'It was a bit uncomfortable’ - Gyakie recalls being singled out in class after fame

Ghanaian singer Gyakie has opened up about the uncomfortable experience of becoming a recognised musician while she was still a student at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), saying the attention she received in class sometimes left her embarrassed.

Speaking on the Group Chat Podcast with Nana Aba Anamoah, the Forever hitmaker explained that after her breakout song became a massive success during her final years at the university, lecturers and students began recognising her, making the classroom an uncomfortable space despite enjoying the love from her colleagues.

“When things begin to pick up, as a human being you start getting very excited. You start losing interest in sitting in the classroom and listening to the lecturer, and also in my class people started noticing me, so it was becoming a bit uncomfortable,” she said.

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According to Gyakie, lecturers would often call attention to her in front of the entire class, putting her on the spot.

“It was nice, but sometimes it was uncomfortable because the lecturer would come to class and be like, ‘I heard there is an artiste in the class; where is she?’ You have to stand up and answer a question,” she said.

She admitted that those moments became particularly embarrassing whenever she could not answer questions asked by her lecturers.

“When they ask a question and as an artiste you can’t answer it, it becomes embarrassing,” she said.

The musician noted that her newfound fame also made it increasingly difficult to focus on her studies, as she had to constantly juggle lectures with studio sessions while continuing to gain popularity.

“Every single day of my life I had to make decisions: ‘Okay, you have a studio session at 6 and a class to attend at 7, so which one do you go to and which one do you forfeit?’ Every single day I had to make decisions, and it was very tough for me,” she added.

She added that despite contemplating dropping out because of the pressure, she persevered because she knew her parents would not have supported that decision.

@officialutvghana My stardom in school became a bit uncomfortable along the way! - Gyakie #TheGroupChatPodcast #UTVGhana ♬ original sound - UTV Ghana