Deputy minister of Arts, Tourism and Culture Mark Okraku Mantey has bemoaned the lack of recognition Ghanaian artists are currently suffering on the global stage due to the misconception out there that anything from Africa is a sound belonging to Nigerians
Mark Okraku Mantey in an interview with Joy Fm’s Super Morning Show recounted how a shop owner he encountered in Dubai thought a music by Bisa Kdei was from a Nigerian artist “The man was Moroccan and he thought the music was [from] Nigeria. And I have experienced a lot of these things where Ghanaian hard work is going to Nigeria. Because they make so much noise that there is a perception every music you hear from Africa is from Nigeria. And we made a mistake by also accepting that we are also performing under Afrobeats”
The deputy minister of Arts, Tourism and Culture also added “The word Afrobeat itself was coined by Fela Kuti years ago, without an “s”. So the moment you hear Afrobeat, the owner of that word is Fela. Then overtime, the West said Africa has too many rhythms so why don’t you call of them African rhythms. Because we were known for highlife and we were bullying them with our highlife, quickly they opted for the Afrobeats. Unfortunately, my brothers and sisters went to join them. They don’t know that all their hard work is actually going to Nigeria because of the perception about Afrobeats in Nigeria”
Mark Okraku Mantey would conclude by revealing “I heard Camidoh’s song in Tanzania, Arusha, and people around thought it was from Nigeria. And that is why Nigeria is getting the buzz they are getting. Everybody is thinking that almost at the music you hear from Africa now are from Nigeria”
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