He's only 24 and started playing in bands in his teens. Growing up in North London, he was hired as a session guitarist by Tinie Tempah's producer, and began to play solo gigs in the evenings.

In January, Kiwanuka won first place in BBC's Sound of 2012 poll, at which point the hype became deafening. His full-length debut, Home Again, was released on March 12 and jumped immediately to No. 4 on the U.K. album charts.

Michael was on World Cafe with David Dye last month – you can listen to the session at WorldCafe.NPR.org.

Kiwanuka plays World Cafe Live on Friday, June 15.

Stream his three EP’s on SoundCloud!

Facebook: facebook.com/MichaelKiwanuka
Website: us.michaelkiwanuka.com
Twitter: twitter.com/michaelkiwanuka

Recent Release: Home Again
Release Date: July 17, 2012
Label: Interscope Records
Band Origin: UK