The Hiplife artiste speaks about her break into Africa’s major league entertainment

It’s the year 2000 and everybody has slipped out of the millennium bug scare with much relief. The capital is bubbling with election fever and tensions are paper-thin. Somewhere in the Dansoman SSNIT flats Dorcas Opoku Darkwa aka Abrewa Nana is taking a break from her recording session to enjoy a plantain meal. DKB Studios was one of the hit factories holding down the music in the capital then and Yaw ‘Deep’ Anoff, one of the go-to producers at that time was working the console for a remix of one of Abrewa’s songs ‘Odo Filla’. The song didn’t make the album in the end -- her production execs couldn’t relate to that kind of experimental piece. That was a growing-up period for Nana. Her mainstream success wasn’t over-the-top but her name sure got around alright.

That was six years ago- when Hiplife was still budding and the underground music scene hadn’t totally disappeared.

When JIVE broke the story about her role in the ‘Idols Africa’ show, the immediate reaction went from shock to trash-talking to admiration. Some people have still not gotten over it and really, she hasn’t. After tracking her throughout the whole day she finally got into character and drove down to meet for an interview. She struts into the office decked out in a navy blue jacket over a white outfit -- her ginger-haired friend tagging along as they made their way into the office. Her eyes still held a lot of excitement and her body language was no different. This is the break every artist looks for throughout their careers and hers did not even occur as a direct result of her music being out there. So, in a way you say it was luck. But what’s luck anyway?

“I auditioned for the part at Multichoice Ghana together with Sammi B, Panji and others”, she reveals. “Honestly I didn’t think I was going to get the job. The interviews were sent to South Africa and I later found out I had been selected. I was just shocked but I guess it felt good too, knowing that this was really major league stuff. I guess the people behind the show found what they were looking for in me so…”

Her part is as major as it can get, and that includes the real super star perks the project comes with. Abrewa now knows what it feels like to lounge in a five star hotel with attendants at her beck and call. Plus, she now has a fair idea of how cross over music works in Nigeria. The advantage, she says, has to do with flipping the language in pidgin and probably you might hear some Hip-Hop. For now, she’s just concentrating on the job at hand. “The show it self will take place at this place called ‘Planet 1’ in Lagos. I’m supposed to be the nicest person on the panel but I’m going to be myself.”

Abrewa Nana might not be able to tell when her next album will appear on the shelves but she says she just might experiment with Nigerian movies if it comes her way. “I was recording when this happened so the album is on hold at the moment but I’m really excited about this,” she says.

Word has it that the ‘Idols’ judges will be making $10,000 per appearance. If this is true, then Abrewa might be well on her way to becoming just about the only real Hiplife superstar -- that’s if you take out Reggie Rockstone. Abrewa Nana had a rather cocky rebuttal for haters trying to knock her hustle.

“Whether you like it or not I’m up here now and I’m not stopping,” she said.