"On his 2021 debut, Smiling With No Teeth, the Ghanaian Australian dynamo depicted the twin burdens of depression and racism as two black dogs gnawing at his conscience; for the 2023 follow-up, Struggler, he inhabited a character named The Roach, an unsubtle avatar for the underclass rising up against an omnipotent adversary dubbed God, who, in this case, was less a religious deity than a shadowy stand-in for capitalism and authoritarianism."
"But despite his affinity for elaborate world-building and comic-book characterization, Owusu is not immune to breaking the fourth wall. Deep into the latter album, he offered perhaps his most self-aware observation when he teed up the reggae/drum'n'bass hybrid " What Comes Will Come" by announcing, "Make some noise for your momma's favorite agitator!" Because as confrontational as his work can be, Owusu has crossed over in surprising ways: Back home in Australia, he's racked up "ARIAs like Stark," held a residency at Sydney Opera House, and soundtracked KFC ads."
"As Owusu admits, his fantastical concept-album gambits are a means to " sugarcoat" the grim real-world discourse at the core of his work. The title of his third album, REDSTAR WU & THE WORLDWIDE SCOURGE, suggests an MCU movie in which our hero attempts to take on every problem plaguing the planet-and this time, Owusu isn't giving his adversaries code names."
""Elon's a fucking weirdo/Who gave these incels moolah," he spits on the album's acidic rave-rock opener, "Pirate Radio," working his way down a shit list that also includes "toupee'd totalitarians," Twitter trolls with brains "burnt by blue-"
Genesis Owusu is an alt-rap MC with prog-rock sensibilities who uses fabulist, character-based world-building to examine the human condition. His 2021 debut Smiling With No Teeth portrays depression and racism as two black dogs gnawing at his conscience. His 2023 follow-up Struggler centers on The Roach, an underclass avatar rising against an omnipotent adversary called God, framed as a stand-in for capitalism and authoritarianism. Despite confrontational themes, he breaks the fourth wall and delivers self-aware stage moments. He has also crossed into mainstream visibility through Australian performances, opera-house residency, commercial work, North American touring, and a sports-game sync. He describes fantastical concept-album tactics as a way to sugarcoat grim real-world discourse, and his third album REDSTAR WU & THE WORLDWIDE SCOURGE targets contemporary figures and systems directly.
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