Owing to the song’s status as a tapestry of the uniquely beautiful and evolving nature of Kofi Kinaata’s relationship with his mother, the video for “Auntie Ama,” one of the songs on Kofi Kinaata’s “Kofi oo Kofi” EP, was expected to be an audio-visual representation of the extent to which Auntie Ama went to instill moral and religious principles in her son, and the video did not disappoint.
The video for “Auntie Ama,” which was released earlier this week, threads the same theme as the song, portraying Kofi Kinaata as a troublesome child who was sometimes misunderstood, and his mother as a microcosm of the traditional Ghanaian mother who would not spare the rod and allow her child to fall prey to the vices of society.
The setting of the video highlights the impoverished nature of Effiakuma, giving viewers a foray into the socio-economic struggles Kofi Kinaata and other children in the area have to navigate in order to cross to the other side of life where there is wealth and happiness.
A noteworthy part of the video is the “video game” store where Kofi Kinaata’s highly-trumpeted talent as a ‘gamer’ was groomed.
The video then explores other elements of the song, showcasing key aspects of Kinaata’s childhood, including his troublesomeness, cunningness to outwit the disciplinary barriers set by his mother and father, and the ‘reward’ for his stubbornness, which includes lashes from his parents.
The African musical instruments used in the song are played in the video by older women, presumably of Auntie Ama’s age, which is an indication of Kinaata’s belief in the power and ability of femininity to serve as a storehouse of Ghanaian values, tradition, and customs.
EK
