Afrobeats singer, Olivetheboy, known for his megahit “Goodsin”, has spoken about losing the Best New Artiste trophy to King Paluta for the 2024 Telecel Ghana Music Awards (TGMAs).
Olivetheboy revealed his reaction to the announcement on the awards night.
“I felt okay. I was not really moved. Above numbers, record labels, and places performed at the Ghana Music Awards team have their own marking scheme to decide winners. There is the voting also.”
Olivetheboy
He commended the 2024 Best New Artiste, intimating he deserved it per the award scheme’s rating, and ultimately, it was all for Ghana’s good.
“King Paluta is a dope artiste, also projecting Ghana like I’m trying to. ‘Aseda’ is my favourite song actually.”
Olivetheboy
He stated he gave Paluta heartfelt applause at the Accra International Conference Centre (AICC) when he was declared the winner over him.
Furthermore, Olivetheboy explained his calm posture, stating, “We have to support each other. No hard feelings.”
He asserted that, given his work and hits, he is now well beyond the new artiste tag. Thus, he is not looking forward to appearing in the category in the future.
“Since January, I ceased being a new artiste. The award has been given. I’m cool.”
Olivetheboy
The “Asylum” hitmaker voiced his displeasure with how artistes and patrons were received into the venue for the 2024 TGMAs.
“The entry. I’m not sure I’m the only one that suffered it, you know. It was crowded while artistes were approaching. Also, some of the people who were to formerly receive us into the venue were talking rudely.”
Olivetheboy
The Bu Vision Music star also revealed his Best Afrobeats Song of the Year plaque for megahit Goodsin was taken backstage and he doesn’t know when they’ll return unless he asks. “They had us take pictures and they collected their thing,” he said.
Organized by Charterhouse, the Telecel Ghana Music Awards started on Saturday, June 1, ending on Sunday, June 2, 2024, at the Accra International Conference Centre’s (AICC) Grand Arena.
Artist Dropped Out of KNUST to Pursue Music
Olivetheboy, born Joel Ofori Bonsu, revealed his highest level of education was received at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science & Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, Ashanti region.
However, he confessed that he didn’t complete his Tertiary education.
“I was studying Metallurgical Engineering but I deferred it.”
Olivetheboy
He chuckled when he was complimented for his intelligence allegedly evidenced by his being an engineering and science student.
“I went to OWASS (Opoku Ware Secondary School) where I studied General Science,” he noted.
Olivetheboy stated that in the beginning, it was unpleasant for his parents when he dropped out of school to do music.
“I released my first EP in 2021, that was when I was in school, after senior high school. They were expecting me to be in school but I was in the studios. I didn’t even tell them, the next thing they heard, I had released it. It came with a lot of threats. They wanted to arrest me, my own mom.
“They wanted to frighten me but like I said, it was not pleasant at the beginning. It was after a while we went to talk to them trying to convince them. Right now, she’s a proud mom. I’m the firstborn so you can imagine, it was hard for them.”
Olivetheboy
Revealing his mother is in her 40’s, he noted she came with his father and siblings, “two girls,” to the 2024 Telecel Ghana Music Awards (TGMAs) where he was honored as the artiste with the Best Afrobeats Song of the Year (Goodsin).
He joked how, as a boy, he dreamed of being a pilot, then a doctor, and a musician. Returning to his family, he noted his mother is a singer.
“When I was a child, I would listen to her music. She recorded music with my father but they were not able to release it. Yeah, they had songs together and because of this, I got to know about songwriting very early.
“And so when I wrote my first verse, I was small. There were times I would go back to writing but it was not a thing for me until I went to SHS, and I started writing from there. That is when I fell in love with writing and everything.”
Olivetheboy
Olivetheboy stated his first professional songs were cut at the studio of Beats Vampire. “It was my EP [Avana],” the ‘Asylum’ hitmaker explained.
READ ALSO: Ghanaian Businesses Grappling with the ‘2Is and 1F’