Renowned Ghanaian musician, Kwabena Kwabena has stated his preference for modern music distribution methods such as streaming and online sales over traditional formats like CDs and cassettes.

According to him, these contemporary methods have the potential to curb piracy and generate significant revenue for artists, unlike traditional methods.

His comments follow Gospel singer Phillipa Baafi’s call for the reintroduction of selling music on CDs and pen drives in Ghana. Baafi argued that many Ghanaians are not tech-savvy and that streaming services do not offer sufficient revenue for artists.

Kwabena Kwabena expressed his preference for modern methods but emphasized the need for proper structures to ensure musicians receive direct royalties from digital service providers (DSPs).

“We have not structured our system in such a way that the musician will have direct royalties or have the right percentage of royalties from these DSPs, especially with monetization.”
Kwabena Kwabena

He highlighted the recent monetization of Facebook as a positive step and called on the communication and tourism ministries to work towards ensuring that artists can secure the revenue they deserve.

Kwabena Kwabena pointed out that, unlike in the past when musicians relied on physical sales of cassettes and CDs, today’s artists can benefit from their music being accessed instantly on smartphones and other devices.

“I just heard recently that we’ve now monetized Facebook. So if our communication ministry or tourism ministry can work on these things, then artists will get the right revenue we are looking for.
“We can even have lots of revenue coming in if we can actually monetize all these things very well because the use of music in these times is more acceptable than the use of music back then.”
Kwabena Kwabena

However, he reminisced about the direct financial benefits artists enjoyed before their music even hit the market, with executive producers ready to invest in studio recordings.

“Those days it was direct. Even before the music would come out, if you were an established artiste, you could get all your money even before your first tape actually got to the market. People would be waiting with their money once they knew you were recording in the studio.
“Executive producers would come to the studios. Once they knew you had started recording, everyone was ready with their investment. So the highest bidder would take it. That’s how it was.”
Kwabena Kwabena

Trends Today Do Not Permit Music to be Evergreen

Social media platforms typically have specific policies regarding the use of copyrighted music due to licensing and copyright infringement concerns.

These policies are in place to protect the rights of artists, record labels, and other rights holders. As a result, social media platforms often limit the length of music clips that can be included in posts or videos.

The specific restrictions on music length vary depending on the platform. For example, platforms like Instagram and TikTok have time limits on music clips to prevent users from sharing full-length songs without proper licensing. These platforms typically provide access to a library of licensed music that users can include in their content.

Kwabena Kwabena recently shared his thoughts on the phenomenon of ‘fast music’ in Ghana’s music industry.

He attributed the trend to the increasing influence of social media and TikTok challenges.

“The trends today do not permit music to be evergreen. This is mostly due to the recent culture of social media and TikTok challenges. The moment a new challenge is on and the next one comes, the older one gets replaced quickly.”
Kwabena Kwabena

Despite his reservations, Kwabena Kwabena acknowledged that the younger generation seems to enjoy the fast-paced music culture.

“It’s entertainment at the end of the day. I have no problem with it,” he added.

However, it is important to respect copyright laws and obtain proper permissions or licenses when sharing copyrighted music. Unauthorized use of copyrighted material leads to content takedowns, copyright strikes, or legal issues.