Yes another year has come and gone and as we close the chapter on 2011, I bring you highlights of the year. Without a doubt, the biggest highlight of 2011 was the dance craze known as Azonto that had everyone taking notice, from the church to the streets and into the nightclubs. The phenomenon did not only merit and entry into Wikipedia but also had stars like Amber Rose doing it or at least trying it. Sarkodie, one of the artists that helped in making the dance very popular, was also seen showing some top UK acts such as Chipmunk and Wretch 32 how to do the azonto.

Still on Sarkodie, 2011 was the year that the rapper proved his staying power, returning after his award-winning hit 2009 debut album. With his song, ‘You Go Kill Me’ featuring E.L being one of the biggest hits of the year, he followed it with one of the biggest love songs of the year, ‘I’m in Love with U’ featuring Efya to show Ghanaians that indeed he is a versatile rapper. Versatility or not, it seems Ghanaians have accepted Sarkodie and anything he touches becomes a hit. No wonder, when he decided to launch his second album, ‘Rapperholic’ on Christmas day with a music concert at The Dome, it was sold out!

2011 was generally a good year for the Tema rappers and among some of the biggest acts of the year were Stay Jay, Dr Cryme, Keche, and R2bees. Other acts that had a good year were VIP, who won the Ghana Music Award for Artist of the Year; Castro, who was everywhere and on every song; and 4×4 among others. It was also a good year for rapper and producer E.L as he made his biggest impact on the music scene yet! Although he may not have had a huge hit as a solo artist in the year, he produced some of the most loved azonto songs of the year. Singer, Raquel also had a good year and Efya continued to share his vocal genius with the rest of us. On the highlife front, my favourite song was ‘2 Sure’ by Quabena Benji featuring Guru and Kofi B but for some strange reasons, the rest of Ghana didn’t see much of him and his song. Appietus also managed to produce a song for Ofori Amponsah that may bubble into 2012 and mark a comeback for the singer.

Among the big headlines of the year was the rape allegation against rapper, Asem which many believe resulted in his exit from Lynx Entertainment label. He came back with the ‘Last Song’ to wrap up on events in 2011 just like he did with ‘2010 Fyla’ in the previous year but it didn’t have the impact that he expected. Who can forget the news about Mzbel slapping a police officer and spending some time in the cells? What about when she was taken to court and her case had to be adjourned due to a missing docket? Hmm, I have started watching my wits around her since these incidents. How about the nude pictures of rapper Tiffany that leaked following a failed blackmail attempt by some Nigerians? 2011 was surely eventful.

Also in the news were the never-ending reports about Yvonne Nelson, Ekow Smith Asante and Kofi Adjorlolo’s ban from acting, and yes only in Ghana! CEO of Aphrodisiac Nightclub, Confidence Haugen represented Ghana in the Big Brother Amplified reality TV series produced by M-net. She was joined by an unknown Alex Biney, who is now seen at most events holding his own bottle of alcohol and a glass in hand – is that the new swag? Miss Ghana 2010, Stephanie Karikari won Beauty with a Purpose at Miss World, following widespread disapprovals over her crowing as Miss Ghana. Will Miss Malaika 2011, Geraldine Partington have a similar opportunity to prove those who think she didn’t deserve her crown (including me) wrong? Let’s wait and see how she tackles the projects she has chosen to work on, with her beauty.

2011 also saw an end to the 11 year old relationship between the Ghana Music Awards and Telecom Company MTN as the title sponsor for the event, as rivals Vodafone took over the sponsorship for the awards. Analysts are waiting to see how this development would impact on the next award ceremony in 2012. Still on Vodafone, the telecom giants launched the Icons: Divas Edition reality TV series to find Ghana’s biggest girl group. RnM emerged winners and even before their journey into becoming a girl group could take off, there is news that group leader, Denise has left the group. Though, no official communication has been made to that effect, RnM has been performing as a duo and not a trio in recent times.

