Becca’s Time To Shine

A few years ago, a beautiful young songstress emerged on the music scene. Even though she had a lot of promise, many doubted her ability to survive and become an industry great, on account of the fact that this is an industry where musicians’ turnover is quite high.

Today, Rebecca Akosua Acheampong, alias Becca, has confounded all the naysayers, and is on her way to becoming an industry great. Instructively, she is sprinkling gold dust on the music circuit with her unique brand of music.

If people thought her first album ‘Sugar’ which was an instant hit was a mere fluke, her superb consistent stage performances which were so catching, and highly entertaining, swiftly dispelled those erroneous impressions of her.

She is now one of the much-respected musicians around, and since the past four years when she got into the limelight, there has been no let or fail. She has acquitted herself very well.

Now Becca is a household name -- in fact she has transcended into a strong brand. She has won awards, and beyond the awards she is on course to achieving international acclaim. She has just received five nominations in the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards, scheduled for April 14.

This week, B&FT Weekend had a conversation with her at the studio where she is putting finishing touches to a new album due to be released onto the market this month.

The yet-to-be released album features some renowned international and local artistes with a lot of pedigree. Talk of Nigeria’s 2Face Idibia and MI, Ghana’s Samini, King Ayisoba, and Trigmatic, who all sang alongside her in some of the beautiful tunes.

“We haven’t yet found a title for the album but it is likely to be called ‘It’s my time to shine’. I personally prefer this title because it basically talks about my life. I believe that I have matured, and I am still maturing professionally. I believe that this maturity is reflected in this album.”

Becca is good at attracting high-profile international artistes, and it appears to be her forte. In her maiden album, she collaborated with highly-celebrated South African musical legend, Hugh Masekela, on the track ‘I love you’. Hugh also gave her direction on other tracks.

Talking about her new album, she said: “In fact, we recorded 30 songs but the album will only have14 tracks with two remixes. They are all wonderful songs which convey very unique messages and feelings.”

“As musician before l come out with a particular music l visualise it and l also look at its feel and decide on who is best suited to feature on the album. I enjoyed working with 2Face because he suited the part very well.”

But beyond that she also speaks for all women. She is of the firm opinion that women need to be celebrated more than ever before. And she wants to shape people’s thinking into celebrating the good contributions of women in society and the world at large, which often times go unnoticed.

This conviction of hers also finds expression in her popular song, ‘I am a woman’, and that song also happens to be her most favourite. “I love that song. I never get tired of listening to it or singing it. I get inspired by it.”

Besides being busy plying her trade as a musician, she finds time to listen to the works of fellow artistes. “I listen to Efya a lot because her music is good, and l enjoy Trigmatic, too. His lyrics are very inspiring and make a lot of sense.”

She is a humorous person with a sharp wit. She is an engaging conversationalist. She could make you laugh with her very interesting anecdotes. For instance, to a question on where she would be in the next five years, she blurted out jokingly, “I will be married with kids”.

But after breaking into laughter herself, she gave a more appropriate answer. “I want people to know me all over the world. I want to go as far as l can so that l can also help people who want to take to music.”

Truth of the matter is that this pretty soulful songstress has what it takes to knock on the doors of fame and fortune. She is one musician who understands and appreciates the dynamics of the music industry, and the key success factors. Her musical disposition is without question.

She is acutely aware that it takes more than mere talent to get to the top. Ably supported by her manager Kiki Banson, the Becca brand is charting a strategic path that would not only ensure that she is singing well, but also that her whole enterprise is self-sustaining, business wise.

An old student of Wesley Girls High School in Cape Coast and Croydon College in London, where she attained her certificate in Child Care and Education, Becca is currently pursuing a course in Project Management and Operations at GIMPA.

One cannot write Becca’s success story without underscoring the role of her manager, Mr. Banson. Professionally, they are a unique pair they complement each other in several ways. They are a perfect fit for each other. An elder brother-little sister kind of relationship which ensures that one has the other’s back.

“As an artiste, I thank God for the favour and grace He has bestowed on me. I am grateful for the strong technical work and production, and the good people around me who always put me in check so l always fall in line.” Like gold ore, Becca is still going through the refinery process, and she is surely destined for greatness. Her potential is inestimable.