ghana music moves on
imagine a collection of artistes of all genres gathered to elect their regional executives and participate in a seminar on artiste development....the interesting thing with the whole exercise is the fact that the whole elections was devoid of pronounced bickering and animosity.
in his opening remarks, the president of musiga bice osei kuffour aka obour urged the members to vote for the sort of leadership that could help transform musiga into a vibrant organisation.
he highlighted some of the plans underway which include accessing soft loans from midlands loans and savings, training opportunities for musicians and steps to build the institutional capacity of musiga.
obour also spoke about the digital portal musiga is creating to aid musicians in the marketing of their works. this would involve the launch of musiga's website and the creation of pages for interested artistes as well as assistance in the creation of their own exclusive websites.
he also highlighted the union's activities lined up for the rest of the year. these include the ghana music week which will feature musicians from around the country as well as an exhibition of musical works.

other speakers at the forum included cynthia jumu, legal advisor to the union who stressed on the need for musicians to take the law serious and ensure that they have legal agreements covering their work. she reminded the participants of her availability to provide pro bono legal advise to musiga members.

in a brief presentation on the midlands loans and savings offer to musicians, an official of midlands loans and savings indicated that the offer is open to musiga members only.

on his part, carlos sakyi who spoke on copyright issues advised musicians to take their copyright matters assuring them that ghamro is there for their service.

rex omar, head of business and finance at musiga spoke about music union and its members and explained the role of musiga. he advised the members to support musiga unreservedly to also ensure that musiga is in a position to reciprocate when it's necessary.
in the elections that followed, hiplifer tic tac was elected chairman and mildred mac hansen was elected secretary with gospel singer grace ashy elected welfare officer.

the elections and artiste development forum is part of a nationwide tour by musiga executives and the collection of entries for the mtn hitmaker show. the winner of the show will walk away with a prize package worth c 100,000.00 with the runner up clocking half of that value

now with the excitement and fanfare over, it's time to hit the ground running and make sure musiga utilises the goodwill it is currently....in an interview after his election, tic tac spoke of generating domestic revenue and one is excited about the concept and would like to see how that would play out.....
so let's join hands in welcoming the new greater accra regional chairman and his fresh set of executives as the lead musiga in the greater accra to achieve even higher heights.
ship ahoy

