Homegrown Grammy Winners

If you haven’t heard of the Charleston musical group Ranky Tanky, it’s time you do! This local quintet performs jazzed-up interpretations of traditional Gullah music. I remember seeing the lead singer Quiana Parler as a pre-teen performing with the Calvin Gilmore Carolina Opry and auditioning for American Idol. She was a local girl, but you just knew she was “going places.” Charlton Singleton is a native of Awendaw who started playing music when he was 3 and has become a major player in Charleston’s music scene. An energetic clinician, composer and arranger, he is Artistic Director of the Charleston Jazz Orchestra. In 2016 Quiana and Charlton teamed up with drummer and local legend Quentin Baxter, bassist Kevin Hamilton and guitarist Clay Ross to form this band. What a fabulous ensemble it has turned out to be! The homegrown group won a GRAMMY this year! Congratulations to Ranky Tanky and let the “Good Times” roll! Click here to watch their Good Time video filmed downtown and featuring Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg.