Tag: Ghana
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Hiphop as a Vessel for Black Consciousness: Digging into the artistry of Pure Akan and Elom 20ce.
Black consciousness, as propounded by N’longi Steve Biko, was a philosophical and political transformation of the mind emerging in South Africa during the 1960s and 1970s. In essence, Black consciousness sought to imbibe amongst Black people in Southern Afrika who had been subjected to systemic racism and discrimination under apartheid a sense of pride, dignity,Read…
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MIXTAPE TOWARDS A NEW CONSCIOUSNESS: Exploring Asakaa, Alt Hip Hop, & Trap Politics
This mixtape explores the social and political themes of songs from Ghana’s trap, drill (Asakaa), and alternative hip hop subgenres to find “conscious” hip hop is not its own genre, but rather a thematic standard that can exist in all kinds of rap. Featured songs in order: Snakes by La Même Gang; Wasteman by BlackRead…
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ENO BARONY: GHANA’S RAP GODDESS
Born Ruth Eno Adjoa Amankwah Nyame Adom in Tema, Accra, Ghana to missionary parents, Eno Barony’s rise to fame began in 2014 when her first single ‘Tonga’ received commercial airplay. In 2021, she became the first Ghanian female rapper to win Best Rapper at the Ghana Music Awards, beating Sarkodie, Amerado, Medikal, Strongman and JoeyRead…
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M3NSA’s ‘Eyes But No Eyes’
Mensa Ansah, known as M3NSA, is a Ghanaian producer, composer, rapper, singer, and filmmaker born in Accra, Ghana. M3NSA comes from quite the artistic family: his father, Tumi Ebo Ansah, was a member of the Afro pop group Osibisa; his uncles include Kwaw Ansah, the film director, and Kofi Ansah, the fashion designer; his cousinRead…
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Sarkodie – Ghana’s multifaceted rapper
Michael Owusu Addo, professionally known as Sarkodie is an upcoming rapper and singer who has made an enormous contribution to the Ghanaian music industry in recent years. He was recently named “Artist of the Decade” by Vodaphone’s Ghana Music Award and won BET’s Best International Hip Hop Artist in 2019. Raised in Tema, 16 milesRead…
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Happy Day: Sarkodie
I chose Ghanian artist, Sarkodie, and his song, Happy Day, featuring Kuami Eugene. The song and video were released last November. Sarkodie is one of the most well known rappers coming out of Ghana. The song’s message focuses on the rapper’s relationship with God. While the song is more spiritual, one image in particular takesRead…
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Kwame Write
By: Jude Kouassi Kwame Aidoo, also known as Kwame Write is a Ivorian-Ghanian multimodal artist, who specializes in video artistry, music, writing, installations and poetry. He was born in Ande, Ivory Coast which is near Abidjan in the mid 1980s and he grew up in Tema, Ghana which is right outside Accra, the capital city.Read…
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KiddBlack’s TAke on the ghanaian experience as shown through “loaded weapons”
As a hip-hop artist from Accra, Ghana, KiddBlack expresses the sentiment of struggling to merely get by and stay alive through his single, “Loaded Weapons”. KiddBlack most likely recorded this song to reach an audience of other individuals that fail to make enough money to meet their basic needs. He writes in the song’s chorusRead…
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Catalyst for Change: exploring Okyeame Kwame’s Lyricism and artwork in “COme Home”
Social and political issues have become a catalyst for many artists to draw inspiration for their music. Not only are hip hop artists able to express their passions through their lyricism, but they also spread awareness to their audiences at large. A plethora of hip-hop artists convey important societal messages and compel their audiences throughRead…