Sway is the recording name of Derek Andrew Safo, a UK hip hop artist of Ghanaian origin who also works as a producer. He uses the stage name Sway DaSafo as well as Sway, and establishes DCypha Productions as his own production outlet. He is also known for his work with local artists through production and beat-making, alongside his long-time friend Bigz.

Background and early career

Sway is born on 5 September 1982. He grows up in North London, attends Redlands Primary School and later Highgate Wood Secondary School. At school he spends time experimenting with music, rewriting lyrics by favourite artists, and using school equipment for production work. He begins performing publicly as a teenager and reaches the grand final of an open mic session at Dingwalls in London while still part of Tottenham-based hip hop trio Phynix Crew, losing to Chester P of Task Force.

He is born to a Muslim father and a Christian mother, and is described as having Ghanaian family roots. He is also said to be a cousin of former Arsenal player Quincy Owusu-Abeyie and grime MC Lethal Bizzle.

Solo releases and labels

After working in groups including Phynix Crew, Fifth Element and One, Sway begins a solo career in 2003. He first gains attention under the name Sway DaSafo on the track “On My Own”, which reaches the A-list on BBC Radio 1Xtra when the station launches. In 2004 he founds DCypha Productions to release his mixtapes and debut album.

His first independent mixtapes, This Is My Promo Volumes 1 and 2, circulate underground before his debut album, This Is My Demo, appears in 2006. The album’s second single, “Little Derek”, reaches number 38 on the UK singles chart. His track “Hype Boys” is used in Need for Speed: Carbon, and “Flo Fashion” appears in FIFA Street 2.

He later signs to Akon’s Konvict Muzik in 2007, becoming the only UK artist on the label. He releases the One for the Journey EP through DCypha Productions, featuring Chamillionaire on a part two version of “Up Your Speed”. He also issues the mixtapes The Dotted Lines and The Signature mixtape, and The Dotted Lines is released around the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations in Ghana, where “Black Stars”, a remix of Bashy’s “Black Boys”, is dedicated to the tournament.

In December 2009 he announces new mixtape material and unveils “Payback” and “The Watcher”. He releases “Everyday Valentine” as a download-only single and later offers a free mixtape through his website, with guest appearances including Akon, Styles P, Kardinal Offishall, Giggs, Bigz and Mr Hudson.

Recognition

Sway wins the MOBO Award for Best Hip Hop Act in 2005, ahead of 50 Cent and The Game. He is later nominated again for Best Hip Hop Act and Best UK Male at the 2006 MOBO Awards, and for Best UK Male in 2008. His album This Is My Demo is nominated for the Mercury Music Prize in 2006, and he also receives two nominations at the Urban Music Awards in 2008. In 2006 he wins a BET Hip-Hop Award for Best UK Hip-Hop Act, ahead of Blak Twang, Plan B, Dizzee Rascal and Kano.

Other contexts

Another artist using the name Sway is Espen Lind, who releases his first album under that name in Norway in 1995. The name also belongs to several other acts, including a shoegaze group from Ventura, California, an indie band from the Czech Republic, a Dutch pop group, a Japanese rapper, a shoegaze band from Costa Rica, and a hard rock band from San Francisco.