I had a chat with Paapa a couple of weeks ago at the Skillions Records studio where we talked about his schooling , music , up coming concert and other matters .
How difficult or easy is it combining school and music?
Let’s just say I’ve always liked to be the jack of all trades ….. master of jacks doing many different things so right from SOS that’s where I went to secondary school in Tema, I developed skill of not multi tasking but being able to do so many things at the same time. I will be in school then I will go and lead the choir and then lead the band and go and be a prefect and do all this different things. And I guess I developed some level of discipline and focus so with each task that I’m doing I’m fully present in that task so I don’t have a lot of distractions.
When people ask what I do for fun I don’t know what to say (laughs), I really don’t know what to say. What I do for fun is what I do in my life, like my life should be fun. when I’m in class I’m having fun when I’m doing music I’m having fun, so having that mindset I don’t mind loosing some hours of sleep. I don’t mind missing some social events because I have these things I want to focus on.
What I’m trying to say is that it’s not easy but it’s not difficult, it’s very possible but some sacrifices have to be made and I make those sacrifices and I keep making those sacrifices just because I have a focus and I have a vision for what I want to do.
I want to do great at school and I’m not just a student at school, I have all theses positions and I work on campus as well ….. And I’m very active at church as well so it’s just about having focus. The thing I’ve seen with other people like I said is being present with each task, like when I’m working on the music I’m so focused on the music when I’m doing my homework nothing not even stress distracts me.
Stress doesn’t distract me, stress distracts a lot of people I don’t allow stress to distract me so I just focus.
And I think once you can get or master that skill I think it can make things possible. It’s not difficult I lose some sleep I lose some weight some I gain a lot of insight and I read a lot.
I’ve noticed you play quite a number of musical instruments; of all, which do you enjoy most?
I would say maybe the piano because that’s my home, that’s where its starts for me and everything. However every instrument gives me a different feeling different vibe yeah so … when I’m behind the drum set I’m like mad * laughs * I just go insane. When I’m behind the piano I don’t really think much because like I said it’s my home it’s where I started … I just really play it. When I’m behind the guitar, it’s not really my instrument I really leant it a little later so I have to think a little so and it activates a different side of my brain.
It’s just a different vibe so I can say the piano is my home that’s where majority of my song writing happens, that’s where majority of my ideas for beats and stuff come up. I also write piano compositions as well so that’s where everything at least begins. There’s other stuff like saxophone and others, those things have dropped after a while. I pick them up a year or two just to understand how they work, like I said every instrument brings different vibe different emotion at the same time because I want to produce I try to produce as realistic as possible so if I’m going to produce a saxophone line or track even if I don’t have the saxophone.
I want to understand how the saxophone works or sounds and all of that stuff to be able to recreate all that on the computer or something so that’s why I dabble but basically piano is home .
You spend a lot of time on social media, twitter especially how important is social media to you as a musician?
The dynamics of music promotion I guess has changed and word of mouth has become more powerful than ever before so now you don’t have… I mean there are still there. Basically before social media or much of the internet as we know it now, there were basically gatekeepers in the industry so people who you have to get through them to be heard by anybody that is outside your family your church or whatever it is. And even after you’ve finally got your music past them and all that stuff, you always have to get through something to get to the fans, so basically if you want to send a message to the fans you have to go through the press or through the radio.
It has to go through something and you know when things go through …. Some things get lost something get lost. So basically there was the problem of getting through in the first place and the second issue was getting the accurate issue through, now with social media those barriers are not really there. I’m sure there are still gatekeepers not I’m sure there are still gatekeepers, if you want to get to a different level or a different audience but now it’s not so much that if you don’t get through them you are muzzled or you have something on your mouth; you are your own gatekeeper in a sense you can make your own small window or small whatever it is and I think that’s what social media is for artiste now.
Without having a twitter following, I wouldn’t have had this interview nobody would know what I’m doing maybe.
I don’t know for sure maybe somebody’s heard my stuff and put it out like the normal thing but no I had to start with like 200 followers and was like lets do this push this thing and song after song its like how it works offline with word of mouth. It’s like being in a school and you hear some gossip and it goes round 10 to 50 people before you realize everybody knows about it.
That’s how twitter is like honestly it feels like I can feel the people there so the whole issue of getting through is not an issue anymore, the issue of getting an accurate message through… Now if I want to get a message through I just tweet it and people retweet it and whatever it is how I’ve promoted my albums , my concerts and everything on these platforms and of course through the media and other channels.
And even these media use these social media platforms and everything so it’s taking this word of mouth to the digital space and I think that that’s the future for sure. And like I said you can also get feedback directly from the fans now there used to be fan mail now when you drop the track if people like if they don’t like it they will tell you and you also get to link up with other artistes and develop relationships that really wouldn’t have developed in the first place without it so I think it’s the future he who understands how it works will do really well.
Let’s talk about your second album ‘Songs for Kukua’. Do you think the reception was great?
I think people were … how do I put it? I first released ‘write for me ‘and I think for me that really set the tone for the rest of the album. Like what it was going to sound like, the perceptive and all that. If I had first released supernova the fast track which features Cwesi Oteng and then the album came there would have been a bit of a shock because it was a fast song and I wont say there are all fast but they had this energy that vibe, that empowerment in there but with ‘Songs for Kukua ‘it was mellow, okay listen to what I’m saying.
More emphasis on the lyrics now and more tamed instrumentals and all that stuff. I think people were ready for what was coming and I think the reception was really good. I think it’s taking a while for people to really understand what I was trying to do or what I did, and the vision of the album, the story line and everything. Or even the fact that Kukua is not a girl.
