Agya Koo: Lil Wayne Is A “Small Boy”

For the past years, Kofi Adu known in showbiz circles as “Agya koo” has ruled the airwaves with his “rib racking” roles which have won him the admiration of many movie enthusiasts.

The emergence of new artistes like Kofi Manu and Kodwo Nkansah popularly known as Lil Wayne is perceived to have affected the fortunes of the “champion” who have occupied the position for a long time.

This sudden shot to prominence enjoyed by Lil Wayne in recent times has made a section of the public to base their argument on the assertion that Agya Koo's “reign and influence” has ended.

However, an emotionally charged Agya Koo in a telephone interview with the Society & Style strongly debunked that perception.

According to him, he does not feel threatened by anybody in the industry stressing that “Lil Wayne is a 'small boy', an amateur actor who is struggling to copy my style but can't make the needed mark”.

Agya Koo asserted that his inability to feature in more movies recently is due to a personal conviction not to act in unprofessional movies which are not of quality.

“Movies are supposed to be qualitative and not just the numbers. I swore to myself that I would not act just any kind of movie. I don't want to act with 'children' even if the amount is huge. I will also not act a movie in which I am the only star. I will not act for just any producer because some of the producers don't have money. When they give you a script to act, you will sooner than later find out that they have engaged many 'children' to act with you instead of engaging a number of stars to get a quality job done. I can tell you that movies sold outside Ghana that do not have Agya Koo playing a lead role are not highly patronized, he emphasized.

The award winning actor and comedian in a quest to stress his dominance compared his achievements to other actors remarking that, “many actors and actresses fell off along the line but you can see I am still on my two feet. I started acting since 1994. Many who started long with me are nowhere to be found but I survived and I am still prominent till date”.

That he said was due to his unique talent and style which enabled him to act “free style” without scripts provided by directors and producers earning him the admiration of the public.

“Considering my achievements in the movie industry, I deserve a kingly recognition but I have decided to humble myself. Where were they when I started? Today food is ready so everybody can come and eat without sweat”, Agya Koo added.

He opined that anyone who believes that he is no more relevant in the industry should take revise his notes and get the right facts before making those assertions.

“My movies sell over 150,000 copies. Compare that to somebody else's 15,000 copies. So it is about quality and not quantity. I will make a lot of money if I decide to act in just any movie but that will not augur well for the industry. I have produced nine movies. These include “Osukunni and Trotro Driver.” How do u see these movies? They were highly patronized in America. Everyone is doing 'Azonto' but you can see that my 'Azonto' made a big difference. With all these evidences, some people because of their personal interests would want others to believe that Agya Koo is not prominent anymore”.

He argued that his hard work and commitment is evidenced in the numerous industrial and national awards conferred on him for his contribution towards the development of the movie industry in Ghana.

“I have won best local actor and seven of my movies were nominated for the recently launched Kumawood awards. I know every new actor is influenced by my style, one way or another but my advice to them is that, they should develop their own unique style”, he stated.

Citing the late Santo's son as an example, Agyakoo noted that he (Santo's son) failed to make any impact in the industry because instead of him adopting his own style, he imitated his father.

“What happened next, he fizzled out because he was not original. I don't have any problem with anybody who tries to imitate me because I know that I am good but the truth is that, my style doesn't work for them. Currently, I am training a lot of people and Kwaku Manu was one of them but he didn't meet the standard I wanted so he left my camp”.

Attributing the low quality of movie productions from Kumasi, Agya Koo blamed some of the movie producers for the “menace” and sexually explicit scenes that have characterized such movies.

“The producers resort to these in the quest to reduce cost of production. The Asantehene, Otumfour Osei Tutu II has personally cautioned me not to act in movies that breed immorality in the society so I discussed it with some of my colleagues but it seems they were not interested. So I embarked on a demonstration to draw the attention of the authorities and that was how the issue caught the attention of the late President Mills and Parliament. As a result, a body has been put in place, which is responsible for the approval of movies after a preview session before movies can be sold on the market.

The award winning actor and comedian has featured in over 90 Ghanaian movies notable among them include “Kumasi Yonkoo” which shot him into the limelight.

In the year 2OO8, he received a national award, by the then President of the country, John Agyekum Kufour.