Highlife Music Is Not The Best Genre Of Music In Ghana

Highlife aficionados in Ghana are always on the neck of the current musicians who don’t do highlife but other genres of music – hiplife, hip hop, dancehall, raga, etc. sometimes, calling the latter’s songs ‘disposable music.’ I beg to differ.

To some people, if one does not do highlife music, then the person is not a musician or doing good music. And to others, if one does not use live band or manual musical instruments to produce music, then it means the music is of low quality…

Who says music produced by or with live band or manual musical instruments is better than digital or computerized music?

I describe all those so called lovers of old school music who think highlife music is the best form of music as ‘aged thinkers’. They keep repeating this improvident analysis on music all the time and think they are speaking as authorities in the field of music. I

The fact is, the orientation every human being is exposed to at a younger age is what he or she grows to believe in or live by. If you grew up listening to music produced with live band or manual musical instruments, it means the melody, beat and rhythm of such music is what tickles your fantasy and conscious musically.

Another person may have grown up listening to music produced digitally or with computers. If such a person enjoys digital music more than live band music, is it the fellow’s fault for being born in an era where music is produced with computers?

I often hear some characters in Ghana’s art industry say a good musician is “one who composes songs and can play at least one musical instrument.” Is that the Ghanaian definition of who a good musician is? When was that agreed on?

If there is any erudite logic in that definition as posited by Google or Wikipedia, then why did those same Westerners bring the concept of digital or computer music production?

It is not necessary for a musician to play live band or manual musical instruments to qualify for who a good musician is!

For instance, I am a professional screenwriter. The fact that I don’t direct my own scripts or edit shots on bench does not make me a bad screenwriter; neither can directing nor editing be used to define me as a good screenwriter. If I can direct or edit, it’s just an added advantage; just as a musician who can play at least one musical instrument or live band.

In as much as we all learn from the internet, sometimes we need to pause, question and examine the common sense application of those knowledge to our settings in Africa or as Africans.

We sit in an industry where we don’t want to rack our brains and define standards for ourselves in whatever we do. The result is that, everything is subjective or relative to anybody’s own understanding, credo, reformism, and rubrics.

As a showbiz industry, the mature thing we can do to grow the industry is for all the stakeholders in all the various fields of our arts – music, movies, fashion, modeling, poetry, sculpturing, painting, publishing, etc. to convene what I call ‘Industry Standardization Stakeholders Forum,’ and use such a meeting to set standards to define every creative art work.

Until we do so, no one should assume any authority or School of Thought and impose his/her ideologies on anyone. Who defines good music or who is a good musician? In my artless opinion, this remains subjective or relative!

Highlife music is not the good, better or best music in Ghana. It’s a matter of choice. No one should be allowed to waste our ears with his/her music preference; as the definition of what good music is or should be.

I grew up listening to highlife music, I love and enjoy live band music, I am a highlife buff, but I don’t look down on other lovers of other genres of music. Let’s learn to accommodate and tolerate each other’s taste and preferences. Until then……MOTWUM!!