Dancehall /Afrobeats artiste, Stonebwoy, has disclosed that his sound was inspired by where he grew up from, Ashaiman.
Stonebwoy made this revelation while speaking in a panel discussion on the topic ‘the global impact of afrobeats’. The popular artist who was one;of the panelists said that living in Ashiaman was a great influence on his sound. According to the popular artist, there is a variety of people living in Ashiaman;and that alone gave him a preview of what the world is. He, therefore, leveraged on that and created a sound he;felt people will not only jam to but also relate better to.
“I started music-based off the dancehall and reggae energy, because, that;is what I could better relate to from growing up in Ashiaman. It’s one of the ‘thugiest’ community in Ghana. The beautiful part of being in Ashiaman that inspired my music was that there was a combination of everybody. We have some of the richest people in Ghana living with us and we also have some of the poorest people there.
“Being an Ashiaman boy, you had a preview to the world because there is everything in there. So, that place influenced my sound. I just wanted to do something different and think outside of the box as a young boy. So, I combined both ragga, reggae, dancehall, and afrobeat to make my sound. It’s no wonder when I hit the stage, I was known for Afrodancehall. So, from hardcore reggae dancehall artist and I began to switch into the afrobeat from 2010”.
In recent times, several Western record labels such as Sony music have infiltrated the African music scene as they keep signing African artists. When asked what the motive of Western labels signing African artist is, Teni Adenji, who is the director of Warner music, South Africa said:
“Number one is obviously the undeniable talent and the incredible sounds that are coming from West Africa. There are also the economic indicators that entice labels to want to come back to the territories because we see that as a huge opportunity”.
Panelists discuss the importance of Burnaboy winning a Grammy
Touching on the importance of Burnaboy winning a Grammy and what it does for Afrobeats, Teni Adjeni said that it is a great deal and an indicator of how far Afrobeat music has come.
“I think it’s exciting he got that award but he still has to remember that there is still quite a long way to go. Well, I do feel like it is such an important marker but there are so much we can look at”.
Tuma Basa, who is the director of black music and culture, Youtube Music, adding his voice said it was going to break the novelty of what Afrobeat music is especially to people who have never heard of Afrobeats.
“It’s all about the exposure, the opportunities and normalization. So, it takes away the novelty of listening to an African sound. It’s just giving Afrobeats that familiarity to the world.
Stonebwoy also touching on this said that Burna Boy winning the Grammy is a boundary breaker which will help other artists to also get to that global stage.
“As much as it takes one artist to break the boundaries, I believe there will be more others who will join in taking Afrobeats far”.
Nigerian media personality, Remi Burgz in the same vein stated that Burna Boy winning a Grammy has a different significance to every generation.
“The Grammy award meant different things for different generations. So, for the older generation, they are like ‘ok another Grammy award’. For us that grew with Burna Boy, we are like wow that’s amazing for the essence of growth. Because we have watched him grow and evolve into a powerful political kind of Afrobeat artist. For the younger generation who are creating music at different sees that a Grammy is possible. So, it has a different meaning to every generation”.
