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PRESS RELEASES

Ranky Tanky’s Single “Freedom” Available Now — As Seen On NYC “TODAY” Show

Ranky Tanky Release New Single “Freedom,”
With Debut Performance on NBC TODAY Show
“Freedom” Available Now, New Album,
Good Time, Available for Pre-order Now
Ranky Tanky — Quiana Parler (vocals), Charlton Singleton (trumpet, vocals), Clay Ross (guitar, vocals), Kevin Hamilton (bass) and Quentin Baxter (drums, percussion) — made their first national T.V. appearance this morning, March 15, on NBC’s TODAY show performing their new single “Freedom”(available digitally now). The critically acclaimed South Carolina band’s sophomore album Good Time is also available for pre-order now, to be released in the fall of 2019.
After non-stop worldwide touring in support of their eponymous debut album, Ranky Tanky is thrilled to share new music with the world.
“The idea of ‘Freedom’ is at the heart of the American identity, and particularly for the Gullah people who are descendants of enslaved African-Americans,” states the band as a collective. “Freedom is a universal anthem. This song holds a universal truth, yet undoubtedly represents something different to every individual that hears it. We believe everyone in the world deserves the freedom to live in equality and prosperity.”
About Ranky Tanky:
Ranky Tanky released their eponymous debut on Oct. 20th, 2017. By December of that year, the group had been been profiled on NPR’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross and their album soared to the #1 position on the Billboard, iTunes, and Amazon Jazz Charts.
“Gullah” comes from West African language and means “a people blessed by God.” “Ranky Tanky” translates loosely as “Work It,” or “Get Funky!” In this spirit this Charleston, SC based quintet performs timeless music of Gullah culture born in the southeastern Sea Island region of the United States. From playful game songs to ecstatic shouts, from heartbreaking spirituals to delicate lullabies, the musical roots of Charleston, SC are “rank” and fertile ground from which these contemporary artists are grateful to have grown.
South Carolina natives Baxter, Hamilton, Singleton, and Ross first came together in 1998, fresh out of University, to form a seminal Charleston jazz quartet. Now, united by years apart and a deeper understanding of home, these accomplished artists have come together again, joined by one of the low-country’s most celebrated vocalists, Parler, to revive a “Heartland of American Music” born in their own backyards.
Ranky Tanky Upcoming U.S. Tour Dates
March 23 / Bryn Mar College / Bryn Mawr, PA
March 24 / Weinberg Center for the Arts / Frederick, MD
March 30 / BlueShore Financial Centre for the Performing Arts / North Vancouver, Canada
March 31 / Lincoln Theatre / Mt. Vernon, WA
April 1 / Newmark Theater / Portland, OR
April 2 / The Hult Center / Eugene, OR
April 7 / The Broad Stage / Santa Monica, CA
Aprill 11 / Cal Poly Arts / San Luis Obispo, CA
April 12 / Freight & Salvage / Berkeley, CA
April 14 / High Water Festival / North Charleston, SC
April 24 / Fort Lewis College / Durango, CO
April 26 / Lone Tree Arts Center / Lone Tree, CO
May 1 / University at Buffalo Center for the Arts / Buffalo, NY
May 4 / Quick Center for the Arts / Fairfield, CT
May 5 / City Winery (World Music/CRASHarts) / Boston, MA
May 9 / Coastal Carolina University (Prince Lawn) / Conway, SC
May 15 / Evanston SPACE / Evanston, IL
May 17 / Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for the Arts / Brookfield, WI
May 25 / Zeiders American Dream Theater / Virginia Beach, VA