Ben Brako On His Life, Music And The Industry In Ghana

One of Ghana’s outstanding high life musicians, Ben Brako bears his heart on his music and the music industry in Ghana. In an exclusive interview with myjoyonline Monday March 17, 2008, the ace musician says all his life he has been doing music. He said his musical career was influenced by location. Ben Brako says growing up in a very traditional community Siwdu near Cape Coast where music played a major role in the people’s life and at a time when foreign music entered the country, he became involved in music and has never looked back. The 56-year-old musician whose debut album ‘Baya’, which was released in 1987 became an instant hit and subsequently won him the Leisure Foundation Album of the Year 1987 and Musician of the Year, started music very early in life and so it was no wonder he was discovered as soon as he entered St. Augustine’s College. He was drafted into the school band, The Flames. He continued in music even while he was studying at the University of Ghana, Legon. After sojourning in the UK for 20 years and “doing music and what everyone else does”, he says he is back in Ghana for good and to continue with music. Ben has had a very rich musical experience while in the UK. He has played and recorded with both Ghanaian and international musicians in his career. The most remarkable among them he recalls was when he played with Byron Bird, an American, and member of a soul group that came to London while he was there. He said, “working with Bird was so fascinating.” Ben Brako who holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agriculture Economics from the University of Ghana, Legon says he was influenced to study agriculture by his father who worked in the agriculture sector and by the fact that he had to live in rural areas most of the time. He also has a Bachelors Degree in Mass Communication from the East London University. Ben Brako believes that acquiring University Degrees would arm him for the future. He told myjoyonline that he managed to stay through his education because his mother, a retired teacher impressed on him to complete his education and then if he wants to pursue music he could do so. He said that encouraged him to complete his studies, unlike some of his friends who abandoned their education midway because they wanted to do music full time. Ben Brako recently launched his latest album titled ‘Adende’. When myjoyonline asked him what he thinks the problems of the music industry in Ghana is, the first thing he mentioned was ‘payola’. ‘Payola’ the incident where radio presenters demanded huge sums of money from musicians to play their music on air, he says is killing the industry. Another problem, says Ben Brako, is the case where some of the radio presenters themselves have started producing music. He made the point that, if radio presenters also produce music, then they are more likely to promote their own music, and often it is not for the quality, but for the mere fact that it is their own production. He lamented the situation in the music industry in Ghana, citing the problem confronting the bodies managing the industry. He said he has identified three factions that are all managing the industry. He thinks this is not good for the industry. He believes however, that with his intervention and that of others through dialogue, the issues would be ironed out for peace and progress to prevail in the industry. Speaking on the Ghanaian music industry in the past, he said, there were problems with the structures set up to control piracy and issues of copyright. He added that, the fight to halt these, even though have not completely dealt with the problem, it has brought some gains and things look better now. He also voiced his concern over new technologies and how they are affecting the music industry. He said the availability of websites where people can go and download music is depriving musicians of their due in terms of revenue. He was however, happy with new technology that makes the download of music on mobile phones available to users, because through this technology musicians get some fees paid to them. On his future, he told myjoyonline that, he intends to enter into medium scale farming, because he loves the forests, birds and animals and would want to be surrounded by nature.