Sidney
Hiplife artiste Sidney Kofi Ofori, known in the music scene as Barima Sidney, has disclosed why he needed to take a long break from producing music.
After composing back-to-back hit songs including ‘Tinana’, ‘African Money’, ‘Apuskeleke’, ‘Papa No’, ‘Awuchie Kpongor’, during the early 2000s, the hiplife artiste went off the scene for many years.
His last song, ‘Papa No’, received harsh criticisms from industry players and social media users.
Coming in the heat of the 2020 general elections, many Ghanaians ascribed the song to ex-President John Dramani Mahama.
Speaking in an interview on Joy Prime’s Prime Morning show, the hitmaker recounted the hurdles he went through which broke him and made him stay off the music industry in order to heal.
“At a point, I was heartbroken when the ‘Papa No’ thing came up. The lashing was too much, and I remember somebody saying I wait for things to trend so I can use them for songs. And I was like, do you think it’s easy to compose a song instantly? No, it makes you very creative instead, but then people took it some other way around. So, I decided to be quiet,” he recounted.
Barima Sidney has returned with a new single titled ‘BBF’, which he says is a way to console himself. The track features Kumasi-based rapper King Paluta.
The ‘African Money’ hitmaker says he is back for ‘good’ and will refrain from composing politically-inclined and controversial songs.
He admonished individuals never to give up on themselves in times of difficulty. Instead, he urges them to consider such circumstances as moments for growth and self-strengthening, believing that things will eventually turn around for the better.