‘Sarkodie is still the Man,’ reads the headline of a culart.blog review following the debut edition of his ‘This Is Tema’ concert in October 2019.
The headline might be easy to dismiss but casual observers of the Ghanaian music industry will admit the past few years, especially 2019 was a difficult one for the ‘Lucky’ artiste.
Going by his own standards, recent songs he’s released, which are largely considered rotation-heavy, don’t compare to the level of ‘Adonai,’ ‘you go kill me,’ ‘Illuminati’ and or ‘Original.’
In an industry where an artiste’s relevance is based on whether he or she is a hit-making factory, the two-time Ghana Music Awards ‘Artiste of the Year’ winner surprisingly hasn’t lost his star power or become a ‘victim’ of diminished relevance according to the unwritten rules of the industry he finds himself.
Sarkodie still rubs shoulders with talents who are enjoying mainstream relevance like Kwesi Arthur, Kidi, Kuami Eugene, Fameye and Stonebwoy among others – winning awards, headlining major concerts, bagging ambassadorial invitations and roles.
To an extent, he can be likened to a unicorn for his continued relevance all factors considered — in a very unforgiving industry with an onto-the-next-hit maker attitude.
What did Sarkodie do right to have that enviable top-of-the-mind recall amongst Ghanaian music fans and stakeholders in the past decade and counting?
“Sarkodie does not have to do much to stay relevant. Granted he has not released a huge banger for five years. All he needs is to drop a few good singles, hop on features and remix other people’s songs to have his name there,” shares Rahim ‘Swaye Kidd’ Munir, a Music Writer and author of the review referenced above. “This is based on the huge fan base he has built for himself across the years. The almost fanatical fans would support anything he releases.”
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| Sarkodie at the ‘This is Tema’ concert in October 2019. | Photo via Abdul Arafat. |
It won’t be a stretch to say that Sarkodie has a statesman-like appeal in the music industry – endorsing the craft of upcoming artistes, mainstream acts and even already established artistes offers visibility and leverage.
The status doesn’t absolve him of blame though.
He is accused of being self-serving and riding on the popularity of artistes (especially new ones) when he features a young act on his song or is featured on the song of a young act, and labeled ‘selfish’ when he doesn’t.
On his track ‘Angels and Demons,’ Sarkodie vehemently pushed back against the claims of exploiting new artistes through features, suggesting that is his way of supporting their craft.
“His strategic collaborations with rising artistes” is one of the pillars on which his “continuous reign is built,” argues Isshak Abdullai, a Publicist and Digital Content Creator.
In spite of being at the receiving end of repeated taunts especially whenever a colleague artiste achieves a milestone (see Shatta Wale’s feature on Beyonce’s The Lion King: The Gift album and M.anifest featuring on Burna Boy's Grammy-nominated 'African Giant' album) Sarkodie doesn’t seem concerned about the dry season of his hit-making ability and the onslaught of taunts and name-calling.
Last August, a worried fan on Twitter asked Sarkodie a question that mirrors the somewhat challenging past few years he’s had.
“Why do some industrial [sic] players and other fan base always compare you to an artist success? Can’t think far about this… What have you done wrong? I don’t know whys [sic] going on”
Sarkodie’s response reads: “*What have you done right (smile emoji) … You’d rather b a trend or Ralph Lauren?”
The second part of the response is a phrase uttered by American rapper and Music mogul Jay Z in response to a question by Dean Baquet, Executive Editor of the New York Times on Jay Z's opinion about not being in the “white-hot space.”
To an extent Sarkodie and Jay Z share similarities.
The former isn’t a billionaire but they are both out of the coveted ‘white-hot space’ in their industries and have the mindset of playing the long-term game – not necessarily to be the “youngest, hottest, new, trendy thing,” as Jay Z added.
“Sarkodie is very talented, business-minded and plans for the future,” states DJ Mingle of the rapper’s thought process and his approach to his craft. “He is not making the same mistake that people made in the past. He has a solid and marketable brand. It is the reason why he is able to score deals with Stanchart and other well-known brands.”
The Citi 97.3 FM DJ also credits “the solid team behind” Sarkodie for their innovative initiatives and marketing ideas for helping the 2012 MTV Europe Music Awards nominee consistently reach new audiences with his craft.
The rapper had a historic win at 2019 BET Hip Hop Awards for ‘Best International Flow’ – knocking down challenge from Canadian Tory Lanez, United Kingdom’s Ghetts, Nigerian Falz, South African Nasty C and UK’s Little Simz. The award made him the first artiste to win the category and is a testament to his ‘Ralph Lauren’ staying power.
Months prior, he won the coveted ‘Artiste of the Decade’ award at the prestigious Ghana Music Awards 2019 beating competition from Shatta Wale, Stonebwoy, Samini, Efya, Okyeame Kwame, Becca, R2Bees, Nacee and Joe Mettle.
On October 30, 2019, the title of ‘Year of Return’ ambassador was conferred on Sarkodie by Honourable Barbara Oteng Gyasi, the Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture. The citation of the honour highlighted his “illustrious music career” and his “consistence, creativity and quest for music excellence.”
His speech at the BET Awards encouraging Americans and viewers around the world to visit Ghana as part of the ‘Year of Return’ initiative is said to have sparked more interest in the West African country.
It begs the question, what is the source of the power of the multiple award-winning artiste’s power of relevance and influence? The running theme throughout interviews conducted by newdawnonline.org points to his consistently supportive fan base.
The foundation for Sarkodie’s successful career, says Abdullai is the “overwhelming” support he has from his fan base.
Mingle agrees with the assertion, praising the 2012 BET Awards ‘Best International Act’ winner for having “built a very solid fan base – a very loyal fan base who are ready to push whatever he produces. No matter what anyone says or does, his people are going to blast it everywhere. It will be in your face, on WhatsApp, they trend songs on Twitter – drawing the attention of DJs, radio and television presenters.”
Like American rapper J. Cole, Sarkodie has nurtured a core fan base that relentlessly supports him.
“Again, Sarkodie knows the era we live in is one where content and social engagement means a lot and this is something he has mastered online,” adds Munir.
“For the past nine years, I have been a fan of Sarkodie. The reasons I support him include his self-confidence, how he inspires and motivates me with his music, lifestyle and generally how he carries himself,” says Perry Nana SarkCess, the fan whose question on Twitter led to Sarkodie quoting Jay Z.
“I will forever support, and do whatever it takes to mobilize others, and promote his projects and everything he is associated with.”
It’s been a long journey of grit and purpose for the Ghanaian act, born Micheal Owusu Addo, and who rose to national prominence after making several appearances on ‘Kasahari Level,’ a local radio show in Ghana that opens its doors to upstarts.
For years to come, the dominance and asserting of his mainstream authority will continue for all the right reasons including leaving a legacy that lives beyond his name.
For now, just as his stage name connotes the soaring of an eagle, he still is top-billing.
Originally published by newdawnonline.org/ in January 2020.
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