25 Years of Relevance: Okyeame Kwame on transiting from commercial to indigenous songs
Ghanaian musician Okyeame Kwame discussed his music journey with Berla Mundi on The Day Show. He talks about maintaining relevancy whilst transitioning into more authentic sounds.
For Okyeame Kwame, making music for 25 years comes with its aha moments. One such is when he realised the need to shift the focus of his music to create impactful meanings in his environment.
“When I was much younger, I was very conflicted about what type of music to make because it was either I make something that people like and get paid for it. Or I create something from within that people may like or not.
But I usually chose to make music that people like, which means something that is similar to hits already in the market. Something that DJs will play.”
As one of Ghana’s highlife products ascending legendary status, Okyeame Kwame pointed out that making indigenous songs did not mean a halt in revenue streams. He mentions that people will identify with and celebrate your songs once they can relate to them.
“But now, at my age, I realised that the easiest way to live is, to be honest with yourself and true to your feelings and emotions. As an artiste, I now want to create music that is of my environment, ” Okyeame Kwame continued. “So I am making music of myself. I’m making music that is true to my history, and because the music that i make now is so honest to myself, it comes and gets celebrated.”
Okyeame Kwame also spoke about the essence of a good managing team, and allowing them to do their work without interference is key to a successful career.
source: 3news.com
