Amakye Dede: An Album Too Far

For a musician whose consistency in the production of quality music has been taken for granted by Ghanaians, the silence that has hung over him for some time now has set many a music lover wondering.

“If a woman spends an unusually long time in the bathroom, she might probably be having a feminine wash” an Akan proverb which suggests that the woman may be preparing herself well to impress her husband, was Amakye Dede's response to his long silence on the musical scene.

The phenomenal highlife musician, whose musical career spans over three decades, has not released an album since, Krokro me in 2003, but he hinted that his fans should be on the look-out for his album this year.

Even while he has been silent on the album front, Amakye has been doing performance tours in Canada, the US and Europe, giving both Ghanaians and foreigners a taste of highlife music.

This was revealed to Showbiz on Monday when this reporter paid a visit to Abrantie Spot, a club in Accra where live band music is provided free of charge on weekends. The club is owned by Amakye.

Anyone who has ears for highlife music is likely to note that Amakye is one of the best and successful highlife musicians of our time and continues to reign supreme in the music industry, and is also involved in other endeavours such as farming at Ejisu Juabeng, a second division football team called Highkings FC, and a guest facility, Highkings Lodge, at Agogo.

“I consider myself as a success because all my businesses emerged through music. I've never done any work apart from music, and for that I'm grateful” he said.

Naturally a man with such an international repute is bound to have many awards and Abrantie Amakye Dede, as he is affectionately called, confirmed that. “Almost all my records win awards. I won the Entertainment Critics and Reviewers Association of Ghana (ECRAG) award five times, Rex Image used to award musicians years back and I received eight Leisure awards from that.

Turning his attention to the beginning of his career, Amakye said after completing his early education at St Augustine's School at Agogo in 1972, he joined Akwasi Ampofo Adjei's Kumapem Royals Band as a back-up vocalist in 1974.

While with Kumapem Royals, Amakye wrote and sang songs like Wan aware mea me mmo tuo, Ohoho Batani, Odo m'ani Agyina wo and Odo Mfoni before leaving for Nigeria in 1980 to release his debut, Nkechi, a title in Yoruba.

Close on the heels of the debut were Beautiful Woman, Sansa Akroma, Jealousy go Shame and To be a man na waa.

These releases made Amakye very popular, and in 1983 Apollo Highkings Band was born. As a resident band at the Festac Hotel in Nigeria, they soared to great heights as “our music was very hot in those years”, he said.

As to why the Apollo Highkings were producing music in Nigeria and not in Ghana, Amakye explained that it was extremely difficult to get producers in Ghana for his music and the only alternative was to turn to Nigeria where the band fared well.

Unfortunately an incident happened, leading to the group returning to Ghana virtually empty-handed. They had to start afresh, as Amakye recalls.

“It was in 1983 when Ghanaians were returning from Nigeria and coincidentally, we also released an album called Ye koe Yaba. “It was to tell our story of returning to Ghana after toiling in Nigeria, but it caught on well.”

Their return to Ghana was met with the same problem of finding a producer, but one A. K. Brobbey, a popular producer, came to the aid of Amakye and his first album Kose Kose was produced. It was followed by an equally moving hit Okyena Sese the year after.

From 1989, the band started touring the world, and 1990 saw the release of Dabi Dabi in the US. With a list of success stories in music, the highlife musician said he has had to face up to many challenges.

“One of the challenges I've faced as a musician has been the recurring rumours that I've been arrested anytime I go outside the country. I don't know how those unfounded rumours get started”.

“I don't know how Ghanaians perceive musicians . They find it strange that a musician should own a good car, a house or other property. So they come up with all sorts of rumours about us. It is not fair, we were underrated. We put a lot of energy into what we do, so we deserve the rewards”, he said.

It was obvious that the highlife maestro was not ready to delve into his personal life apart from saying that he enjoys ampesi and soup, while listening to gospel and western music.

The almost 50-year-old Amakye, who is married with four children, called on all Ghanaians to pray for smooth elections this year and added that “we will also do our bit as musicians to carry the message along.”

Story by Hilda Owusu