Obrafour accepting the Song Writer of the Year Award

Saturday, 13th March 2004 will for a very long time to come be the blackest night in the 9-year performing life of hip-life?s most revered act, Obrafour. And Ghanamusic.com predicted this coming in our preview [Who Wins, Who Loses, Plus Who?d Be Shocked At GMA 2004- March 10].

In 2001 he was nominated in five different categories but managed just one substantial award; and at GMA 2004 having harboured the hopes of grabbing more honours on his six nominations, Obrafour yet again, run home with only one, and earlier than he had expected. He won the more than obvious Songwriter Of The Year with his lyrically-disciplined ?Ntetiepa? song. Then by inexplicable reasons, his well-rehearsed and richly choreographed 20-minute performance lasted barely 3-minutes on the night when disaster stroke. His traditional and comtemporary dancers were well ready for action after Obrafour had barely emerged from the larger-than-life pot, which hauled him to the stage.

He had performed just some bits of ?Ntetiepa? when the microphone went completely dead. None of the two microphones on the stage could transmit any sound, whatsoever, to the audience. Then Obrafour started suspecting something else- a foul play, probably. He had to leave the stage with partner-in-rhyme Tinny without performing and totally embarrased. Later at the backage there was serious war of words between his Execution Entertainment boys and the show managers. But the organisers would be cleared later when almost all the acts that followed had to talk or perform a moment or the other with a distorting microphone sound.

Obrafour had to leave for home immiediately without informing the organisers, by then he had already received his only award and if he was to believe that the major hitch ealier on had a foul play to it, then, he wasn?t expecting any more awards. True to his expectation, none came till the end of the show, surprisingly to most of the audience, though.

Speaking of bad sound, two-nominee-no-award Princess Cynthia wasn?t sure of the microphone, she made some comments (on the mic) that everyone in the audience was so sure that they were not meant for them. Her very classy and traditional act wasn?t at all helped by the microphone. I personally think that this sound thing was a genuine problem considering that it happened more than twice with same organizers when they put up the Shaggy Concerts early this year.

But if I were seeing South Africa music superstar Brenda Fassie (live or on multimedia products) for the very first time at GMA 2004, I wouldn?t have believed the hype about the Queen of Kwaito. From far way South Africa, do you know how many tracks Brenda came to do in Ghana? Just two. In fact she did one of the shortest performances of the night. As if to say she was warned about the event?s time constraints when the organisers realised that the show hadn?t travelled even half way but they had but few minutes to end it. And one could easily measure how much the audience had been expecting more of her frenetic dance skills. She threw a couple dance skills that met wonderful cheers, though, but she went off the stage just about when I thought she had begun the real show.

One other bad thing I observed about this year?s edition of GMA was that just a handful of the nominees actually showed up at the show. This was clearly seen when the stretch limousines that brought them from the Novotel Hotel where they had gathered earlier on in the night, came almost empty. One musician later told me that they already knew the trend of the GMA and that they were sure that just a few artistes were going to sweep most of the awards.

Finally, I think that the very appropraite theme for this year?s GMA, that?s ?Ghanaian Musicians Against HIV/AIDs? was almost rediculed. No musician really prepared himself or herself for a hearty message to the show, which was patronised by some of the biggest celebrities and political figures of our time. Most of the musicians even forgot to talk about the theme even though they had been informed long before about the theme and the need for them to give a short speech about it.

All in all, the Charterhouse organised Ghana Music Awards have come to stay and can comfortably be dubbed the hottest show on the entertainment calendar now. Western Union Money Transfer, Gulder and Spacefon are the three main local companies that have been with the show as sponsors since it?s inception in 2000. KPMG has been in charge of the event statistics. Ghana Music.Com was proud to be associated with the Ghana Music Awards 2004.