Marketing ur brand and music

MARKETING YOUR BRAND & MUSIC tijan sumaa Eti sen hello and welcome to this artistes development forum under the them Harnessing Creative Potentials of Musicians/Artistes for Wealth Creation and National Development...... U guys r d future, the secret go Ghana.....ur branding is unique, keep it up......the number of Ghanaians abroad from Brong Ahafo is incredible...... Where was the last elections won in Ghana? Of course it was Tein when President Obuor was voted, he brought a vision and invited some of us to assist in executing his vision and agenda... I joined the union in 1981 under the presidency of Kofi Ghanaba...we played live music and up until recently was the Programmes Director of Music and Entertainment for Multimedia responsible for Joy and Hitz FMs Currently I am the Director of Music Relations for Musiga For the next 15 minutes or so we'll be discussng our work as artistes and how to make the most from it and become some of the wealthiest Ghanaians around Wallace Wattles in the Science of Getting Rich says its possible to become wealthy this morning as we got to Wa, the first sign President Obuor saw and read was no condition is permanent.........meaning change is the only constant in life if you look at yourself you will see how much you've changed.... if we look at our industry bessa, obuor, hammer dems will tell you much the industry has changed who remembers when music was released on vinyl.......cassettes......cds.... let's show by hands, great story of two boys in accra discussing downloads at 20p each story of security guard listening to music on his fone who's seen folks downloading music from laptops to fones, drivers now listen to their selections on pendrives what all these means is that the traditional distribution systems are suffering and digital downloads are growing.... question is how do we plug in????? so how does all this affect us as musicians and our work Can u imagine the first lady who sang here, her song as a ringtone or the Knust krachi's song as a ringtone n d dough they will make for starters, there's some........ Some GOOD NEWS – IT’S EASIER TO BE A STAR NOW THAN EVER BEFORE because of the technology lower distribution costs n lower coordination costs means its less expensive however technology is like a double edged sword on our way here, Hammer was telling me about how music sales is suffering and the impact of digital downloads okyeame kwame actually released his current album on mtn as downloads..... its in this context that I'll be talking about how to market yourself and in the process, your music. So what is marketing? anyone can expain it for us We live in a global village now, so we will look at marketing ourselves in an international context. Marketing involves finding out what your listeners want and then giving it to them at a profit….. So as artistes how do we do our marketing…. You need to find out what the consumers want and what will excite them All sorts of research can be done –talking to people, monitoring the scene, watching videos, listening to other people’s music, reading etc Then you can create for your fans, knowing what your competitors are doing and knowing that the consumers gonna love it Now having created, gone thru the various stages of your production….doing your first demo of the song or songs, you test them on facebook, twitter, youtube, you go back and work on them then further test (with critics, friends, shows etc) before finishing the actual work then and ready to release…. This is the process marketers call new product development How do you promote it, generate publicity and then reap sales after release or even before Some of you are doing it and some aren’t….question is why not all of us using new media to our advantage.. Now to be a musician in this age you gotta be computer literate… How many of you are computer literate? with facebook presence, MySpace, twitter, linkedin, reverbnation......lts show by hands please Those of us who aren’t should quickly learn how to get on board, Facebook aone has 800million folks there Now, we all know the traditional ways of marketing music I am sure – Do your demo, go to the studio, cut your tracks, press into hard copies, vinyl, tape and CD. Then you release and sell through record shops and play shows and also sell at the shows with some merchandising – supporting all this with airplay on radio and tv and the print media Then you repeat the cycle over and over again Now in comes what we call the New School or New Music Economy And that’s a whole new ball game What it means is that it is now relatively easier to become a star than it ever was in the history of music. The New Music Economy involves the extensive use of the internet and the tools it brings So if you are a musician and you have your website as well, LETS SEE YOUR HAND So we on course then Question is how effectively are we using this……in my final examination for the Chartered Institute of Marketing UK Post Graduate Diploma in Marketing….our case study involved a group that was playing concerts online and had over fifty thousand followers before they even played their first commercial gig…. and also sold their first single, you can imagine when they started performing and selling their music Someone will say ah why should we start looking in the direction of online sales and marketing and then even run things there…. In Ghana Ghana Internet Usage and Population Growth: 2000 - 2009 YEAR2000 2006 2008 2009 2010 User 30,000 401,300 880,000 997,000 1,297,000 Pop 18,881,600 21,801,662 23,382,848 23,887,812 24,339,838 % Pen. 0.2 % 1.8 % 3.8 % 4.2 % 5.3% Facebook 621,000 2.6% of pop like i said earlier, Facebook now has 800million people and if it were a country, it would be the third biggest country after China and India. Considering the recent developments in the Telecommunications industry I can say that in two years time internet penetration in Ghana would be double digits…… Apart from the mobile phone penetration, you also have Glo’s fibre optic investment and you gonna have the other Telcos upping their game so hey the internet is gonna go boom and as musicians we have to be ready to ride the train… For me it’s all about knowing where your core fans are and meeting them there!!! I mean my 13 year old son downloads music from the internet and he’s taught his 7 yr old brother to do same so they always hustling for credit Lady Gaga within a week sold more digital downloads of her single than is imaginable, good old Lionel Ritchie recently did same with his new album So how do we as artistes let’s capitalize on this new frontier – I believe in a year’s time, anyone who isn’t using the internet to do their marketing will be doing themselves a disservice So we refreshed our memories with how music was marketed in the past – from demo to shows…. In the New Music Economy – before you even put out your demo…you have a following of like how many thousand fans – built from your network of friends online across the entire social media spectrum - Myspace, Facebook, Twitter, Baddoo, Ning all the networks you know Today’s musicians, both mainstream and indie, are using social media to connect with fans, build anticipation, and generate revenue in new and unique ways. The products range from singles to mix tapes to digital six-packs, even some crazily designed USB sticks, vinyl, and the occasional traditional album. All though there is no clear cut formula for achieving success, I would hazard this formula for marketing our music for either artistes, managers, event organizers and possibly the first wale star, we have d volta regime and d dagarti star....so some: Be a Brand – from appearance in all forms through to interaction – you should be describable....it's all about branding Be IT literate Know the marketing tools available and how to use them – there are a million and one tools out there but I will list just a handful Your Website which should be linked to Myspace, Facebook with Rootmusic, Twitter where u can share your music using Twiturm ( Snoop doggs joke about running for governor since he has more followers than President Obama on twitter, Youtube, Reverbnation, Livestream, Skype, Linked in for those on the business end of the Dancehall runnings….if you can’t afford your own website, you can start off with the others then as you grow in the business, you build your own website Choose at most 3 social media channels and maintain a presence if you are a beginner so you can manage them well or get someone to do that for you increase your visibility, discoverability and sales online Build a network of fans, followers, bloggers – they say the show with the most friends wins, so little wonder that Lady Gaga with her 30 million little monsters worldwide is the ish now with over 20 million digital downloads, also Lil Wayne’s online presence is worth studying Constantly update and interact with your fans – share information, show dates, run contests for them, give them discounts and offer freebies eg share music and videos – Asem’s Pigaro was blue toothed at the Accra Mall even before it started playing on radio, sell your music and do free shows Get your music on the portals of the Telcos for digital downloads, use as ringtones etc Use BB services, emails and text blasts to publicise your events, activities etc Build a network of Brick and Mortar links – for print media, radio and tv and internet radio Market your self vigorously – know how to do your proposals to the corporate world and exceed their expectations eg Samini and MTN, Ayigbe Edem and Glo In summary I’ll say brand yourself well, master IT, establish an online presence and interact well with your fans and sell to them and make a gooooood living. MONETISING YOUR MUSIC using digital avenues 2 WAYS.....BECOME POPULAR BY SHARING YOUR MUSIC online like asem did AND DO SHOWS DIGITAL DOWNLOADS ON TELCO PORTALs, caller tunes also build the network, develop the links with media persons and the power brokers ITUNES, OTHER DIGITAL ONLINE SELLING SERVICES LIKE AMAZON.COM AND THE SHORT LIVED ZONGOJUNCTION.COM

