Ghanaian singer-songwriter Wendy Shay has disputed claims made by detractors that the country’s musicians are unable to perform in larger venues while touring abroad and take home Grammy Awards.
Her response comes a few days after Asake, a well-known Nigerian musician, made history by selling out the 20,000-seat O2 Arena.
Asake’s accomplishment sparked discussions about how Ghanaian musicians haven’t accomplished anything similar.
Wendy Shay claimed that the alleged accomplishment was not representative of successful musicians.
The Uber driver crooner claimed in a tweet on August 27 that even the greatest musicians, like Michael Jackson and Bob Marley, failed to garner Grammy nominations or sell out the O2 Arena.
“Why has Filling 02 and winning Grammys become the standard to measure the success of an artist?
“Bob Marley and 2Pac are successful musicians but have never won a Grammy. Let Ghanaian musicians breathe! Ghana, wake up!” her tweet reads.
Fameye, a popular musician from Ghana, has also expressed his frustration with the music industry’s pervasive lack of funding and real support.
He claimed that Ghanaians living abroad don’t go to their performances.
In a related news, the Ghanaian showbiz industry has been fixated on filling and selling out the O2 Arena in an effort to surpass Nigerians in the music game.
Noteworthy Nigerian performers include Davido, Wizkid, Yemi Alade, Tiwa Savage, Burna Boy, and Asake, whose performances at the O2 Arena in the United Kingdom have already been sold out.
As a result of these calls in recent days and Asake’s recent successful performance at the same venue, Ghanaian actor and musician Frank Naro has publicly stated that he is very confident he can easily fill the arena.
The “y3 gyina mu” hitmaker said that if the right things are done, filling the O2 Arena is not a difficult task on CTV’s Class Showbiz, hosted by Sammy Flex.
For Frank Naro, promotion and investment are the two most important factors in a successful show.
He argued that once the show is well-marketed and music fans in the UK learn about it, as the Nigerian acts have been doing, they will undoubtedly show up in large numbers.
