‘Young’ Musicians Missing At Paapa Yankson’s Funeral Service

Funerals form an integral part of the cultural set-up of the Ghanaian society but not everybody has cultivated the habit of attending them when they come.

One may have observed that most times, young people do not attend funerals. They usually see it as the preserve of elderly.

This was exactly the situation at the funeral of the late highlife legend Paapa Yankson at the forecourt of State House in Accra on Saturday, 21^st October, 2017.

The funeral was heavily attended by old musicians like Pat Thomas, AB Crentsil, Gyedu-Blay Ambulley, Rex Omar, Yaw Sarpong, Charles Amoah, Nana Kwame Ampadu, Sidiku Buari and Abirekyieba Kofi Sammy.

Others were, Daughters of Glorious Jesus, Tagoe Sisters, Nana Fynn, Rev. Thomas Yawson, Rev. Mary Ghansah, Bice Osei Kuffuor, Rex Omar, among others.

I did not see any 'young musician' there. When I talk about young musicians I mean those that mostly fall below 40 years age (my own parameter). I am talking about the likes of Samini, Stonebwoy, Efya, Adina, Shatta Wale, Bisa K Dei, Flowking, Becca, K.K. Fosu etc.

The only person I was told attended the funeral after I had left at 12pm was Kofi Kinaata. Maybe most of them attended later at night when the funeral has closed.

The 'I won't die now' factor
There is a school of thought that people attend funerals so that when they die someday, they will have people attend theirs too. Yes, it might sound ludicrous but that is why most people go to funerals.

Why do you care about what happened to your funeral or body when you are dead? Obviously that is a weak reason for attending funerals. We attend funerals to console the bereaved, most importantly.

If you have lost a close friend or family member, it s easy to relate to this; the mere presence of people at the funeral numbs the pain and sorrow in your heart. For a moment, it makes you feel loved and cared about.

So, apart from celebrating the dead who is gone and knows nothing about what happens after their death, the 'communal healing' it gives family and friends is very necessary.

With this in mind, one does not have to be of a certain age before they attend funerals. Funerals are not meant for old men and women.

Lack of the 'we' spirit
Another school of thought also has t that at times, there are certain things that would move a young person to be at a funeral; and that is if they deceased in their age bracket or a close friend.

There are a lot of people who also posit that perhaps the reason most young people do not attend funerals (including Paapa Yankson's) was the fact that the highlife legend was not their friend – nor in their age bracket.

Because of this, they may have felt disconnect with the whole activity. When Ronnie Coaches, Vybrant Faya and rapper Ghetto KB died, there were also many young musicians in attendance than the old ones.

Vybrant Faya
Work over funerals
On Saturday, October 21, 2017 there were a lot of shows in town, principal among which was the Becca @ 10 concert which paraded almost all the current big music stars at the National Theatre to celebrate Becca's 10 years in music. Most of these young musicians may have been preparing for the show by then hence their absence at the funeral.

Generally, young musicians have more buoyant career than the old ones which means that they would be more engaged for shows even during 'funeral times.'

To wit, while the young think about making money, the old think about how they will be 'buried' when they die.

Bridging the gulf
The above-stated variables are realistically the picture on the ground. However, I believe it is about time we changed the narrative. There may not be equilibrium in young-old attendance at funerals but the gap could be narrowed.

It is about time we made time for each others as people in the same industry irrespective of our tight work schedules and age differences.

Conclusion
Paapa Yankson was a legend and it was expected that musicians from different age groups would be well-represented.