Columbus Kente Dance Sets a High Standard in Ghanaian Entertainment

There is no doubt that Ghanaians are a classy people. There is no questioning how regal a person looks in Kente clothing. When you put the two together in an elegant ballroom, add a variety of fine Ghanaian and non-Ghanaian music, you are sure to have a blast. And this was the case on September 29 at the Valleydale Ballroom in Columbus, Ohio. The occasion was the first anniversary of the first Kente Dance and also the first anniversary of the launching of the AGOO Magazine in Ohio.

Organized by the Talking Drums Project in conjunctions with AGOO Magazine, the 2007 Kente Dance, from which a donation will be made to the Children’s Ward of Ghana’s Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, was a memorable evening of reveling.

The Valleydale was an excellent location for the event. The ambience, tiered levels, and the inviting dance floor gave a very good first impression of the classy nature of the event. Clad in colorful Kente outfits, both the men and women were ready to have a good time right when they walked through the door. After the opening remarks by Mrs. Stella Kessie Asare, the brain behind the project, and comments by two sponsoring doctors, the party got underway.

The music ran the whole gamut. The collaboration of DJs Casty, Alonzo, and Cougar churned out exciting combinations of gospel, hip-life, highlife, borborbor, kpalongo, konkomba, and pretty much music from all of Ghana’s different ethnicities. That was a clever thing to do. It added depth to the presentation and the revelers showed their appreciation by dancing through and through.

Another highlight of the evening, the Miss Agoo pageant, was a crowd-pleaser. The graceful contestants made very good impressions of themselves with their unique personalities. The crowd loved every moment of it and cheered the contestants on. The pleasant and eloquent Nana Esi Nyen, an Ohio State student was crowned the winner. The eccentric personality of Monica Johnson made the crowd go wild with cheers and in the end, AGOO Magazine’s Kojo Bonsu gave her $200 cash for being the first runner-up. The other winners also received prizes.

Earlier on in the evening, Drs. Laurence Entsuah and Dominic Mensah talked about why they backed the cause of contributing to the healthcare delivery process in Ghana. Dr. Enstuah and Dr. Mensah, a digestive disorder specialist and a dentist respectively, told true stories of how the absence of relatively inexpensive medical equipment could be the decider of life or death for poor patients in Ghanaian hospitals. They, together with Dr. and Mrs. Hagan, Messrs Joseph Yeboah and Kwabena Kankam, John Opoku of Dublin Telecom, and other Columbus Ghanaian businesses, contributed cash and medical accessories to the cause.

Mrs. Asare indicated that the cost of organizing an event like this was pretty steep but the satisfaction that comes with its success is priceless. As to the question of whether there will be another Kente Dance, she indicated that the idea of a Kente Dance has to evolve and so even though there are plans for another event next year, possibly at the same venue, the details are yet to be decided on.

Ampaabeng Kyeremeh of Glory Shipping and Travel, who was one of the major sponsors, agrees that the idea of a Kente Dance has to evolve. And so like many others, he looks forward to what’s next.

Even though a coming-together concert of the Lumba Brothers sounds like an exciting idea for a very fitting venue, I don’t think it will be what’s next. Whatever it is, there is no doubt that Ghanaians know good entertainment and when they get it, they ask for more.

In the end, the people had their money’s worth, some children at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital are getting help, and the organizers can savor the success.

Clement Brobbey and Peter Womber were the MCs for the evening. Pictures of the event will be available in the December issue of AGOO Magazine. DVDs of the event are available through Skinthetics at 614-895-8993.