In event news, 2011 saw several good shows with a few misses here and there. Fellow entertainment critic Francis Doku organized the Most Popular Entertainer of Ghana (MPEG) to award personalities who have distinguished themselves in the field of sports, music, film, radio, TV, comedy and stage. The likes of Agya Koo, Asamoah Gyan, Funny Face and others were honoured; and the public voted for Asamoah Gyan as the Entertainer of the Year. Some of my most memorable events include Famous 5, Ghana Meets Naija, and Legends and Legacy Ball – which did not only see several artist singing Daddy Lumba songs to honour him, but also saw former presidents Rawlings and Kufuor dancing with Nana Konadu Agyamang Rawlings. After three versions of the 4syte Music Video Awards, I am yet to be impressed with the awards. This year’s event was one of my least favourite events of the year!

In movie news we saw Ghana’s first two-cast movie in ‘Why Wed?’, and Shirley Frimpong-Manso launched her 10-Chapter movie series, ‘Adams’ Apples’. ‘Destiny of Lesser Animals’ also showed for a brief period in Ghana and I liked what I saw. But my favourite movie was ‘Ties That Bind’ and judging by the random response I received from the grand premiere recently; my previous review of the movie was quite accurate. If you saw the movie, then perhaps you would understand why it swept the 2011 Ghana Movie Awards with 9 nods including a Best Actress in a Leading Role for Hollywood sweetheart, Kimberly Elise. ‘Ties That Bind’ star, Ama K may have not been nominated in the Ghana Movie Awards lead actress category but 2011 was good for her as she won the African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) for Best Actress, and the Zimbabwe International Film Festival Best Actress for her role in ‘Sinking Sands’. And who would forget the never-ending noise about the four actresses sharing one Ghana Movie Award car prize?

2011 also saw several international acts performing in Ghana including, Fabolous, Red Café, Mario, Trey Songz, Busy Signal, Kiprich and T-Pain. Based on the quality of production, my favourite was T-Pain because he had a good act and the sound was superior on the night. Dancehall star, Mavado was also in Ghana but the concert may not be remembered for his performances but the marijuana that filled the Accra Sports Stadium on the night. Amber Rose hosting Vodafone’s 020 Live concert featuring Trey Songz and DBanj surely put some spotlight on Ghana as many couldn’t understand why the former video vixen was chosen to host the concert. My interview with Amber Rose, in which she explained why she didn’t share pictures of the beauty of Ghana but rather pictures of some poor people she visited, also gained international attention (you should see me grinning right now).

Christmas as usual was busy with several activities and in the mist of the excitement, the celebs caught the ‘charity bug’ as those who didn’t do any charity earlier in the year joined in giving back to the society and the needy. During the Christmas season, Jackie Appiah made donations to a rehab for drug and alcohol addicts; Joselyn Dumas made donations to the Korle Bu Hospital; and Confidence Haugen made donations to 4 separate hospitals and children homes. Earlier in the year, John Dumelo also donated to the Wa Basic School on his birthday, promising to build for the School 5 Classrooms estimated at $40,000.

The stars caught more than the ‘charity bug’, they also caught the ‘entrepreneurial bug’ and most of the time it was fashion inclined. Big Brother Africa star turned singer, Mimi launched her Divalish Fashion line, actor Prince David Osei launched his clothing line, and John Dumelo launched his jewelry and hair line, J,Melo.

2011 also saw some sad news as we lost the likes of playwright, Efo Kodjo Mawugbe and actor Gilbert Karikari of the ‘Kejetia’ TV series. But all in all, 2011 was a good year for entertainment in Ghana. Let’s meet same time next year and count down the fun, excitement and misses. Happy New Year and a prosperous 2011 to you all!

Jaded Renegade Awards

Actor of the year – Adjetey Annang (Adams Apples)

Actress of the year – Ebbe Bassey (Ties That Bind)

Movie of the Year- Ties That Bind

Artist of the Year – Sarkodie

Song of the Year – You Go Kill Me, (Sarkodie)

Entertainment TV Show of the Year – Allo Tigo

Event of the Year – Ghana Meets Naija

Flop of the year – 4syte Music Video Awards

Breakthrough of the year – Dr Cryme

Most Stylish personality of the year – Joselyn Dumas

Most entertaining personality of the year – Funny Face

Most Entertaining TV Station of the year – eTV Ghanahttp://www.ameyawdebrah.com/