Ama Serwah Genfi, known professionally as Amaarae, is a Ghanaian-American singer, songwriter, producer, and engineer known for her work around representation of gender and race in music.
Genfi was born in New York and raised between Atlanta and Accra to Ghanaian parents Ama Bawuah and Kwadwo Boateng Genfi. 
She is the eldest of two children. Amaarae began to experiment with music at the age of 13, when she wrote her first song. In an interview , she said “I wrote my first song when I was about 13 and it was a reimagining of R.Kelly and Usher’s “Same Girl”. During her teenage years, she also took a likening to watching music videos.
Read Also: KOKOnista Of The Day: Bianca Saunders Is The British Designer Changing Menswear And Celebrating Black Culture
She recalls one of her most vivid memories being watching the music video for the Kelis song Young, Fresh n’ New. She recalls Kelis’ unique expression being an inspiration for her own expression later.
During high school she started making mixtapes and by 17, she took up an internship at a music studio. At university, she undertook voice training and honed her songwriting skills while studying English literature and in June 2017 she returned to Ghana.
In 2020 Amaarae released the song “Sad Girlz Luv Money” featuring Moliy on her debut album The Angel You Don’t Know. In 2021 the song was remixed with a feature from Kali Uchis which then went on to become a viral hit on social media and streaming platforms, charting globally.
Photo Credit: Getty
