Connect with us

Entertainment

Lack Of Stakeholder Interest Will Collapse Comedy Industry – OB Amponsah

Published

on

Popular comedian, OB Amponsah is warning of the possible collapse of Ghana’s comedy industry if the sector is deprived of the requisite support from various stakeholders.

In a long post on Facebook yesterday, September 1, the headline artiste of “Popular But Broke” noted that despite the industry boasting of exceptional talent, it is still struggling to find its feet.

Giving followers a better picture of his claims, OB disclosed prominent comedians like himself and Lekzy Decomic still struggle, and in most cases, don’t even get sponsors to support their shows even though they have a good record of filling auditoriums such as the National Theatre.

“Also, the standup comedy industry in Ghana is a struggling one. Severely lacking funding even with exceptional talents that can sell anywhere. Let me paint a picture of the industry now.

“We have a registered association now Gh Comedians Network. We have tried our best to establish a running comedy club every Thursday at 2927 pub. We have tried tertiary school tours (ValleyView University and HTU). Almost every one of these young comedians have their individual comedy specials. Our efforts spill over to other countries and so we are invited to perform at shows in Rwanda, Zambia, Botswana, South Africa, Swaziland, Nigeria. Bro, we even have a full 20 minute feature on CNN about comedy in Ghana. Look at how many comedy shows have happened from January to September.

“The beautiful picture painted above, will collapse in no time mainly because of severe lack in funding and lack of stakeholders interest. Me and Lekzy can hardly get sponsorship for upcoming shows even after doing a number of shows at the National theater. Because we do not seem to have the skit attracting or bortoss attracting numbers on our socials, we lose out on brand sponsorship and ambassadorial deals, but you all know we are working.

“We do not take for granted any support we have received so far. But there is a pressing need. The standup comedy industry is standing on wobbly legs. Don’t be surprised when it comes crumbling down. Our strength can only reach that far. And when you lose out on a show, because you couldn’t secure a visa, you can only smile and bide your time,” he stated.

OB’s post was a follow-up to a previous one, expressing his disappointment over he and colleague, Lekzy’s inability to honour an invitation to perform at Bloemfontein International Comedy Festival because they couldn’t get their visas.

However, in a post he later shared on his social media pages, OB expressed his gratitude to people who came to his after sharing his predicament.

He, however, disclosed that they couldn’t make it to the Bloemfontein International Comedy Festival, which started in South Africa today since they had their visas late yesterday.

“Thanks to everyone who helped make enquiries and try pull strings on our behalf yesterday. The visa confirmation came late yesterday evening by which time it was a bit too late to process anything; the organiser had found replacements.

“I believe moving forward, there should be (if not national), an industry conversation about visa acquisition especially within Africa. It is sad to lose out on opportunities like these within your own continent. Whoever is in charge should at least accept the 90 days visa waiver SA is offering us,” he stated.

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Entertainment

Peter Okoye reacts to alleged song ownership by twin brother

Published

on

Iconic Nigerian singer Peter Okoye has responded to allegations made by his twin brother Paul over ownership of a new song “Winning.”

Peter Okoye shared a detailed account of the song’s creation, clarifying his role and collaboration with others, including Ghanaian producer Vampire and songwriter Calypso.

He questioned Paul’s claims, citing their agreed-upon creative process and Paul’s removal of his (Peter’s) vocals from joint songs.

Peter also addressed his temporary break from music, stating he took time to recharge before returning with “Winning.”

He wrote on X: “If you have followed my journey as a solo artiste and even before, you will notice that I give people their due credit where necessary as I am a firm believer in teamwork; I know my strengths, where I need assistance or guidance I am not afraid to ask or work with those who are strong in the areas I am not; this includes the process of creating music, executing concepts and ideas etc. I will always credit people for their contributions to my projects.

“Sometime in June 2022, I stumbled upon a producer based in Ghana named Vampire, and my team and I also personally reached out to him via DM, that I liked his work and was interested in working with him. Before getting him to Lagos, I presented the idea of this producer to my twin brother and our team, getting their buy-in before I got him flight tickets and flew him to Lagos.“

It was when he got into Lagos I asked if he would be open to working on P-SQUARE’s next album project, that the 5 songs I had penned down from my end to be presented to our A&R team for the album project were: JAIYE, WINNING, FIND SOMEBODY, LEGENDARY, and ATTENTION, based on tracks he had produced.

