First of all, let me state that I am not in any way asking Ghanaian entertainers to compromise on quality. But rather when do they have to give more weight to their fans when establishing the next line of action…
Out of the failure of the various advertised artistes to show up at the recent Ghana Music Awards Europe (except Kojo Antwi who attended but did not perform), GhanaCelebrities.Com decided to poke for answers as to what caused the great flop/non-attendance. And what we found out was beyond SHOCKING…
As much as the organizers tried to pull in the various artistes they advertised and nominated, the outlandish demands of some of these artistes including Sarkodie and Efya caused the inability of these artistes to be present at the event—-we are reliably told.
Apparently, negotiations to fly Kojo Antwi, Sarkodie & Efya to London for the Ghana Music Awards Europe started a bit late. When agreements were nearly reached, the ridiculous demands of Sarkodie and Efya became an obstacle.
With legend-Kojo Antwi placing more weight on the need to be there for his fans and thereby compromising on a lot including fundamentals, Sarkodie and Efya stood on their grounds—-probably saying to hell with fans and your awards, our demands must be met.
Sarkodie’s Ridiculous Demands
For Sarkodie to fly from Ghana to London to perform at the Ghana Music Awards Europe where he was also a nominee, he demanded the following alongside his performance charges;
- Visas for 9 people—-and these people included his manager-Sammy Forson and sister. He wanted to come to London with an entourage of 9. What business has his sisters and the other people have out here in London?
- Business Class return tickets for himself and manager—-however, the last time Sarkodie attended the Channel O Awards in South Africa, the organizers flew him and his manager via Economy.
- Accommodation for about 4 of the above people.
Efya’s Ridiculous Demands
- Visas for herself and 2 others who have nothing to do with her musical performance…She probably needed them for company while in London—-we are told.
- Business Class return tickets
- Accommodation for the 3 of them…
What Then Happened…
Kojo Antwi secured his own visa, intending to use a band he requested the organizers to pull together for him in London since things were getting tight for the organizers. He was very much concerned about not disappointing his fans, GhanaCelebrities.Com has learnt.
Though the organizers were ready to satisfy the above ridiculous demands, it became obvious that they did not have enough time to go through the normal visa acquisition process and therefore decided to use the fast track route.
For a person to qualify to use the fast track service in Ghana, such a person must meet certain requirements which only Sarkodie and his manager met. And when it came to Efya, none of her ‘baby-sitting’ friends/team members met the criteria…
Using the fast track route, the organizers acquired visas for Sarkodie & his manager, and Efya.
We are told that upon receiving her visa, Efya told the organizers she wanted to go with her 2 people and since this was not met, she was no more interested….
The question is; what about her fans and when must she compromise?
Similar to Efya’s position, Sarkodie also made a jump—claiming that if visas could not be acquired for the other 8 people, then there is no way he is going to be at the event.
Again, the question is; what about his fans and when must he compromise?
Now Kojo Antwi—The Most SHOCKING Of All
With Efya and Sarkodie taking up the above stance, Kojo Antwi pulled a shock when he decided to place emphasis on what the outcome will be for his fans and brand should he pull out—when he could compromise and still deliver a good performance…
Kojo Antwi asked for a band to be put together in London for him and he flew alone from Accra to London for the event. Without any manager or aid, he handled his luggage himself.
My Questions…
If a legend like Kojo Antwi thought about his brand and fans, and proceeded to compromise, why couldn’t Sarkodie and Efya do the same for the fans? After all, most of the people they wanted to bring had nothing to do with what they were coming to do out here…
Am I the only one who thinks the request to bring an entourage of 9 people to London by Sarkodie is absurd?
What about Efya’s request for visas to bring her 2 people who were not necessarily going to be instrumental to her performance?
Note: GhanaCelebrities.Com reached out to both Efya and Sarkodie in relation to the above. Efya’s manager phoned to explain that, there was no way the management was going to let Efya travel alone.
According to the manager-Jimmy, the two people Efya insisted the organizers secure visas for are members of her team who needed to travel with her to protect her brand—-not to babysit her.
Jimmy added that though they were ready to compromise on a lot, they couldn’t allow Efya to travel to London alone. She needed these two people to be by her side to protect her brand as a lot of people exploit and abuse Efya’s brand…
As to why Efya and her management did not notify the fans that Efya was not going to be at the event, the manager conceded they made a big mistake. Efya will therefore record a special song for her London fans—-to appease them.