Rastafari Council Celebrates 3rd anniversary with a Grounation

The media has been advised to desist from describing any person in dreadlocks who is involved in a criminal activity a Rastaman.

The advise was given by Ras Antwi Bosiako, Communications Director for the Rastafari Council at a grounation organized by the Council to mark its third anniversary.

According to Ras Bosiako, the situation whereby any dreadlocks is described as a Rastaman is not acceptable by the Council.

The Rastafari Council, Ghana has been in existence for the past three years and has been involved in a number of activities.

One of it’s most significant activities has been the establishment of the Black Star Line Cooperative Credit Union for the economic empowerment of Rastafarians.

In his welcome address, the President of the Rastafari Council, Ghana Ahuma Bosco Ocansey aka Daddy Bosco encouraged all Rastafarians to join the Credit Union to ensure the economic development of the Rastafarian Community.

Ras Nana Aswad Nkrabeah vice President of the Council and Liason Officer with other Diasporan organizations and the rep on the Coalition against Foreign Intervention in Africa recalled the various activities the council has been involved in such as the interventions in the cases of discrimination against Rastafarians.

Other speakers called on government to review the legislation on immigration as far as Africans from the disapora are concerned.

The Rastafari Council, Ghana was established in 2009 with the objective of working towards socio economic and political upliftment of the Rastafarian community in Ghana.

