize Recipient Result Ref
2015 Liberian Entertainment Awards Best Artist Himself Won [6]
Song of the Year "They Vex" Won
Liberia Music Awards Won [14]
Artist of the Year Himself Won
Afro Pop Artist of the Year Nominated [15]
African Entertainment Awards Best New Artist Nominated [1]
2016 Nigeria Entertainment Awards African Male Artist of the Year (Non Nigerian) Nominated [16]
MTV Africa Music Awards Listener's Choice Nominated [17]
2018 Tunes Liberia Music Awards Artist of the Year Won [18]
Song of the Year "Grateful" Won
Liberia Music Awards Artist of the Year Himself Nominated [19]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Tete Bropleh (September 8, 2016). "DenG Turns 32". Daily Observer. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  2. ^ a b "Who is DenG? A Brief Profile". Liberia Broadcasting System. November 9, 2019. Archived from the original on 12 April 2020. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
  3. ^ "'Jue You Bad' Artist QUEEN V Raps on Celebrity, Motherhood". Daily Observer. March 30, 2014. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  4. ^ "If They Vex, Let Them Buss". Daily Observer. November 27, 2014. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  5. ^ a b Uri Friedman (August 25, 2014). "How to Make a Hit Song About Ebola". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on 28 September 2018. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  6. ^ a b "DenG Grabs Double Awards". Daily Observer. February 26, 2015. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  7. ^ Robin Dopoe (July 20, 2017). "Emma Smith Back with DenG to 'Hold Ground'". Daily Observer. Archived from the original on 13 May 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  8. ^ "The Phenomenon of DenG's Musical Career". Front Page Africa. May 11, 2018. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  9. ^ "AEMG ends management of Liberian singer, DenG". African Entertainment. June 2, 2018. Archived from the original on 18 April 2023. Retrieved 18 April 2023.
  10. ^ a b T Kla Wesley Jr. (August 14, 2018). "DenG Becomes First Liberian to Perform at One Africa Music Fest". Bush Chicken. Archived from the original on 25 July 2019. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  11. ^ Robin Dopoe (8 November 2018). "Liberia: Davido Billed to Perform in Liberia November 29". Daily Observer. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  12. ^ "Liberian Hipco Stars Fight COVID-19 Through Music". Accountability Lab. May 13, 2020. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  13. ^ a b Ramsey N. Singbeh, Jr (9 January 2018). "Liberia: Deng's Brother Killed At SRC". The New Dawn. Archived from the original on 5 June 2018. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  14. ^ "K-Zee, Eric Geso, DenG Win Big at LMA". Daily Observer. July 2, 2015. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  15. ^ "Liberia Music Awards Foundation Announces the Nominees for 2015". Daily Observer. May 6, 2015. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  16. ^ Adedayo Showemimo (17 June 2016). "FULL nominee list for 2016 Nigerian Entertainment Awards (NEA)". Nigerian Entertainment Today. Archived from the original on 2017-01-02. Retrieved 12 September 2016.
  17. ^ Alyssa Klein (October 22, 2016). "Here's the Full List of Nominees at the 2016 MTV Africa Music Awards in Johannesburg". OkayAfrica. Archived from the original on 3 November 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  18. ^ "DenG wins big at Liberian awards ceremony". Music in Africa. 2 March 2018. Archived from the original on 20 April 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  19. ^ "Liberia Music Awards 2018: Stunna tops list of nominees". Music in Africa. 9 November 2018. Archived from the original on 17 February 2023. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
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