Blend past highlife rhythms with new ones – Smart Nkansah to Bisa Kdei, R2Bees

Talented guitarist cum highlife singer, Smart Nkansah has suggested that the current crop of highlife musicians should seek advice from veteran ‘highlifers’ to blend both the old and new highlife rhythms together.

Speaking to Kojo Preko Dankwa on Kasapa Entertainment on Kasapa 102.5FM, Smart revealed that Ghanaian musicians should adopt to their own style of music than to imitate Nigerians approach to music.

He urged Highlife/Hiplife, Bisa Kdei and R2Bees to stick to their style of singing highlife with a touch of old beats to make it livelier.

“Castro, Kdei, R2Bees trend of highlife is going well but if we adopt other country’s genre of music we stand to lose our highlife heritage. I’m pleading with all the young highlife singers to stop imitating the other country’s in our song.

“It was the recent award that I realised that EL was a Ghanaian, since his style of music was almost the same as the Nigerians. The young highlife musicians should seek for advice from some of the legends to incorporate the old rhythms and the modern rhythms to make good music.”

He added: “Those who spearhead Ghana music are the Engineers so if we really want to attain world market status then let’s involve them as well.”

Smart Nkansah and his Sunsum Band, formed in 1981, was a collaboration between guitarist Smart Nkansah (Sweet Talks fame) and singer Agyaaku who achieved notoriety singing with Yamoah’s Band.

Nkansah left the Sweet Talks in 1976 to form the short lived Black Hustlers Band with Agyaaku, and it is this group which eventually evolved into the Sunsum Band.