No one from Sarkodie’s camp has made any contact yet…
One thing I’ve come to realize out of this is that, no one really cares about the fans. Most of the artistes care about their cash/brand, and event organizers are only interested in making some quick bucks…
The fans will always be let down, unless you are a fan of someone like Kojo Antwi.
This is why Ghanaian musicians are always nine days wonder….All they care about is themselves but they always forget that we the fans pay their bills for them and give them the chance of living their lavish lifestyles…..nonsense
This is why Ghanaian musicians are always nine days wonder….All they care about is themselves but they always forget that we the fans pay their bills for them and give them the chance of living their lavish lifestyles…..nonsense
These people are not “there” yet but it is so sad that they think they are. I am a fan of both Sark and Efya but they have to be realistic with themselves when it comes to this thing call ‘fame”. I am sure they probably want to compare themselves to their American and European counterparts but their marketability and accomplishments are simply not up to part yet to these “Westerners” with a great market (of consumers) and accomplishment at their disposal. If you have made sold a album to 8 million like P-Square of Nigeria then maybe you have the right to make such demands, but come on now on Efya and Sarkodie are not there yet. Also, why you do need to fly back to Ghana in Business class when you went to London in Economy if not simply to show off to our folks back home when you are flying back?
@KK, Return trip ticket means Round Trip ticket.It doesn’t mean Sakodie was willing to travel to Londom via Economy and return to Ghana via Business Class.
@Ken,
I am sorry but that is not what was written by the author. I am sure Chris could have distinguished and clarified between a round trip ticket and a “return” one. Since their return dates were probably tentative,, that’s probably why they didn’t want to book a round trip ticket. I am just going by what Chris wrote and not interpreting into things that are not there.
If this actually happened, I SALUTE YOU MR. KOJO ANTWI! THE LORD CONTINUE TO BLESS YOUR KINDHEARTED & MULTIPLY YOUR SUCCESS FOREVER! His good example makes me realize Cockiness Leads To Self Destruction! For Efya & Sarkodie I will let them carry their own cross. Hmmm I only started listening to Efya’s music a month ago & came across her songs “best in me & little things”. I was like please God have mercy on her & take her higher in life BUT I NEVER KNEW SHE IS HER OWN ENEMY. I’m very disappointed
In the Ghanaian music industry these days u have to make ur money whiles u still relevant cos u can disappear just lyk that hence their demands.Kojo Antwi has seen it all and done it all and therefore has nothing to prove to us again.That said I think Efya’s demands are much realistic than Sark he has too many “follow follow” people.
@frog, gbam!!! totally agree with u on efya’s part….definitely efya is gona need her stylist/manager/personal assistant/just somebody,she shouldn’t have been denied that,not at all. c’mon no matter how low u think their statuses are,they cant travel without anybody by their side (and I mean efya,sarkodie’s demands are totally ridiculous and senseless,9people??what the hell for??) I salute Kojo Antwi tho,the best and always will be. But whatever way it was,i think efya’s management should release a statement to clear the air and apologise to her fans,making a music over that is unnecessary at this point. Just send out a written statement PERIOD!! So should sarkodie,and please to u people out there in Ghana,can any of u send sarkodie this message for me?? Please tell him I said he should humble himself cos fame comes and goes.
@honey, well said.His boys live in my area if I were to say this to them, I wouldn’t know peace for a month.They already brand me a hater
Ghanaians confuse me sometimes. You complain that Nigerians are going places yet you don’t understand why Ghanaian artist aren’t going anywhere. You don’t think Efya has the right to travel with people she wants to? I’ve been to a PSquare concert and they fly in private planes with a band of over 10 people. Now I know you will say Efya of Sarkodie isn’t bigger than them, but that’s where you’re wrong. Nigerian artist are only big because their “people” give them the respect they need and deserve. If you respect your fans, you give them the best performance, and tot ensure a good performance you need to know that you”the artist” are taken care of, and in the right state of mind to perform. Maybe we should be asking about these event organizers outside the country who throw “wack” events that are usually poorly organized just to make small change. The reason Ghana isn’t anywhere is just the simple fact that we don’t respect entertainers. You can be singing for a million years and yet people will expect you to accept peanuts.
One one hand you bash celebrities for being broke and having nothing, on the other you don’t think celebrities in Ghana deserve to be treated with respect. So what do you want right now?
That’s why Nigeria will always do better than Ghana, because no matter how small an artist it, they treat them with better respect than Ghanaians. No wonder most of our celebrities keep moving to Nigeria.
