26/07/2020 Music of Ghana - Wikipedia

Music of Ghana
There are many styles of traditional and modern music of Ghana, due to Ghana's cosmopolitan
geographic position on the African continent.[1][2] The best known modern genre originating in Ghana
is Highlife.[3] For many years, Highlife was the preferred music genre until the introduction of Hiplife
and many others.[4][5]

Contents
Traditional music
Gold Coast period
Mid-20th century and the invention of Ghanaian pop
Guitar-bands in the 1930s, 1940s, 1950s and 1960s
Dance high-life in the 1930s, 1940s, 1950s and 1960s
1970s: Head revival
Hip-life
Hip hop
See also
References
External links

Traditional music
The traditional musicology of Ghana may be divided geographically between the open and vast
savanna country of northern Ghana inhabited by Ghanaians of Gur and Mande speaking groups; and
the fertile, forested southern coastal areas, inhabited by Ghanaians speaking Kwa languages such as
Akan.[6]

The northern musical traditions belong to the wider Sahelian musical traditions. It features a mix
of melodic composition on stringed instruments such as the kologo lute and the gonjey fiddle,
wind instruments such as flutes and horns, and voice; with polyrhythms clapped or played on the
talking drum, gourd drums or brekete bass drums. The tradition of gyil music (balafon) is also
common, especially in northwestern Ghana around Wa and Lawra. Music in the northern styles is
mostly set to a minor pentatonic or chromatic scale and melisma plays an important part in
melodic and vocal styles. There is a long history of either griot or praise-singing traditions.
The music of the coast is associated with social functions, and relies on complex polyrhythmic
patterns played by drums and bells as well as harmonized song. Drums and dance are often
linked, and the tradition of royal talking drums fontomfrom (distinct from the northern talking drum)
means music is widely used for communication of both tangible and esoteric topics. The most well
known of southern Ghanaian drum traditions is the kete and adowa drum and bell ensembles.
Music can also be linked to traditional religions. An exception to this rule is the Akan tradition of
singing with the Seperewa harp-lute which had its origins in the stringed harps of the north and
west.

Gold Coast period

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During the Gold Coast era lexie, the Gold Coast was a hotbed of musical syncretism. Rhythms
especially from gombe and ashiko, guitar-styles such as mainline and osibisaba, European brass
bands and sea shanties, were all combined into a melting pot that became high-life.

Mid-20th century and the invention of Ghanaian pop

Ghana became an independent nation in 1957. The music of Ghana often reflects a Caribbean
influence, yet it still retains a flavour all its own. While pan-Ghanaian music had been developed for
some time, the middle of the 20th century saw the development of distinctly Ghanaian pop music.
High-life incorporated elements of swing, jazz, rock, ska and soukous. To a much lesser extent,
Ghanaian musicians found success in the United States and, briefly, the United Kingdom with the
surprise success of Osibisa's Afro-rock in the 1970s.

Guitar-bands in the 1930s, 1940s, 1950s and 1960s

In the 1930s, Sam's Trio, led by Jacob Sam (Kwame Asare), was the most influential of the high-life
guitar-bands. Their "Yaa Amponsah", three versions of which were recorded in 1928 for Zonophone,
was a major hit that remains a popular staple of numerous high-life bands. The next major guitar-
band leader was E. K. Nyame, who sang in Twi. Nyame also added the double bass and more elements
of the Western hemisphere, including jazz and Cuban music on the recommendation of his producer
and manager E. Newman-Adjiri. In the 1960s, dance high-life was more popular than guitar-band
high-life; most of the guitar bands began using the electric guitar until a roots revival in the mid-
1970s.

