Contemporary musicians say our style is ‘Old school’ – Ambolley

Ghanaian highlife musician, Gyedu-Blay Ambolley has revealed that young artistes refer to the veterans as ‘old school’, who have lost touch with the current trends.

This perception, according to him, prevents the new crop of musicians from learning from the older generation.

The musician happens to be the first from Ghana to formally incorporate rap forms into local highlife rhythms, a musical genre called Simigwa.

“That is the mistake that is coming from the younger ones. When the younger ones see us, they say old school. They forget that it is the old school that teaches the new school,” he told Joy News.
Gyedu-Blay Ambolley was rather unknown outside of West Africa until Soundway Records included his seminal Simigwa-Do, which Ambolley released in 1973, on their first anthology, Ghana Soundz.

Ambolley’s sound has led many to label him the godfather of hiplife, the fusion of the hip hop and highlife idioms.