Akablay
Guitarist Akablay and the Abiza Band, in collaboration with the Goethe Institut, will hold a concert on Friday, March 15, 2024 to commemorate World Highlife Day at the Goethe Institut in Accra.
Artistes scheduled to perform alongside Akablay are Abiana, Della Hayes and her Women of Colour Band, Fameye and Asabia&Kenteman.
It had long been guitarist Akablay’s dream to get the world to celebrate Highlife on a chosen day. Though dates exist for worldwide observance of genres like Jazz (April 30) and Reggae (July 1), there was no such date for Highlife.
Akablay felt it was time for a date to be chosen and decided it should be March 7.
Launch of the World Highlife Day came off at the +233 Jazz Bar and Grill in Accra on March 7, 2020. Journalist and diplomat, KabralBlayAmihere, spoke at the function.
He said Highlife is Ghana’s gift to the world and all those who have contributed to the music’s growth over the years must be held in high esteem.
There wasn’t any event to mark the day in 2021 due to COVID-19. Two concerts were, however, held in 2022 at the Alliance Francaise and Goethe-Institut, both in Accra, in honour of the cherished music genre.
A concert has already been held in Kumasi this year to mark World Highlife Day.
Some of Ghana’s cherished highlife heroes include King Onyina, K. Gyasi, King Bruce, ET Mensah, Koo Nimo, CK Mann, Ewurama Badu, Ebo Taylor, Nana Ampadu, Obuoba J.A. Adofo, GyeduBlayAmbolley, among others.
Akablay, who initiated the World Highlife Day celebration, is a well-known guitarist and music advocate who has crafted a musical approach he describes as Kundum Highlife.
Albums under his name include ‘Life in the Pot’ (2007), ‘Flipside of Life’ (2010), ‘Genesis of Life’ (2011), ‘The Gospel According To My Guitar’ (2015), ‘Edoke’ (2017) and ‘Sunshine Highlife’ (2019). ‘Take Away’, his 2016 single, was a big hit with music lovers in Ghana and beyond.
By George Clifford Owusu