Ghanaian Rastafarians Challenged

Rastafarians in Ghana have been challenged to earn their stripes like other Rastamen in the diaspora. The challenge was issued by an elder Rastaman, historian and social activist Gabre Wolde aka Jah Blue at a workshop organized by the Rastafari Council of Ghana as part of activities marking the third anniversary of the Council.

The workshop was under the theme The Way Forward for Rastafari. Speakers at the workshop were Jah Blue and Ras Shango Baku.

Speaking on the History of the Rastafari Movement and Religious Tolerance and Peaceful Coexistence, Jah Blue traced the history of the movement from Jamaica and indicated that one of the founders of the faith Leonard Percival Howell visited Ghana in the early 20^th century and wrote one of the earliest books on Rastafari, the Promised Key here.

Jah Blue traced the history of the slave trade and the way the slaves who were taken to Jamaica retained Ghanaian names like Tackie, Nana, Kweku etc and the role of the Maroons in the resistance movement in Jamaica.

He spoke about the persecution of Rasses in Jamaica in the early 60s and their desire to return to Africa. and indicated his frustration with the current system that does not recognize the diasporans who return to African countries like Ghana but are not recognized as Africans.

On that note, he challenged Ghanaian Rastafarians to work assiduously to ensure that diasporans who return to Ghana for instance are granted the right to stay. He said this is crucial to the actualization of the dream of many diasporans to repatriate to Africa.

On his part, Ras Shango Baku, a Rastafari elder, author and member of the Nyabinghi Council of the U.K who edits a magazine called Thunder on his part spoke on the Role of Rastafari in Iinternatinal Politics an the Integrity of the African Union.

Ras Shango noted the phenomenal growth of the Rastafari movement and its worldwide appeal.

He questioned the role of the African Union in the invasion of Libya and called for meaningful measures to attain real unity and effect repatriation.

Quoting copiously from the speeches of His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I, ex President Mbeki of South Africa and other leaders, he stressed the right of diasporan Africans to return to the motherland.

In his closing remarks, the President of the Rastafari Council of Ghana Ahuma Bosco Ocansey highlighted the historical role of Ghana in Pan Africanism and the need for Ghanaians to blaze the trail when it comes to Repatriation.

The event which took place at the Freedom Centre of the Socialist Forum was coordinated by the Vice President of the Rastafari Council of Ghana, Ras Nana Nkrabeah Aswad.

thoughts on the black stars, woyome and......

the black stars.....
i guess that's why i stopped watching and following soccer religiously. the way it breaks your heart. soccer arouses passion and generates some intense emotions.
so when after rooting for your team and cheering them and then you lose, it can be soooo very unnerving...imagine the chipolopo of zambia, not yet having won an african cup of nations trophy, without players in the leagues that matter worldwide.
and the black stars with a galaxy of stars from the english premier, italian serie a, french league....the tournament's favorites. we thought we would walk over the zambians. our sloppy wins not withstanding, we still figured we were the best of the tournament.
so when we clashed with the zambians and in the eighth minute we had a penalty kick, we figured it was a done deal. then the leading striker of the team marched up to the ball and placed it for the kick.
asamoah gyan positioned himself for the kick and before he kicked the ball he appeared to have slipped or lost his footing because he simply tapped the ball for mweene in goal for the chipolopo of zambia to parry away to corner.
all hell broke loose, this same dude had wasted a penalty kick during the world cup in south africa. so folks were wondering whether he hadn't learnt his lessons.... however the thing about the kick is that even the greatest players in the world lose penalty kicks. so ma beef isnt with asamoah, with the benefit of hindsight.
ma beef is with the entire gfa.....thing is why did we take a crop of unfit players to the tournament when we could have taken a better selection of players there.
i call for an urgent self examination by the gfa to ascertain the wisdom in the decisions made prior to the tourney. the future of our soccer should be the focus of the administration so that ultimately our soccer can reach the pedestal it deserves.
woyome....at least the dude is out on mail and all we can do is wait and see how the case plays out. for now i rest ma fingers