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2016 |
Finally, the year comes to a close. What a year this has been. A year with mixed occurrences; a mixed bag of joy, sorrow, death, success but in all, it is gradually fading away. This year has been eventful and will linger in the memory and hearts of many.
Officially, the entertainment season was logged in with Ghana’s biggest night where music is celebrated, Vodafone Ghana Music Awards. Like every year, the program had its own challenges although this year’s was quite in order with regards to time. However good it was, as usual of Ghanaians, the authenticity of some winners in some categories was heavily challenged. On the night, although not surprising, E.L was the big winner of the coveted Ariste of the Year; an award that will set the tone for one of the fiercest ‘wars’ the industry has ever witnessed.
THE LYRICAL WAR
Although fierce, unlike other ‘lyrical wars’ the industry has witnessed, this year’s was a clean exchange of ingenuity and creativity; a healthy exercise that restored Ghanaian Hip-hop and its seemingly sinking image. The battle saw the release of ‘Bossy’ by Sarkodie which was countered with “God MC’ from Manifest and then ‘Kanta’ from Sarkodie to redeem himself. Both artistes became the talk of town and hip-hop became topical for once in a long while.
THE DEATHS
The fire sparked by these acts was abruptly quenched by deaths which characterised this year in the industry. The industry registered over fifteen deaths; an unprecedented number for a young industry working to push itself up the ladder.Isaac Yeboah,Solomon Sampah, Nkomode, Bob Okala,Samuel Odoi Mensah, MC Flava Pounds, Danny Nettey, Daasebre Gyamena, George Williams, Kofi Middleton Mends, George Forest, Omanhene Pozo, Vybrant Faya, Katawere and Gifty Temeng.
NORTHERN MUSIC TAKEOVER
Talents abound in the Northern part of Ghana but the people do not have the platform to excel at what they do. This year saw a tremendous improvement in the entertainment industry in Northern Region with regards to music. Fancy Gadam through thick and thin put the spotlight on Tamale and got the industry talking. He made a case for Northern music by filling the National Theater like he does at the Tamale Sports Stadium. His exploits have won him some endorsement deals and some great awards and have also afforded other artistes in the region the opportunity to shine.
POLITICS TAKEOVER
In an uncharacteristic manner, politics took center stage in the entertainment industry. This year unlike other years when they were supposedly ‘paid’ saw a huge number of celebrities endorsing the candidature of Political Party flag bearers and openly campaigning for them. The industry divided along party lines but one thing was certain that the hypocrisy in the industry over the years was gradually finding its way out. As expected, the utterances of people broke relationships. However, the elections ended and life return to normalcy with the losing side accepting defeat and moving on.
THE MOVIE INDUSTRY GROWS
Although telenovella took over our screens and people in Ghana could care so much about characters, the Ghana music industry was not left out this year. There were several Ghanaian productions which received great reviews and awards this year. Some productions that put the movie industry in the spotlight include Amakye and Dede, Sala whiles TV series also go Ghanaians glued to their set. Yolo stood out amongst the various TV series produced in Ghana, not for anything but the message it was preaching and its role as ‘the mother in a century full of mishaps’. The Ghana Movie Awards was held but like every year, there were several challenges and time consciousness was still their bane.
COMEDY SEEING A GROWTH
It may sound bad but Ghanaians have now migrated from the then dry jokes from some comedians to seriously researched comedy. The industry which hitherto was the preserve of a few now has a number of people who are ready learn and better their acts. Personally, i love Jacinta for her hard work considering the fact that her chosen field is male dominated. DKB, OB, Khemical, Romanus and the other guys killed it this year with different shows celebrating their brands.
THE CROSS CARPETING AND ‘KWASIABUO’
We cannot talk of this year and forget the u-turn of Highlife sensation, Ofori Amponsah. The musician converted to Christianity but made a fast u-turn back to his worldly ways after seeing that it takes a lot of sacrifices to serve. A u-turn which earned him the accolade ‘Pastor Alewa’. ‘Pastor Alewa’s’ reason for converting to Christianity which is because his wife left him will make it for the joke of the year. On the other hand in Great Ampong’s quest to get Daddy Lumba to love Christ, the collaborated on an album. However, proceeds from the album were
The industry made strides this year and we expect that it will grow and become very lucrative for industry players. We hope that next year will see new people springing up and working hard to see the growth of the industry.
God Bless Ghana
God Bless the industry
God bless Ghanafuo