“We started with my own 5 songs that needed to be submitted for PSQUARE’s album, which he produced for me: The idea for WINNING came from one of his beats that I discovered. I came up with the idea of changing the chord progression from the original version to what it is today with my own producer Goldswarm who is the co-producer of the song WINNING.

“I had also engaged a songwriter known as CALYPSO who wrote and composed the song WINNING and sent it to me on the beats through a voice note. And we started working on the song. Mind you, he worked on some other songs that were to make the album as well, so my brother was aware of his input to the production as we were all in the studio during this period.

“Then when my twin brother heard the song WINNING, which we had already created the hook/chorus for, he then wanted to start creating a verse. Our agreed-on process for each song presented by us was: arrange the song, leave a verse for the other person, then we both harmonise the chorus and refrain bits together. He wasn’t supposed to until Calypso and I finished it as part of my own song submission to the LEGENDARY ALBUM.

“After that, we finished and shared verses among ourselves. I do not wish to get into details of why the album didn’t see the light of day till date but it takes a different level of psychosis for one to steal what is theirs already; as since the release of this song, I have been labeled and called all sorts online and they have even gone as far as asking for the song to be taken down on various platforms, to what end?

“It was never part of his 5, now 6 (according to him) songs for submission, yet when he felt I was not interested in making music because I chose my sanity over the constant berating and drama that seemed to come up over creative direction in the group.

“If it were his song, why do I have all the music data including initial conversations and picture/video evidence on the above-mentioned titles/songs? Which of his songs do I have its data in my possession in that case? All because he was hoping for me to quit music. Even when I learnt that he had removed my vocals on songs we did together, suggesting that he sing the entire songs including the ones that he planned to present for the album without my input (a very absurd idea as we both make up the duo not just the one), but we both perform them on stage, I begun to have a rethink of the entire situation. Let me leave this here.

“Maybe because I was not posting anything music-related on my social media page for over 4 months. He believes I have lost interest in music. I took a breather to get my mind and head in the right space and when that was done, my epiphany was WINNING!”.

Continue Reading

Entertainment

DNA test more important than naming ceremony- Don Jazzy

Published

on

producer and executive, Don Jazzy, has urged men to prioritise the paternity of their children, stating that it is more important than a naming ceremony.

On his Instagram story, Don Jazzy emphasised: “DNA test is more important than naming ceremony.”

His statement comes amid ongoing debates about the necessity of DNA tests, fuelled by recent high-profile cases of paternity fraud.

Don Jazzy known in real life as Michael Collins Ajereh is the founder of Mavin Records – through which he has signed artistes including D’Prince, Rema, and Ayra Starr.

Continue Reading

Entertainment

Pastor Love jailed 48 months in hard labour for stealing

Published

on

Pastor Hammond Love, widely known as Pastor Love, has been convicted of theft and sentenced to 48 months in prison with hard labour.

GBC Ghana Online reports that Pastor Love, a former husband of gospel musician Obaapa Christie, was found guilty of the offence after seven years of trial. 

Before he was sentenced, Pastor Love pleaded with the court for mercy, adding that he was willing to pay any fine that would be imposed on him. 

The court presided over by Isaac Addo, took into consideration the fact that the convicted Pastor Love was a first-time offender.

The court held that as a Pastor, he was expected to hold a high level of integrity, especially in matters of trust, and therefore handed him the 48-month jail term as a fair deterrent. 

The facts of the case as presented by ASP Frimpong was that in 2016 one Samuel Amankwah, a resident of the US, shipped a 4×4 vehicle into Ghana and tasked Pastor Love to clear it from the port. 

The convict cleared the said vehicle with his money, after which the complainant told him to sell it for US$50,000 and deduct the amount he paid as duty.

Later, the complainant told Pastor Love to hold on with the sale of the vehicle as he would travel to Ghana and refund his money. 

In April 2017, the complainant arrived in the country and contacted Pastor Love for his vehicle, but he could not produce it despite several demands. 

The complainant complained with the Police and Pastor Love was arrested in May 2017. 

During interrogation, the convicted Pastor Love told the Police that he secured a loan of GH¢40,000 with 20 per cent interest to clear the vehicle and was accruing more interest, so he sold the vehicle at GH¢80,000 without the consent of the owner and paid GH¢70,000 to the loan company.

Meanwhile, Pastor Love was unable to lead the Police to the said loan company to verify the claim and could not also tell who bought the vehicle. 

The Judge said the convict was dishonest to the Court.

Continue Reading

Trending