Dance high-life in the 1930s, 1940s, 1950s and 1960s

Dance highlife evolved during World War II, when American jazz and swing became popular with the
arrival of servicemen from the United States and United Kingdom. After independence in 1957, the
socialist government began encouraging folk music, but highlife remained popular and influences
from Trinidadian music. E. T. Mensah was the most influential musician of this period, and his band
The Tempos frequently accompanied the president. The original bandleader of The Tempos was Guy
Warren, who was responsible for introducing Caribbean music to Ghana and, later, was known for a
series of innovative fusions of African rhythms and American jazz. Ebo Taylor, King Bruce, Jerry
Hansen (musician) and Stan Plange also led influential dance bands during the 1950s and 1960s. By
the 1970s, however, pop music from Europe and the US dominated the Ghanaian scene until a mid-
1970s roots revival.

1970s: Head revival

By the beginning of the 1970s, traditionally styled highlife had been overtaken by electric guitar bands
and pop-dance music. Since 1966 and the fall of President Kwame Nkrumah, many Ghanaian
musicians moved abroad, settling in the US, and UK. High-life bands arose like Sammy Kofi's (also
known as Kofi Sammy). In 1971, the Soul to Soul music festival was held in Accra. Several legendary
American musicians played, including Wilson Pickett, Ike and Tina Turner and Carlos Santana. With
the exception of Mexican-American Santana, these American superstars were all black, and their
presence in Accra was seen as legitimizing Ghanaian music. Though the concert is now mostly
remembered for its role as a catalyst in the subsequent Ghanaian roots revival, it also led to increased
popularity for American rock and soul. Inspired by the American musicians, new guitar bands arose
in Ghana, including Nana Ampadu& the African Brothers, The City Boys and others. Musicians such
as C. K. Mann, Daniel Amponsah and Eddie Donkor incorporated new elements, especially from
Jamaican reggae. A group called Wulomei also arose in the 1970s, leading a cultural revival to
encourage Ghanaian youths to support their own countryman's music. By the 1980s, the UK was
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experiencing a boom in African music as Ghanaian and others moved there in large numbers. The
group Hi-Life International was probably the most influential band of the period, and others included
Jon K, Dade Krama, Orchestra Jazira and Ben Brako. In the middle of the decade, however, British
immigration laws changed, and the focus of Ghanaian emigration moved to Germany.

The Ghanaian-German community created a form of highlife called Burger-highlife. The most
influential early burgher highlife musician was George Darko, whose "Akoo Te Brofo" coined the term
and is considered the beginning of the genre. Burgher highlife was extremely popular in Ghana,
especially after computer-generated dance beats were added to the mix. The same period saw a
Ghanaian community appear in Toronto and elsewhere in Canada. Pat Thomas is probably the most
famous Ghanaian-Canadian musician. Other emigres include Ghanaian-American Obo Addy, the
Ghanaian-Swiss Andy Vans and the Ghanaian-Dutch Kumbi Salleh. In Ghana itself during the 1980s,
reggae became extremely popular.

Hip-life

By the late 1990s, a new generation of artists discovered the so-called Hiplife.[7] The originator of this
style is Reggie Rockstone, a Ghanaian musician who dabbled with hip-hop in the United States before
finding his unique style. Hiplife basically was hiphop in the Ghanaian local dialect backed by elements
of the traditional High-life.[8] Ace music producer Hammer of The Last Two unveiled artistes
including Obrafour, Tinny and Ex-doe who further popularized the Hiplife music genre respectively.
Hiplife has since proliferated and spawned stars such as Reggie Rockstone, Sherifa Gunu, Ayigbe
Edem, Samini and Sarkodie. Producers responsible for steering this genre to what it is today were
Hammer of The Last Two, Ball J, EL and Jupitar Dancehall Artiste.

Hip hop
Ghanaian hip hop is a subculture and art movement which developed in Ghana during the late
1990s. The hiphop genre came into existence in Ghana through Reggie Rockstone, who is known as
the hiplife father[9] and other notable musicians such as Jayso and Ball J .It first came to Ghana as
Hiplife where Reggie Rockstone introduced a fusion of hiphop beats with African sounds to create a
whole new genre known as Gh hiphop.

