Legendary Highlife musician, Nana Agyemang has alleged that an individual within the Ghana Music Awards organization demanded a bribe from him in exchange for securing an award.
Speaking in an interview on Onua FM, Agyemang detailed the circumstances surrounding his hit song “Araba” and its subsequent nominations.
After releasing “Araba,” which quickly became a nationwide sensation, Agyemang earned five nominations for the Ghana Music Awards. Many anticipated that the track, which topped various charts would win multiple awards.
However, Agyemang recounted receiving a call from an insider within the awards organization, who requested a bribe to guarantee his win.
“The ‘Araba’ song was so big that it instantly got to number one in various top 20 charts in the country, especially the Radio Gold countdown show. The charts were such that it was difficult to enter those days. Even if you entered the chart, you would have to struggle from the 20th position to number 1. But my song entered the chart and went for the ultimate,” he indicated.
He alleged, “While my song was nominated in various categories, I got a call from them that I had won five awards but I should come seal it with a brown envelope. Back then, I had nothing because I had just relocated from Kumasi to Accra. Also, I was ignorant about the real meaning of ‘brown envelope.'”
He said he refused to pay the bribe and, consequently, did not win any awards. After the awards, the organizers attributed his loss to supposed “inappropriate” words used in his song. Reflecting on this explanation, Agyemang questioned, “Later on, when I lost, they told me that there were some vulgar words in the song. So, I asked, how then did you nominate it if something like that was in the song? Yes, I’ve not been treated fairly.”
Charterhouse, the organizers of the Ghana Music Awards, had always denied claims of bribery in their award process, stating that awards are given based on votes and honorary considerations.
Nana Agyemang has recently released a new song titled “Behwe Womma,” featuring Kwabena Sunkwa hoping to return to the charts.