Kemar Donaldson (born 12 August 1993), known professionally as Kranium, is a Jamaican

dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots reggae, roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2 ...

singer known for his 2013 hit single "Nobody Has to Know" which gave him international recognition and led him to the

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

record label.

Personal life

The nephew of

Screwdriver A screwdriver is a tool, manual or powered, used for turning screws. Description A typical simple screwdriver has a handle and a shaft, ending in a tip the user puts into the screw head before turning the handle. This form of the screwdriver ...

, Donaldson was born in

Montego Bay Montego Bay () is the capital of the Parishes of Jamaica, parish of Saint James Parish, Jamaica, St. James in Jamaica. The city is the fourth most populous urban area in the country, after Kingston, Jamaica, Kingston, Spanish Town, and Portmore ...

before moving to

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, in 2005. He moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

one year later.

Career

Kranium's career began with a series of appearances in New York City and the tri-state area. He opened shows for

Gyptian Windel Beneto Edwards (born 25 October 1983), better known by his stage name Gyptian (), is a Jamaican reggae singer. He often appears with roots reggae songs within the reggae subgenre dancehall. Early life Born to a Seventh-day Adventist mo ...

, Serani, I-Octane, and

Tarrus Riley Omar "Tarrus" Riley, Order of Distinction, CD (born April 26, 1979, Bronx, New York (state), New York, United States) is a Jamaican-American reggae singer and member of the Rastafari movement.Kenner, Rob (21 August 2009"Reggae Singer With a Leg ...

. His song, "Nobody Has to Know", produced by LMR Productions, played on ethnic radio stations in New York City, including the influential

Hot 97 WQHT (97.1 FM, ''Hot 97'') is a commercial radio station, licensed to New York, New York, which broadcasts an urban contemporary music format. The station is owned by Mediaco Holding, a subsidiary of the Standard General hedge fund. WQHT's st ...

. "Nobody Has to Know" sold more than 39,000 copies in 2015, peaking at number 32 on the Reggae Digital Song Sales chart. Kranium has been working with producers including Tony Kelly, TJ Records, and Cash Flow. Under Atlantic Records, he released his debut album ''Rumors'' in 2015, followed by ''Midnight Sparks'' in 2019. He also released an EP titled ''Toxic'' in 2021, followed by the EP titled ''In Too Deep'' in 2022 under the label. On 25 May 2020, he emerged as

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...

RADAR artistes alongside

Fahda Romie Fahda Romie (born Jerome Downes, 9 August 1993) is a Jamaican rapper and songwriter, known for his 2020 EP ''ExtraGalactic Quasar'' which led to him being named as one of Jamaican's top YouTube artists of 2021. Early life Fahda Romie was bo ...

and

Shenseea Chinsea Linda Lee (born 1 October 1996), known professionally as Shenseea (), is a Jamaican dancehall singer-songwriter and dancer. She is best known for her guest appearance alongside Roddy Ricch on Kanye West's 2021 song " Pure Souls," whic ...

. On 2 March 2023, Kranium announced that he parted ways with Atlantic Records.

Discography

Albums

* ''Rumors'' (2015) *''Midnight Sparks'' (2019)

Singles

* "Nobody Has to Know" MC: Platinum * We Can * Between Us * Lifestyle * Draw Me Out * History * Beach House * Stamina * Lil Luv * Moonlight * Can't Give A... * Swagga Buck * Ride It * Rumors * Gotta Believe * Spydog * Rebel Moon * This Morning * El Obraje * Dos Sonrisas, Una Lagrima * Envuelto en el Silencio * Interlude * No Te Tortures * Nobody Haffi Know * Sleepless Nights * Summer Chill * Sex Addict * What We Need * Pressure Bust Pipe * No Commoners * Manos cruzadas * Up and Away * Sin Tener Más (ft. Timbaland and Cali) * Want * Yesos de Familia (with

Wizkid Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun (born 16 July 1990), better known as Wizkid, is a Nigerian singer and songwriter. Born in the Ojuelegba suburb of Surulere, Lagos, Wizkid is a voice in the emerging Afrobeats movement. His music is a blend of Afrobea ...

, ft. Kyla,

Ty Dolla $ign Tyrone William Griffin Jr. (born April 13, 1982), known professionally as Ty Dolla Sign (stylized as Ty Dolla $ign or Ty$), is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Griffin gai ...

, Dandee and

J Balvin José Álvaro Osorio Balvín (born 7 May 1985), known professionally as J Balvin, is a Colombian singer. He is one of the best-selling Latin artists, with 35 million records sold worldwide. Balvin was born in Medellín. At age 17, he moved to th ...

) * "Can't Believe" (with

Ty Dolla Sign Tyrone William Griffin Jr. (born April 13, 1982), known professionally as Ty Dolla Sign (stylized as Ty Dolla $ign or Ty$), is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Griffin gai ...

, ft.

WizKid Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun (born 16 July 1990), better known as Wizkid, is a Nigerian singer and songwriter. Born in the Ojuelegba suburb of Surulere, Lagos, Wizkid is a voice in the emerging Afrobeats movement. His music is a blend of Afrobea ...

) MC: Gold *Risky (Refix) (with

Davido David Adedeji Adeleke (born November 21, 1992), known professionally as Davido, is a Nigerian American, Nigerian-American singer, songwriter and record producer. Davido was born in Atlanta, U.S, and raised in Lagos, Nigeria. He made his mus ...

* So Me Move * Gal Policy (Remix) ft

Tiwa Savage Tiwatope Omolara Savage (born 5 February 1980), known professionally as Tiwa Savage (), is a Nigerian singer, songwriter and actress. Savage sings in English, Nigerian Pidgin and Yoruba; her music is a blend of afrobeats, R&B, afropop, p ...

References

{{Authority control 1993 births Living people Jamaican dancehall musicians Jamaican reggae singers People from Montego Bay