Kweku Slams Artistes’ Managers

RISING MUSIC icon Kweku Hagan Arthur, known among his pals as Bra Qwequ, has taken a swipe at some artistes’ managers in Ghana.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with NEWS-ONE, Kweku seems to suggest that most artistes’ manager are unserious and don’t even know what their roles as artistes’ managers are.

“I believe Ghanaian managers should manage themselves before they even think about managing any artiste,” he openly bluffed.

His quandary with managers is that most of them do not understand their job and are only interested in following artistes who have already made their names.

“What gets me angry is the fact that they will wait for an upcoming artiste to struggle for a very long time.

After the person makes a hit then, they will now come chasing you to manage you. And then if they get hold of you, they don’t even manage your affairs very well.

They pick you and expect that your songs will automatically do well.” This attitude, he encouraged, must stop.

All who are keen observers of Ghana’s music industry will definitely not find it hard to know who Kweku is.

Indeed, he is not a new face on Ghana’s music scene, even though his music may be. He has been around for some time now and has performed on a number of big shows as a backup artiste for Kwaw Kese.

They jointly performed on shows such as Joy Fm’s Night With the Stars, Old Skuul Reunion, among others. At the moment, he is working towards making his dream of being a solo artiste a reality.

His maiden album is set to hit the market by the end of this year, under Bola Ray’s Empire Entertainment Record Label. The 10-track album is titled ‘Back 2 Hip Hop.’

“If you listen to Obrafour, Reggie Rockstone or VIP those days, you can feel the hip hop rhythm in their music. Recently, songs on our airwaves are just organized noise.

I believe, if we focus on what Reggie and co did in the past, it will do us some good. I think we should appreciate their hard work,” he explained the title of his album to NEWS-ONE.

His music talent, he said, is a call and not just a talent. “I can’t stop music,” he confessed.

Songs on the new album include ‘Your Time Go Come’, ‘Oheema Kor’, ‘Megiwu Gir’l, ‘Obra’, ‘Tsuawunasi,’ and few others. Most of them were sung in Twi.

Kweku traced his music talent back to the days he enrolled at the Adisadel College where he had his secondary school education.

His classmates didn’t take him serious because he liked rapping aside learning. But that did not frustrate his dreams of fulfilling the music side of him.

At school, he rapped during entertainment programmes and funfairs and gained prominence on campus. He formed a group called Supreme Chambers in form-one. Aside the group, he went on to do his solo track.

While in form 3, he and his group picked four different awards including categories as Best Group, Best Stage Performers, and Best Song, during one of the school’s entertainment programme.

“Music to me is a dream come true, looking at where I am come from. I used to be in a group with Ayigbe Edem and we recorded some tracks for 2131 studios.

But he called me later that he has gotten a deal with Last Two so he left. Later, Kwaw Kesse’s manager called me to come and back Kwaw. Recently, I met Empire Entertainment and they are interested in my album. They believe in me and agreed to work with me.”

Kweku is grateful to Bola Ray, the CEO of Empire Entertainment, for accepting to produce his music.

Born and bred in Accra, Kweku hails from the Mankessim in the Central Region of Ghana. He started school from Datus Primary at Dansoman and St. Francis’ Preparatory School at Teshie Nungua Estate before enrolling at Adisco.