See also
Gh hiphop
Ghanaian hip hop
Sub-Saharan African music traditions
Rhythm in Sub-Saharan Africa

References
1. "Music of the Ashanti of Ghana" (http://media.smithsonianfolkways.org/liner_notes/folkways/FW04
240.pdf) (PDF). Media.smithsonianfolkways.org. Retrieved 2017-07-06.
2. Salm, Steven J.; Falola, Toyin (5 July 2017). "Culture and Customs of Ghana" (https://books.googl
e.co.uk/books?id=Up_EcXthzCcC&pg=PA185&lpg=PA185&dq=music+of+ghana&source=bl&ots=
DxlGqfOJ8h&sig=0cTgCclcDSaNlkwHvgA6uwqs8FI&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj06Oji8fLUAhW
GAcAKHQQiAGM4FBDoAQhWMAk#v=onepage&q=music+of+ghana&f=false). Greenwood
Publishing Group. Retrieved 5 July 2017 – via Google Books.
3. "Ghana and the World Music Boom" (https://helda.helsinki.fi/bitstream/handle/10138/25804/006_0
6_Collins.pdf?sequence=1) (PDF). Helda.helsinki.fi. Retrieved 2017-07-06.

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26/07/2020 Music of Ghana - Wikipedia

4. Adinkrah, Mensah (30 August 2015). "Witchcraft, Witches, and Violence in Ghana" (https://books.
google.co.uk/books?id=5rh-BAAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q=music&f=false).
Berghahn Books. Retrieved 5 July 2017 – via Google Books.
5. H. Osumare. The Hiplife in Ghana: West African Indigenization of Hip-Hop (https://books.google.c
o.uk/books?id=dRrGAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA78&lpg=PA78&dq=history+of+music+in+ghana&source=
bl&ots=fraT_qbhNH&sig=dLMk5OW15Vthvv1Pk72dafT6bcg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjx3qiau
vTUAhVFJMAKHQjoCfg4UBDoAQhVMAk#v=onepage&q=history%20of%20music%20in%20gha
na&f=false). Books.google.co.uk. p. 78. Retrieved 2017-07-06.
6. "Ghana's musical timeline" (https://www.timeout.com/accra/music/ghanas-musical-timeline).
Timeout.com. Retrieved 5 July 2017.
7. "BBC NEWS – Africa – Timeline: Ghana's modern musical history" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/worl
d/africa/6289763.stm). news.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 5 July 2017.
8. Micah Motenko (2011). "Highlife in the Ghanaian Music Scene: A Historical and Socio-Political
Perspective" (http://digitalcollections.sit.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2111&context=isp_collecti
on). Digitalcollections.sit.edu. Retrieved 2017-07-06.
9. Banda, Rajaa. "Meet Reggie Rockstone, Pioneer of Ghana's Hip-Life Movement" (https://thecultur
etrip.com/africa/ghana/articles/meet-reggie-rockstone-pioneer-of-ghanas-hip-life-movement/).

External links
Ghana Music (http://www.ghanamusic.com) The largest source of Ghana music videos, news,
biographies, reviews, interviews & more! Get recommendations for new music to download,
stream or own.
GhKings Store: (https://GhKings.com/GH) Ghana's first successful online music store.
BBC Radio 3 Audio (60 minutes): Koo Nimo and King Ayisoba. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/programme
s/p005xhqw) Accessed November 25, 2010.
BBC Radio 3 Audio (60 minutes): Serena Owusua Dankwa and Batman Samini. (http://www.bbc.c
o.uk/programmes/p005xhv4) Accessed November 25, 2010.
Ghana music lyrics, audio, blogs, more (https://web.archive.org/web/20160807135648/http://www.
museke.com/ghana) Museke Ghana.
Ghana Base Music (http://www.ghanabase.com) Powering the Ghanaian Music Online.
Music in Ghana (https://web.archive.org/web/20050804013454/http://www.musicinghana.com/)
Music in Ghana.

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