By: Kofi Montana Asuman
Part I: How recognized is Hip-hop in Ghana?
Rap has had ties to Africa and has been recognized in Ghana since the beginning. This is because after the first Hip-hop album was released by the Sugar-Hill Gang in 1979, hip-hop has been accredited with several African elements.
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| Dj Cool Herc- A pioneer of Hiphop |
For starters, hip-hop music is African oral poetry and this is one of the reasons it is recognized in Ghana. Hip-hop comprises African oral poetry, jazz, the blues and gospel music, all of which trace their origins to the indigenous tribes of West Africa. (Dr Kwaku Person-Lynn: Rap music Africa to Hip-hop, 1996). To say that hip-hop is not recognized in Africa is like saying; African Americans and the river Nile have nothing to do with Africa and the continent’s history.
Rap is widely recognized in Ghana and Africa because, before it was corrupted and influenced by the alien culture of the western world. It depended solely on the traditional structures of the black communities. We are reminded that the God-Fathers of hip-hop (Afrika Bamataa and Kool Herc) were African-American. Actually, Cool Herc had Jamaican roots- but black is black. We are also reminded of the hip-hop awareness group- the Zulu Nation. Zulu’s are African People.
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| Afrika Bambataa- Influenced the birth of Hip Hop |
Rap and Hip Hop is widely recognized in Ghana and Africa because it has groomed and influenced many of the continent’s modern genres and current music styles. In Ghana the spread of hip-hop paved the way for a new music genre in the late 90’s called hip-life. It fuses the Ghanaian highlife with Black-American hip-hop. Technically, hip-life is also Ghanaian hip-hop. Thus hiplife wouldn’t survive without hip-hop. After its introduction, hip-life has spread to other West African countries and has gradually gained popularity in other continents.
Hip-life is organized by most of the elements which make hip-hop. (beats, rap style and hooks). In recent times various elements of hip-life have changed and have been replaced by ones which get it much closer to hip-hop. E.g. the language: there has been the evolution from Akan to English and more recently pidgin.
Hip-hop also influenced another style of music in South Africa called Kwaito. And just like hip-life, kwaito is also characterized by most of the elements of hip-life that is the rap styles the funky beats and the style of the hooks.
Part II: why have most of Ghana’s Hip-life/Hip-hop artistes switched from their traditional style to other genres to help them fit into the current music industry?
The second part of this write-up focuses on the reason most hip-life/hip-hop artistes divert from their traditional music style to other music genres, to enable them fit into the industry.
The most important factor that influences most hip-life/hip-hop artistes to switch to other genres is the quest to make more money. “Music is my hustle; I make music for a living. If it isn’t productive because my audiences prefer a different style, I must as well do what they want to earn living” – Jermaine Dupri. The search for C.R.E.A.M. is one of the major factors that make most musicians switch genre. Young artistes in Ghana make music to earn them a living, so if they have to switch genres to enable them earn a little, they sure will.
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| Sarkodie- Blends Genres Perfectly |
Dynamism is one of the major factors that make hip-life/hip-hop artistes switch genres. Music as a part of culture is subject to the various processes that affect culture. Music dynamism means music, just like all the other parts of culture is not static. It is constantly changing and evolving. The old genres of music occasionally give birth to other forms of music. For example, reggae gave birth to dancehall and lovers rock, even though these are autonomous genres of music; they all trace their ancestry to reggae music. The hip-life scene in Ghana has also given birth to other sub-genres such as Azonto and GH rap.
To explain further, hip-hop/hip-life artistes divert from their traditional genres because of the quest to prove how talented and versatile they can be. In music, the display of talent and versatility earns the artiste respect and credibility; so it is a simple equation for the “big-boys” in the industry. Versatility means credibility and respect which helps you to increase your fan base. The fan base directly melts into profit and more money for the artiste. It is that simple.
The interest of an artiste also drives him/her to switch genres. An artiste can feel attracted to a particular genre and may want to explore with it. Many factors come together to attract a musician to a particular genre. And example is the commercial appeal of the genre. Commercial appeal mostly drives an artist to try a particular genre because even though talent is involved, he might not actually try it unless he is totally convinced that he can make good money out of it. It all comes back to the quest for C.R.E.A.M. (Cash Rules Everything around Me)
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