Freddy Will Biography: Age, Parents, Net Worth, Songs, Height, Wife, Children, Family

Wilfred “Freddy Will” Kanu Jr. is a Sierra Leonean-American author, recording artist, music producer, and publisher, recognized as the first Sierra Leonean ever nominated for a Grammy Award.

He was born on August 11 in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Kanu spent his early years in Monrovia, Liberia, where his passion for music, theatre, and literature first took root.

As a teenager, he survived the civil wars in both Liberia and Sierra Leone, living as a refugee in The Gambia and Senegal before emigrating to New Jersey, USA, where he came of age immersed in 1990s hip-hop culture.

He launched his music and publishing career in Toronto, Canada, in 2006, before relocating to Brussels, Belgium, and eventually settling in Berlin, Germany. There, he founded The Theatre of Literary & Performing Arts, the parent company of Swift Nightz Music Society, Badson Publishing, Freddy Will LTD., and Ephrim. His sound blends hip-hop with jazz, calypso, R&B, classical music, and Afrobeat.

In 2011, Freddy Will earned a Grammy nomination for Best Spoken Word Album for Children for his contribution to the charity compilation Healthy Food for Thought: Good Enough to Eat, making history as the first Sierra Leonean nominated for the award.

He has since published more than twenty books across multiple series, distributed internationally through African Books Collective and Oxford, and released several studio albums that merge poetry with music, most recently Bee Mann: Stings from a One-Man Hive, an Afrofuturist superhero mythology rooted in West African cosmology.

Beyond his creative work, Kanu holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and is a qualified pharmaceutical analyst, an unexpected detail for one of Africa’s most multidisciplinary creative figures.

Freddy Will
Wiki Facts & About Data
Real Name:	Wilfred Kanu Jr.
Stage Name:	Freddy Will
Born:	August 11, 1977 (age 48 years old)
Place of Birth:	Freetown, Sierra Leone
Nationality:	Sierra Leonean-American
Ethnicity:	Mande (Loko and Mandingo heritage)
Height:	6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m)
Religion:	Eastern Orthodox Christian
Parents:	Leeroy Wilfred Kabs-Kanu, Tigidankay Kanu
Siblings:	4
Children:	Austin Kanu, Jasmine Kanu
Occupation:	Author, Recording Artist, Music Producer, Publisher, Entrepreneur
Net Worth:	$5 million

Early Life & Education

Wilfred “Freddy Will” Kanu Jr. was born on August 11, 1977, in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

He is currently 48 years old. Born under the zodiac sign Leo, he carries the bold, charismatic, and performance-driven energy commonly associated with the sign, traits that have shaped his decades-long career across music, theatre, and literature.

Kanu is Sierra Leonean-American, with ethnic roots tracing to the Mande people of Sierra Leone, specifically Loko heritage through his father and Mandingo heritage through his mother. He is a practicing Eastern Orthodox Christian who also attends Catholic Church services.

His father is Ambassador Leeroy Wilfred Kabs-Kanu, a Sierra Leonean diplomat who served as Minister Plenipotentiary at the United Nations. His mother is Reverend Tigidankay Kanu. Freddy Will is one of five children, with four siblings consisting of one elder sister, one younger sister, and two younger brothers.

He spent his early years in Monrovia, Liberia, after relocating from Sierra Leone at age two, where his passion for music, theatre, and literature first took shape. As a teenager, he survived the civil wars that engulfed both Liberia and Sierra Leone, living as a refugee in The Gambia and Senegal before emigrating to New Jersey, USA, where he was raised amid the rise of 1990s hip-hop culture.

For his education, Kanu holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, an Associate Degree in Theatre Arts, a Vocational Diploma in Accounting, a Vocational Diploma in Commerce, and a Primary Care Paramedic Diploma. He is also a qualified pharmaceutical analyst, a detail rarely associated with one of Africa’s most multidisciplinary creative figures.

Career

Freddy Will launched his professional career in Toronto, Canada, in 2006, self-releasing his debut album and first book simultaneously through Soul Asylum Poetry & Publishing.

This dual literary and musical approach would go on to define his entire body of work, with Kanu consistently pairing albums with accompanying books throughout his career.

