FacBois

FacBois is a contemporary Hip Hop all boys music group. Comprising of Big Shaq and CID. The FacBois create Hiplife, a genre of music from Ghana, West Africa. Their attempt is integration of internationally known sound and beats to their music.

It is their vision to deliver a new genre of sound for its fans. The name FacBois simply means Factory Boys – why FacBois? “We use to work in a factory”. Big Shaq (Shadrack Oppong-Kyereme) is a Ghanaian. His childhood was centered at Obuasi, the gold capital of Ghana.

At a tender age he migrated to Canada and settled in Toronto. It was during his high school days at Father Henry Carr, that his friends anointed him Big Shaq for a petite dude.

Shaq’s plan of moving to Canada was not to have a career in music. However, all that dramatically changed when he met Playboi Stonzy another aspiring Hype Artist. This encounter subsequently led to the formation of the group Ahenfoma. However, the group did not last as things turned sour and the group had to break up.

Later on, he met CID another underground artist and they decided to come up with a mix-tape. “Initially it was supposed to be a mixed tape but it turned out to be and album”. The first album named “Ye Nsem” was released in 2007. Ransford Oppong (aka CID Abrantie ) was born in Dansoman a suburb in the capital city of Ghana to Mary Asantewaa and Thomas Oppong. As a child growing up in the hoods and streets of Dasoman, he had a normal childhood and knew at a very tender age that he wanted to be a musician.

He used to make music with everything he came across on the streets from making drums with empty can tins, hitting on tables and any surface at home to mimicking artists he adored. “Came in the game at the age of 12 “ is what he said. His parents believed in education as the key to success therefore he was enrolled at Most Holy Heart in Dansoman and later continued to Ghana Secondary School (Koforidua). He never gave up on music and continued to join various dance and singing groups while attending school.

As a teenager, he performed and rubbed shoulders with other equally good aspiring teenage musicians at a very popular kids show in Ghana known as ‘Fun World’. It was at this juncture, that he got comfortable performing for large crowds. Due to CID’s keen interest in music; he joined his church choir to sing to glorify the lord.

Although he engaged in various activities in connection with music, he never had the opportunity to do anything professional until after he migrated to Canada. Upon his arrival he viewed Canada as a place to upgrade and harness whatever skills and abilities he had as an individual and what Canada had to offer. Through these realizations, CID began on freelancing until he met Big Shaq and agreed to collaborate to work on a mix-tape.

They respected each other as unique individuals with different styles and that made way for making an album instead of a mix-tape. After the release of their first album “Ye Nsem”, CID and Shaq began to perform with seasoned artists from Ghana, like Reggie Rockstone aka the Godfather of hip life (he started the genre known as Hip Life), V.I.P, Kwabena Kwabena, Samini, K.K Fosu, Obuor, Obrafour, Kwasi Pee and many more. All that foreshadowed their luck to be working with one of the best upcoming record company; Hype Records Inc.

The album did not really enjoy much air play and sales as intended, so it was a dream come true when OP of Hype Records Inc decided to sign them to a record deal to after listening to their previous flopped album. Under a new management who wanted to oust them to the top, Shaq and CID had to form a group with a name that really defined them as a group and also appealing to the younger generation. That was the Birth of Fac Bois (Factory Boys) which according to Shaq is like a rebirth from what he was used to as an artist.

Currently, the FacBois are working on their first CD , which is a hybrid sound derived from Ghana and other genre. The FacBois are in studio putting finishing touches on their yet to be released album. Coming up with songs and beats ascribed to attain international air play was not an easy task but with determination, hard work and the tremendous help from their management, we made it. Working under Hype Records has been real super experience for them.