The ‘Azonto’ dance and music went viral globally within the first few months of its introduction. It has influenced a new Ghanaian rhythm and has been performed on various world stages by both Ghanaians and other nationals.
‘Azonto’ is seen by many as one of Ghana’s biggest cultural exports of the past decade but is the trend sustainable? Is the music that accompanies the dance form realistically marketable worldwide? Can ‘Azonto’ outlive the current generation of music lovers?
Celebrated Ghanaian music producer and winner of the Sound Engineer of the Year award, Kaywa, says ‘Azonto’ needs some fine-tuning to make it more appealing.
In an interview with Kojo Akoto Boateng on Kumasi-based Ultimate Radio, Kaywa alluded to the fact that ‘Azonto’ pushed the brand of Ghana internationally. However, he contends that the ‘Azonto’ beat should metamorphose into something richer than it is now.
“Now I see a lot of great changes but we can’t continue to produce Azonto beats the way it is done now. The best we can do now is to take it deeper. When you listen to Afro pop beats they are entirely different from ‘Azonto’ beats,” he said.
“Azonto is having your kicks, snares, something small to work around with but Afro pop goes to another extent by adding techno elements and other music forms to make it better and more appealing,” he pointed out According to Kaywa, even though ‘Azonto’ is Ghanaian, Nigerian musicians have picked it up and improved it and are making better waves internationally.
He said that industry players in Ghana should all make a conscious effort to fine tune ‘Azonto’ to make it more commercially viable globally.
According to Kaywa, he will never go off track in delivering quality productions for music lovers. “I will never do what everybody is doing. If you check my productions from last year to this time, I’ve been doing what I can do best. Expect good tunes and great sound quality from me,” he added.
