Singer-songwriter, Efya, has named Anabel Rose, Haeven, Lali x Lola, Amaarae, Moliy, Baaba J, Ria Boss, Sefa, Cina Soul, Gyakie as some of the “vibrant” female artistes Ghana can boast of currently.
She excitedly spoke about how amazing these acts were and how some of them were causing a splash around the world with their music.
She bemoaned the lack of concerted effort to project female talent in the creative arts industry and suggested an unconventional way to achieve the desired results.
“When was the last time all radio stations chose a day and played Ghanaian female music?” the music star asked rhetorically.
“I’m just saying let’s pay more attention to the females,” she reacted when she was told this was not the norm anywhere in the world.
“The girls are doing stuff, and you guys need to pay attention to that. You guys are always asking, ‘Where are the girls?’ Are you paying attention to the girls?”
Efya
The ‘Best In Me’ singer observed that the Telecel Ghana Music Awards (TGMAs) 2025 edition does not have many female acts contesting “because you guys are not streaming the females’ music”.
She lamented “their streams are not coming from here,” observing that generally Ghanaians seemed disinterested in digital streaming platforms, especially those with high fee gates like Apple Music and Spotify. Thus, she encouraged music lovers to check out free-to-stream platforms like Audiomack.
The celebrated music performer vehemently opposed the opinion that female acts were not helpful to each other. “If you say that, then you mean somebody helped me,” she added.
The host pushed his point, citing how Sarkodie, Stonebwoy, and others had introduced singers into the industry who had risen to stardom. “It’s not the same,” the singer protested, explaining, “The boys have an advantage for signing artists because they’re financially stable.”
For parity, she advocated the urgent need for a “structured, set-up situation where it is financially and creatively everything is good”.
She stressed she was heavily dedicated to the welfare of female musicians for which reason “I do spread my knowledge, I do the seminars, I do the things, I do all of that”.
The singer said she was grateful to all music acts who named her as their mother and inspiration.
“I’m so grateful because I also took inspiration from [other] people, and I’m sure they’d be proud of me that I’d become that [influential] person. I live to inspire. I think it’s great that people get inspired by me, and I think it’s a crown I’ll have on my head forever – and I take the crown with pride.”
Efya
Efya on Generosity Towards Their Fans
The music star challenged the notion that Ghanaian artists are not generous towards their fans.
“Is that so? I often do giveaways on Twitter [X],” she said.
She emphasised she was in the habit of giving out money to random people on social media, noting it was common with other Ghanaian acts, too.
She declined to reveal the biggest gift she had ever given to a fan. “I can’t say it because it was private,” she explained. However, she noted, “I’ve randomly paid school fees and stuff like that, but most of the time, I don’t talk about it.”
The conversation was occasioned by Nigerian singer Davido offering Ghanaian TikTok and music star Ananzoo US$5,000 for doing a video showing him dancing to the singer’s With You featuring compatriot Omah Lay.
The ‘One of Your Own’ hitmaker said, “Not everyone can give away that amount of money,” underlining Nigerian artistes were financially superior compared to their Ghanaian counterparts.
“I’m sure if the money were available in abundance, we would give it away in that proportion. However, we don’t have that kind of money to give out.”
Efya
She granted Ghanaian acts rubbed shoulders with their Nigerian mates.
“But I don’t think financially it’s the same. I don’t mind admitting that. It’s no problem. We don’t get paid the same way they get paid because they are playing bigger shows, which is why we need to support each other more so we can get on bigger platforms to be able to be collecting enough money so we can be dashing our fans 5,000, 5,000, 5,000 dollars.”
Efya
Furthermore, the singer observed the impact and significance of the internet.
“Everything is at our fingertips because of the internet. You just have to use it the right way. The sudden and unexpected blessing the internet had brought to content creator Ananzoo.”
Efya
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