Julian Nicco-Annan (born 25 October 1985), better known by his stage name Juls, is a British-Ghanaian record producer, disc jockey, and musician. He is considered one of the pioneering producers of African music in the diaspora, particularly in Afrobeats circles.
He is best known for the production of songs like Bankulize and "Skin Tight" by Mr Eazi which accrued over two million views on YouTube; "Feel Alright" by Show Dem Camp, Rudebwoi Love by Stonebwoy, and Gwarn by Burna Boy.
He has collaborated with labels like BBnz Live, Toko Beatz, Stereofly Records, Cosmic Harmony, and Lost Ones and worked on A&R for Mr.Eazi's Life Is Eazi album.
Juls was born in Hackney, East London, to musically inclined parents who moved from Ghana to Britain in the late 1970s. He moved to Hackney, and then to Stevenage in Hertfordshire. He had his education in London, eventually acquiring a bachelor's degree and master's degree in Finance from the University of Surrey in England, and developed his musical talent there.
Career
In early 2010, Juls began to produce music casually. His first break occurred once he produced a song for Show Dem Camp entitled "Feel Alright" in 2012, and he began to DJ while finishing his studies in Surrey in 2013. Once his work gained significant traction, he began to release his own music, including "Teef Teef," "With You," and "Give You Love,".
His debut album entitled Leap of Faith followed in 2017 with Ojekoo, which featured Kojey Radical ("Temperature Rising"), Maleek Berry and Nonso Amadi ("Early"), and Eugy, Not3s, and Kojo Funds ("Bad"). These albums both gained over 30 million streams on all major streaming platforms that year.
In 2013, Mr Eazi began to promote shows in Kumasi, Ghana and sent the vocals for one of his songs “Bankulize” to Juls in London after meeting him on Twitter. The collaborative track would eventually create Mr Eazi's largest fanbase in the diaspora and become a cult hit. The song features vocals from Ghanaian hiplife artist Pappy Kojo and was released in November 2014.
The official remix of "Bankulize" features Burna Boy and was released in September 2016. Mr Eazi premiered the remix on Ebro Darden's Beats 1 radio show a month earlier.
