Dyland Keith
Grammy Award-winning group Ranky Tanky plays at the West Beach Conference Center on Kiawah Island last month.
The Kiawah Island Arts Council hosted a sold-out performance of the Grammy Award-winning group Ranky Tanky last month in the West Beach Conference Center. Ranky Tanky is an American musical ensemble based in Charleston. It specializes in jazz-influenced arrangements of traditional Gullah music, a culture that originated among descendants of enslaved Blacks in the Lowcountry region of the Southeast. The group’s name Ranky Tanky is a Gullah expression that loosely translated means “work it” or “get funky.”
The audience of 440 got funky and were particularly excited to learn that the band was nominated and received their second Grammy at the 65th annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 5. Kiawah Island audiences have been privileged to host Ranky Tanky performances for many years. Members of the group – Charlton Singleton and Quentin Baxter – bring their talents and showcase other artists every season to Kiawah. Baxter had the audience on their feet for a soul stirring drum solo at the recent Ranky Tanky concert. He will be performing at the Turtle Point Clubhouse on March 12.