I’ve never heard of a musician traveling alone to a foreign country to perform? The problem with this country is that anyone with some access with money, suddenly wants to be an event organizer without understanding the dynamics of the trade.
@Ajoa, In our fairness, Nigeria’s population is more than 7 times that of Ghana (170-plus million vs. 23+ million) so Ghana’s artists are automatically disadvantaged when it comes to patronage of fans, and thus financially and monetary gain and support as well. The entertainment business and its subsequent/complimentary industries (e.g. concerts, television audience) is all about quantity and not necessarily quantity and that is the main reasons why Nigeria is easiest place to thrive for an artists (and thus the massive migration there by some).
@KK, ….quantity and not necessarily quality…
@KK, thank U.People like u think outside the box & that’s what Ajoa should know.U compare 2 things & forget about figures & u think u r right.
@KK, The massive keep moving to Nigeria because of respect and the way they are treated not necessarily population factor. Sir is not ‘all about quantity’ for an artist to thrive, though it plays a factor. If “all is about quantity”, then Jamaican or UK base artists will be in disadvantage. America has a population of 313 million compare to 61 of UK but their artists do well on America charts. And that is due to how they are being treated in their home. Ajoa wasn’t comparing population, she used the word Respect and well deserving Treatment throughout her statement to which i agree. It’s time our organizers give respect to our well deserve entertainers thus that translate to other foreign base organizers.
@Semi-Cartermatic, Respect is earn and not demanded, what have Sarkodie and Efya done to gain the respect of their fans, when you turn them down because they couldn’t secure visa for 8 or so friends they’ve probably taken money from to send to abroad? Are those people in their band, are they going to play the instruments for them to perform?These Ghanaian artist do not even perform live, they are all infested with the miming bug.
@Ajoa, totally agree. It about time we give our artists the respect they deserve. And we have talked about it here before so I don’t know y Chris is saying otherwise now. It was up to the organizers to have planned ahead. Our artists are only big the way we make them to be. I support sark and Efya.
@Ajoa, I am not sure how you read the piece to come to your conclusion but one thing is clear, you have missed the direction of the piece…
My article did not say any artiste have to compromise, I asked that when do these artistes have to compromise because that will def have to be done somewhere along their careers…Diff do exist between stating and asking…
If you think Sarkodie demanding visas for 9 people including his sister and several others who have nothing to do with his performace or can be easily be replaced out there is on point….then I am sure we reason along far different lines.
When I spoke to Efya’s manager, I asked him this…Efya as an artistes will easily obtain visas to many countries but these people around her may be refused time to time because mostly, they do nothing major for her…Does this mean that anytime Efya is granted a visa and these people are refused, Efya can’t go out there and work? That sounds absurd to me….
I also told him that, as a management team, it is obvious Efya will perform a lot in America and UK, why don’t you guys secure at least 5 years visa for her and the people you think she needs to travel with…So that anything a gig comes up, they just take their passports and fly off….This will aslo increase her marketability. Event organizers will say come in for her more when they know they don’t have to hustle for visas, compared to other female artistes they may need to obtain visas for…
I went to university to get a degree and wait or look for a job…I did not sit down for the job to come and then asked them to get me a school to obtain a degree. We are looking at making yourself more marketable….
You guys are talking about big artistes like Chris Brown and others, what you may not know is that, because Chris Brown works in certain countries a lot, he and his team have obtained long visas for these countries so they fly in there easily to work when a gig comes up.
Do you think Chris Brown will go and get a UK working visa everything he has to come here and work? No, he has enough years secured for him…This is what management does and this is what we call a serious artistes.
I am told one of the people Efya and several of those Sarkodie wanted visas for had never travelled before….no travel experience, and this means that they may probably have been refused the UK visas anyway. So will that mean because those people did not get the visas the artistes should not travel for business?
Looking at all the above, I asked, when do these artistes have to compromise on some of these ridiculous demands?
On his own, I am told Kojo Antwi secured a 10 year visa or so, meaning anytime he has to perform out here, he will just fly in or just get visas for his guys and they fly in….
The people Efya and Sarkodie wanted to bring, could they not have found replacements here for the most important ones as Kojo Antwi comprised to do? Especially if they cared about their fans and brands.
The next time Sarkodie or Efya is on a concert here, people will think they will still not show up. Not everyone will know why they didn’t show up this time and as such will assume it will happen again….Is their brands not going to be hurt this way? So compromise is important sometimes in order to safeguard a lot of things…
Note…And I never said the flop of the show was due to these people not showing up. This is a whole different subject I looked at. If they were there, it could still have flopped!
