'Who says I'm dead?' - Lord Kenya

Ghana's rap heavyweight champion, Lord Kenya, has described as "irresponsible," the story carried by an Accra newspaper that he had died from drowning.

"Me, dead?" The Graphic Showbiz reports the musician as telling its reporter by phone on Wednesday from his Kumasi home. "Why should anyone tell such a lie?" he asked.

Lord Kenya was reacting to the story, which named another fellow who goes by a similar name as the musician. That fellow was reported to have drowned.

"I don't think there are 20 people in Ghana today who know this supposed Lord Kenya. So if you write it boldly in a newspaper that Lord Kenya is dead, I can subscribe only one motive - the editor wanted to sell his paper badly," he said.

Lord Kenya told Showbiz that although the story did not refer to him, he has suffered unnecessary harassment since the publication last Monday. He said he has continuously been receiving calls by concerned individuals and even his father has had his share of condolence calls.

"For a moment, I thought I was really dead," he said. "I thought I was in a different world, you know, like I was dreaming that I was alive when I was really dead."

Lord Kenya said that the timing of the publication was most vexing as it came right in the middle of his preparations towards an 18-states tour of the United States, beginning September 10. Also it came at a time when he is getting ready to perform the outdooring ceremony for his one-month old son, Laud Kenya.