BASSETERRE, St. Kitts- ALTHOUGH he has been singing from an early age in the church choir, Ziggy Ranking, who is scheduled to perform on the Friday night of the 13th annual St. Kitts Music Festival, has made many strides and accomplishments since his days in church.
Born Khori Francis on October 10, this Trinidadian started gaining more international recognition after he sang hit song ‘Tired of This Miserable Life’. Not only is he known for his powerful voice on reggae tracks, but this versatile singer has also tapped into the soca scene with several tracks.
Before tapping directly into the music industry, Francis battled at many ‘Blockos’ where he won many chanting competitions. Not stopping there, he migrated to New York City where he attended college and graduated with a BSC in Music Tech.
Some of his other past hits include ‘High Grade’, ‘Love How You Wining’, ‘Zion Train’ and ‘Girl Next Door’. The ‘Miserable Life’ singer has graced many stages around the Caribbean including those of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Bahamas, Turks and Caicos and Grenada.
This artiste, who is known for his famous quote “world music will inspire all”, received the Rising Star Soca Award in2003, and in 2005 he was named USA Soca Male Artiste of the Year. In 2007 he received two awards - Club Ice Best Reggea Artiste and 104.7 More FM Artiste of the Year.
Francis’ success did not stop there, for in 2003 he won the St. Lucia Music Awards Favorite Regional Performance, Xclusive Radio 3rd Anniversary Soca Artiste of the Year and the COTT awards for Best Reggae for the Year. And earlier this year he obtained the Diego Martin Secondary School Explosion Artiste Award.
Other performers appearing on the same night with Ranking are the Odisi Band, Stephen Marley, Burning Spear and Beres Hammond.