@Posted By: Chris-Vincent Agyapong Febiri, First, Sarkodie announced on his twitter page that he won’t be able to make the show days before the show although his name had been used on da flyers..
I’m sure Chris didnt see that? Yeah right! Just putting that out here. Now, why did the promoters wait till the last minute to start negotiations? Then put their names on the flyers so when the negotiations hit the rocks, the artistes are coerced to “sacrifice” to protect their brand. Now the question I ask, when will these sacrifices end ? Cos most of these foreign promoters intentionally put ur name on their flyers to promote their gigs before acc contacting the artiste for negotiations n all. Though, I agree it wudnt have hurt Sarkodie N Efya to make dat compromise, we also have to bear in mind the unfortunate precedent we would be setting. Promoters would put ur name on their flyers to promote their gig, then contact u 2 weeks to the event to start negotiations so u’re rushed to compromise to be able to make the show in a bid to protect ur brand and please ur fans.. Is that fair to the artistes? If these promoters respect the artistes, they wont treat them this way. What if Sarkodie compromised and made it to the show but only put up a half-baked performance?? You’d be the 1st to criticise and accuse him of shortchanging the patrons.
& Come on, do u think you’re being truthful when u say Sarkodie’s 9-member “entourage” had absolutely nothing to do with his performance at the awards? His manager, stylist/make up artist, P.A, hypemen, DJ Mensah – his personal DJ are all not important so he should just go shout on stage then fly on economy back to Ghana. Is this demand reasonable ? That is all I’m asking.
Whether we like it or not, Sarkodie is the biggest artist/brand Ghana has at the moment so we should accord him some of the courtesies we give these foreigners.
Ghanaians would carry foreigners but expect their fellow Ghanaian who DESERVE to be carried to be lie down & be throttled upon. Jesus wasnt lying when he said a prophet is not honoured in his hometown. Some of yall need to read Matt 13:54-58. Im done.
@@AyyElayy, when u mentioned his @entourage” how many did they add up to, is his sister also going to perform?
@Posted By: Chris-Vincent Agyapong Febiri,
Sark and Efya will compromise when they get to kojo antwi’s age. As young as they are, u should know that money plays a vital role in their lives. Am not saying they are doing it just for the money but we should know that fulfilment comes at the later stages in life. I believe that apart from charity organizations, most young entrepreneurs work hard for the money. Kojo Antwi has got to the fulfilment stage where he takes pleasure in making people happy for nothing. Ask everyone.
@Sir, of course they are doing it for the money, if not then why was the need for negotiation?
At the end of the day it was poor planning by the organisers, plain and simple. Why should they wait till the last minute on negotiations? I mean come on, what of the other artistes who didn’t show up? The organisers are to blame, they should admit it and learn from it. Efya and Sarkodie’s demands are not unreasonable.
This is bullcrap chris. you approached this after listening to bitter organisers. But tell me, if these guys knew they needed then so much, why start negotiations late?
You a,common blogger gets free tickets and hotel accommodation but you dare to belittle hard working artists. Maybe they asked for a little much but youare bring hypocritical when one minute you push for recognition of these people and next minute slander their hustle.
Please let them be.
Just last week you complained about how unrecognized efya is . How do you expect others to recognize then when we belittle them ourselves.?
Artistes are working hard like crazy to make a living but you just want to pull them down.
All you needed was SHATTA WALE and upcoming artistes. The place would have been filled 10x over. He is also for the people
How are the artistes to blame for this ? All this mess should be placed at the doorsteps of the self-styled “event organisers”. Ajoa & Co done said it all so maybe I don’t need to reiterate those points. But if u were Efya’s manager, would u allow her to travel alone to a foreign country to perform ? All I see is u putting the blame at the doorsteps of Sarkodie & Efya who have done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING wrong in making those demands. Who told u Wizkid & even that short Iyanya travel alone on economy tickets to perform gigs in London ? Just give em a break already man.
Chris i’m so disappointed in this article. Weren’t you the same person commending them for pulling out from a show a while back when their needs weren’t met? Are you telling us this artists needed to fly alone to this event? Maybe you part of the organizing committee for this event. Why should they be concern about fans when their needs are not met? I leave in a city where i see a lot of Nigeria artists come and perform and they are well taken care of. Their organizers fly them with prvt jets or first class with who ever they want to bring and even provided them with security team as needed. The event is well broadcast through all media channels and always expect full house. During Sarkodie’s US tour 2 years ago, I was so embarrass with the poor organization from organizers in my city. We were given so much excuses for a show that was to start around 8pm which later began at 2am, On top of all we had to become security team for sarkodie and DJ Mensah out of nowhere. Ghanaian organizers abroad are incompetent and unprofessional. We need to show maximum respect to our artists because some of these people are being recognize beyond shores of Ghana.