He later relocated to Brussels, Belgium, where he served as a diplomat before settling permanently in Berlin, Germany. There, he re-founded Badson Publishing, now distributed internationally through African Books Collective, Oxford, and operating as a subsidiary of The Theatre of Literary & Performing Arts, the creative institution he founded as the parent company of Swift Nightz Music Society, Badson Publishing, Freddy Will LTD., and Ephrim.

Musically, Kanu built a sound that fused hip-hop with jazz, calypso, R&B, classical music, and Afrobeat, drawing from influences such as Kool Moe Dee, LL Cool J, Queen Latifah, Nas, Tupac Shakur, The Notorious B.I.G., Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Scarface, and legendary Sierra Leonean rapper Jimmy B.

He released a string of singles over the years, including City Boy, Providence featuring Carvin Winans, Endurance, Mandingo Love, and 2 Passports. Between 2008 and 2014, he held a combined literary and recording agreement valued at one million Canadian dollars, reflecting the commercial scale of his early career.

In 2011, Freddy Will made history as the first Sierra Leonean nominated for a Grammy Award, earning a nod for Best Spoken Word Album for Children for his contribution to the charity compilation Healthy Food for Thought: Good Enough to Eat, alongside artists such as Julian Lennon and Moby.

As an author, Kanu has published more than twenty books across four active series, drawing on influences including his father, Langston Hughes, Maya Angelou, William Shakespeare, and John Grisham.

His literary output spans history, philosophy, biography, poetry, personal development, and fiction, much of it informed by his own Afropolitan journey as a member of the African diaspora, shaped by constant geographic movement. His semi-autobiographical work, My Book of Chrymes, chronicles his survival through two civil wars and his eventual rise in hip-hop.

His most recent project, Bee Mann: Stings from a One-Man Hive, released in 2026, is the first volume of an Afrofuturist superhero mythology set in Berlin and rooted in West African cosmology, released simultaneously as an annotated poetry collection and a double album.

Through The Theatre of Literary & Performing Arts, Kanu has also expanded his vision into a full creative institution encompassing cabaret, live performance, spoken word, book clubs, open studio space, yoga, and meditation, with branches planned worldwide.

Social Media

• Wikipedia: Freddy Will
• IMDb: Freddy Will
• Facebook: Freddy Will (@FreddyWill07)
• YouTube: Freddy Will
• Website: www.freddywill.de
• Blog: publikdiscourze.com
• LinkedIn: Wilfred Kanu Jr.

Net Worth

Freddy Will's net worth sits at an estimated $5 million. The bulk of it comes from real estate holdings spread across North America, Asia, and Europe, built up alongside his decades-long career as an author, recording artist, music producer, and publisher.

He owns The Theatre of Literary & Performing Arts, the parent company of Swift Nightz Music Society, Badson Publishing, Freddy Will LTD., and Ephrim, his real estate and investment venture.

Kanu‘s earning history also includes a combined literary and recording agreement from 2008 to 2014 worth one million Canadian dollars (approximately $730,000).

Discography

Albums

• Stay True
• While I’m Still Young… The Talking Drums 1.2v
• Laboramus Expectantes Vol. 1
• Wilfred 14 Hits

Singles

• City Boy (2008)
• Providence featuring Carvin Winans (2009)
• Endurance (2010)
• Mandingo Love (2012)
• 2 Passports (2014)
• Pickin’
• Waitin’ 4 Ur Luv featuring Liberty Silver
• Dark Horse from Romarong featuring Eddie Bullen

Charity Compilation Appearance

• Healthy Food for Thought: Good Enough to Eat (2010), Grammy-nominated, Best Spoken Word Album for Children

Bibliography

Books and Series

• Crime Rhymez
• My Book of Chrymes
• Hip Hop Kru Zade: Path Beyond Clichés
• The Dark Road From Romarong
• Brazenitout (Series)
• The Sandmann’s Journal (Series, seven volumes)
• Theatre, Dance & Poetry (Series)
• Written In Gold
• Bee Mann: Stings from a One-Man Hive (2026, Vol. 1)

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