Ranky Tanky

Ranky Tanky
OriginCharleston, South Carolina, U.S.
GenresGullah, jazz, world music
Years active2016–present
LabelsResilience Music Alliance
Members
  • Quentin E. Baxter (drums)
  • Kevin Hamilton (bass)
  • Quiana Parler (vocals)
  • Clay Ross (guitar, vocals)
  • Charlton Singleton (trumpet, vocals)
Websitewww.rankytanky.com

Ranky Tanky is an American musical ensemble based in Charleston, South Carolina. It specializes in jazz-influenced arrangements of traditional Gullah music, a culture that originated among descendants of enslaved Africans in the Lowcountry region of the US Southeast. Apart from lead vocalist Quiana Parler, four of the group's members, Quentin Baxter, Kevin Hamilton, Clay Ross, and Charlton Singleton, previously played together in the Charleston jazz quartet The Gradual Lean in the late 1990s.[1]

Their debut album, Ranky Tanky, was released in October 2017. By the week of February 10, 2018, it was listed number one in the Billboard jazz charts, a position it held for two weeks.[2]

For their album Good Time, the band won the 2020 Grammy Award for Best Regional Roots Music Album.[3] In 2023, they won a second Grammy in the Best Regional Roots Music Album category, for Live at the 2022 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.[4][5]

  1. ^ Lesemann, T. Ballard (December 20, 2010). "Clay Ross Reunites with the Gradual Lean". Charleston City Paper. Charleston, South Carolina. Archived from the original on December 22, 2010. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  2. ^ "Jazz Music: Top Jazz Albums & Songs Chart". Billboard. February 10, 2018. Retrieved February 10, 2018.
  3. ^ "Artist: Ranky Tanky". www.grammy.com. Recording Academy. n.d. Retrieved November 25, 2022.
  4. ^ Lee, Taila (November 15, 2022). "2023 Grammy Nominations: See The Complete Nominees List". grammy.com. Recording Academy. Retrieved November 24, 2022.
  5. ^ "Grammys 2023 Winners: See the Full List Here". Pitchfork. 5 February 2023. Retrieved 6 February 2023.