Deputy Minister-Designate, Mark Okraku Mantey, says the Highlife pattern changes over time and no particular Highlife can be packaged to sell Ghana globally. He made this known during his vetting with the Appointments Committee of Parliament on June 15, 2021.
This comes after Shatta Wale’s call that music stakeholders should come together and package Highlife music as a unique genre to sell Ghana globally. The call from the dancehall act however has sparked a national debate and it popped up at the vetting of Mr Okraku Mantey.
Speaking to the Appointments Committee of Parliament yesterday, Mark said “We still enjoy highlife, we are still producing highlife but it is in a different form for the youth of today. It will be difficult for highlife to die, because most of the music we listen to today, even the dancehall, or other genre of music, they all have the rudiments of highlife”
He lamented that, it was not possible to package one particular type of Highlife and sell globally since the Highlife patterns changes over time and cannot be maintained over a long period of time.
“If you listen to the 1970s people like Nana Ampedu, then it came to George Darko who changed it using burger beat, making it burger highlife. Then over time, we heard people like Charles Amoah also coming in with their type of Highlife, then Daddy Lumba, Kojo Antwi, Oheneba Kissi, then the Daasebere Gyamenas also came to change it”
He went on to say that, after that generation we got Ofori Amposah. “If you listen to all these rhythms, you will see that almost everyone comes with different rhythms. You will see that almost everyone comes with a different form of Highlife. So, it will be difficult to have a particular type of highlife play for about 20 years,” he added.
Mr. Okraku further said “Kuami Eugene is touted as championing Highlife but I am sure some of you do not believe his kind of music is Highlife but it has evolved. King Promise, Wendy Shay, they all do a different form of highlife. But to go back to our Dr. K Gyasi, Nana Ampadu and George Darkos, Mr. Chairman, respectfully, ET Mensah will never come back.”
Samini, Wendy Shay, Uncle Ebo Whyte, amongst other celebrities were present at the vetting to support Mr. Mark Okraku-Mantey