.First of all why did the organizers ve to wait till the last minute to realize they couldn’t afford their demands.They could ve easily replaced them with others.And another most sensible thing that could ve been done was to make sure a deal was closed even before putting their names on the show.Kudos to The legend Kojo Antwi,that’s the difference between a matured + experienced + sensible man vs Sarkodie and his little sister Efya.Am sure they would ve accepted this deal with no hesitation 5 yrs ago.what fame can do.
Both parties r at fault here.. Firstly the organizers should ave cut their coat according to their sizes,they should have prepared mechanisms before endorsing the artiste,also by looking at the stage design and etc its clear that money wasn’t pumped into the show,even Ghana Rocks has a better stage and they r supposed to be in london.eiii..hmm on the side of the artistes they use their fans to cover up for their real intentions which is the money,its clear they wnt sacrifice for their fans… Kojo Antwi showed maturity even travelling alone,I salute u sir.. GH artiste need to do their homework.. I hope nxt year would be better
At the end of the day its the event organizers who are blamed for the bad show. Am really disappointed.
this is soo annoying
what nonsense, he was flown on an economy class ticket during the BET awards so what? if we wont make the world believe our own artistes are worth all the goodies the foreign acts enjoy then we must as well forget about them being treated badly by foreigners. You always cry foul when others look down on them but want them to accept their own looking down on them?
@Posted By: Chris-Vincent Agyapong Febiri, So if kojo thought about his fans and flew to London, why didn’t he think about his fans and perform?
@mic, ask him again my friend, ask him again or did da organisers fail to organise da band 4 him as well? which was da one thing he asked 4. hahaha what rubbish fans my foot. if he went der and gave a terrible performance, dey wud be da first to call him out on it
chris can u even believe da bull crap ur posting DNY BLAME DA TARDINESS OF DA. ORGANISERS TO SEAL DA DEAL WIT DA ARTISTES ON TYM ON RIDICULOUS DEMANDS. dats pure nonsense!!!! when chris brown came 2 Africa to perform, a continent which is suppossedly da poorest in da world do u think he paid 4 da accomodation,visas and plane tickets with his own pocket money? HELL NO!! WE PAID 4 DAT SHIT. but u didn’t hear us complaining dat they were ridiculous demands!!! let alone a whole Europe awards what nonsense!! sarkodie and Efya’s demands were not in da least ridiculous bcos da organisers cud have afforded it. God knows da African communities over der are doing well enuf. if it had been an artiste frm outside Africa dey wud hve bent over backwards to exceed their demands chris jxt shut up please!!!!
chris can u even believe da bull crap ur posting WHY BLAME DA TARDINESS OF DA ORGANISERS TO SEAL DA DEAL WIT DA ARTISTES ON TYM ON RIDICULOUS DEMANDS?. dats pure nonsense!!!! when chris brown came 2 Africa to perform, a continent which is suppossedly da poorest in da world do u think he paid 4 da accomodation,visas and plane tickets with his own pocket money? HELL NO!! WE PAID 4 DAT SHIT. but u didn’t hear us complaining dat they were ridiculous demands!!! let alone a whole Europe awards what nonsense!! sarkodie and Efya’s demands were not in da least ridiculous bcos da organisers cud have afforded it. God knows da African communities over der are doing well enuf. if it had been an artiste frm outside Africa dey wud hve bent over backwards to exceed their demands chris jxt shut up please!!!!
@KK, my dear they may not be “there’ yet or at “par” with da westerners but here in Africa they are big and we love them (as u hve admitted urself) they are what we have (all African artistes) and WE must learn to appreciate dem b4 ofhers will. starting wit u my dear kk for theres a saying dat, one does not wake up at dawn to sweep their neighbours house b4 sweeping their own.
chris I apologise. if I sounded too harsh and offended you. jxt had to get it of my chest.
i think sarkodi and efia did the right thing.how many people did kirk franklin come with?16 entourage so why shouldnt our ghanaian musicians also come with who ever they wanted to come with
Fantastic ideas . I was fascinated by the details ! Does anyone know if my assistant can obtain a blank 2013 IL DSD DC-163.7 form to fill out ?