Personally I sought out to make the kind of album that I will like to hear or have exist, I like albums that have vision that have a large theme, a large concept, a large imagination or all that stuff so I was like you people don’t like it I will like this thing and there is a message in every single song. It’s been positive there are people who didn’t really understand what was going on: am I doing more singing now? Am I a rapper? Am I doing gospel this and that and I still get those questions and I reply.
For me that’s not the question you should be asking, the question should be what I’m I trying to say that’s really what I want to get out so it’s being positive and also confused. And I think that’s what makes it interesting. I think its more interesting if you listen two or more times to get…. Let’s just say I wanted to make an album that has replay value and by that I mean a song that you have to replay and you get new perspective every time you listen, you play over and over again.
That was what I was trying to do with this one so I’m glad people are confused about it because it will make you listen again. Things like my upcoming concert are going to make sense that’s when I’m going to give everything away like this is what I was saying, the lyrics will be there you see everything will be clear so there will be less ambiguity after that show its been great.
There is this perception that as for Ghanaians we always want to dance, don’t do mind stuff just give us a couple of beats. Honestly there are times when Jay ( Jayso ) and I are here ( Skillions Studio ) and we have some stupid song idea like kalypo * laughs * but its just too easy you know . And so to have people respond to my two albums the way they have its like wow people are open to other sounds and other perspectives and other experiments so I’m always happy like this is real so….
Unlike your first album ‘Solar’ which was available for free downloads, ‘Songs for Kukua’ was sold, how has sales been like?
Honestly, basically Solar was initially going to be for sale but things changed when …. I mean knew I was going to have to go to school. I took a break between secondary school and university (college). I spent a year, I was at this financial consultancy and I was working on the album and other stuff as well so It was scheduled to be released during my first semester in school and then back to the whole understanding social media and how it works. It was kind of like I would have to go back to school, I wouldn’t be able to push it the way it needs to be pushed. If I want to sell, I may have to do all this interviews and stuff and I’m just new in school: new school, new environment, new everything, so it will be best to explore this internet thing.
So in a way I approached it like a drug dealer * laughs * so what happens with drug dealers with every new drug they usually give out the first sample for free (I interject saying the person gets addicted and asks for more which comes at a prize) exactly… this is great this is some good stuff (referring to the album Solar) so that’s the business side of things.
Also I wanted people to hear every single song on the album “ Solar ‘ the way it needed to be heard , so I had this thing called solar Sundays so instead of releasing it on 11-11-11 ( 11thNovember 2011 ) we ended up rebranding it and we had solar Sundays which was every two weeks . We release one song off the album, so basically by the end of that period you have the full album and you had enough time to digest each song. And know each song and understand what I’m trying to do with each song and like I said word of mouth each release more hype more people gave me more attention and all that stuff . I think that was critical to building my fan base as it is right now , give the music away and I got some great feedback as well.
I didn’t have a single video, it was just building a relationship with people online and that helped in a lot of things Google search optimization and so many other things. It made me understand the internet and how it works and at the end of it we put it (album) up for sale for support.
Any endeavour from ministry to anything you are doing needs some funds, to help take a taxi to this place and all that stuff . We put it online as a way to say like you you liked it if you want to support great. With “ songs for Kukua “ it was free for the first twenty four hours, it was still that same heart … honestly I did it that way because of the way the album was.
It’s a story it’s a narrative so you need the whole album to listen to get the idea . It was free the first two three days and I think it did well for people to get the appreciation. And the same online I ve built a not so significant fan base in the US but it’s decent and that’s where lots of the sales has come from. Here like I said, it was free for a couple of days now its like … I don’t really mind if people share the music, for me my heart is for you to get the music.
At the same time the business things are in place to keep this thing running and so for my vision of my music The revenue will come from my shows and my performance , all those things for me that’s where it really is at because those costs a lot like to book the venue and to rehearse . There’s no way I could give a show like … I could unless I get sponsors we need that to cater for that , so that’s where the main revenue is . But basically my heart is just make music and just enjoy and spread it.
You did a lot of singing on “Songs For Kukua “compared to “Solar. What informed that?
When I have more to say I rap, when I have more to feel I sing .The nature of the art form rap gives you more space for words so you can fit more on a rap song or beat than you would on R&B. I said what I had to say on ‘Solar ““Songs for Kukua “is more of a vibe, feeling overall. That’s where the switch came from, I wanted to communicate more emotions than words and stuff.
I’m still really devoted and dedicated to writing good lyrics and messages it’s more about making an emotional connection with people through the music. And I think singing does that best , lets just say I was a better singer by the time I was recording “ Songs For Kukua “ . I’m still working trying to understand my voice because I have not really been singing for that long so I’m trying to understand how my voice works and how I can make it work in a better way.
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Expectations for your August 3 Alliance Francaise show?
Just expect what you expect from a Paapa show: good music and a good time. I think what will be different from the other shows is, this time I will be playing with the band and not the usual solo that I usually do. This time it will be a full band, larger stage and a bigger venue so that will change the dynamics a little bit.
This time more than the other time there will be more emphasis on lyrics, I don’t think people got the lyrics on this album as much as I want them to. I will do everything I can to make sure the lyrics come out and will be alive to them , and they will walk away and be like okay I understand what Paapa is trying to understand do I agree yes: do I agree no. There will be supporting acts Sandra and Faintmedal.
Advice for up and coming acts?
Pray hard …I mean if it’s your calling and God wants you to do that thing at that moment, he will give you what you need. I’m talking about strength, passion, focus and conviction. Focus and don’t be distracted by things. I think stress is the biggest distraction we have,” oh I’m stressed”.
The time spent saying I’m stressed could be used to do something extra. I get stressed too but I don’t allow it to distract me from what i’m supposed to do. Pray for vision of purpose and when you are done with that just have a single mind of purpose.
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