Kojo Antwi Still Strong After 13th Album

The music of Kojo Antwi is saturated with emotions that words and pictures might just not be able to paint, thus goes the story of Kojo Antwi, affectionately called 'the Maestro' and 'Mr. Music man' by his countless fans.

Underneath the heavy dreadlocks tied in a turban lies the mystery of this lyrical genius. Kojo Antwi has been doing music for the past two decades and till today he still continues to be a force to reckon with as he progressively keeps on adding onto his fan base which spans both the young and old of different generations across all corners of the globe.

Nothing appears to be slowing him down, especially following his 13th album which is titled ‘Mwaaah’ (the name of the album is connotative of a kiss or the sound of it), that was released in 2010.

Kojo intends to take the USA by storm again sometime this year and even before the show starts, Black Entertainment TV is recognizing the already acclaimed Ghanaian maestro by nominating him for Best International Act in the BET's upcoming awards. The man has over some 10 hit albums and counting.

With the new album doing well in Ghana, it is well about time the folks at BET appreciated the feat chalked by the maestro who has proven, once again with this album, that talent without flexibility is not good enough.

Mr. Antwi's past albums have had heavy doses of love poems and lyrics that grips hearts and minds of mostly the ladies and many men who will not admit to the allure of the Maestro's lyrics, and ‘Mwaaah’ is no exception.

All it takes is a quick flashback for one to come to a realization that from the first album ‘Alpha’, Kojo Antwi does not only convey the emotions of women (and men too) but also the unspoken issues confronting society.

For those fans who are not aware, Kojo does write on social issues in some of his songs and on his album 'Superman', the song ‘Lively People’ clearly is a depiction of the music man's attempt to reflect on issues in the society that affects a broad range of people.

In that song he talks about how society has used and abused the underprivileged. Again, on the ‘To Mother Afrika’ album that has the ‘Menya ntaban', ‘Akonoba’ and other hit list, Kojo deeply recounts societal issues.

Sometimes it is a little unfortunate that such songs don't get that much attention but the fact remains, the music man is a strong social advocate, one time in an interview Kojo says he believes ''if I did not get into music, I would have been a politician”.

Yet what do you know, we all want to affiliate with the happy side of life so if it's the love songs we all want to hear, then let the music play on... The latest 14 track album titled 'Mwaaah', without exaggeration, cements Kojo's place in history as one of the finest Ghanaian musicians of his age.

Almost like a soothsayer who foretells the future of clients, Kojo is able to tell which particular song will be appealing to his many fans across the world, and he almost always gets to strike the right chords that hits the right notes that churns out the right hits for all the right reasons, ok I know am being a little biased here but God knows Kojo Antwi is talented, He gave him the talent for Christ sake!

This uncanny knack sets Mr. Antwi apart, which makes him appealing to various generations, some of which will like his music slow and smooth whiles other folks will like it more danceable. Kojo Antwi so effortlessly accommodates diverse tastes and musical preferences in ‘Mwaaah’. Besides this album's title track, songs like ‘Happy Anniversary’, ‘Sho Naa’, ‘Ice Cold’, ‘Eye Candy’, ‘Me Mmo’, ‘Adiepena’, ‘Mesan Aba’, ‘Wonderful’, ‘Anansewaa’, ‘Dofa So’, ‘Wo de kan ko’ and ‘Hammer’, can hold their own and top the local charts anytime.

One of the songs on the Music Man's new album titled ‘Ice Cold’, narrates the sad story of a man whose girlfriend dumps him, leaving him for loneliness.

He becomes cold and begins to feel the emptiness on every side of his own bed, the story goes on... but what is significant to me about this song is that Kojo featured a little known artist called Dyloot. This action undoubtedly gives Dyloot a peek at the limelight.

One person who has had more than his fair share of peeking at and being in the limelight is Ivorian musician Freddie Meiway who also features prominently on the 'Sho Naa' track of the album. Another interesting featured artiste on the album is Sensational Nana Yaa; daughter of another great Ghanaian musician; Pat Thomas. Nana Yaa also takes her turn with Kojo on ‘Dofa,’ and ‘Wo De Kan Ko’ tracks.

A legend in the world of music, Kojo Antwi’s journey to stardom began when, he joined a newly formed music group called ‘Classique Handels’ soon after parting ways with his first group, Boom Talents. He later joined the afro-centric youth band Classique Vibes and together with the likes of Paa Ghartey, Paa Solo, and the late Eric Jnr, he clearly indicated what music lovers should expect of him.

The unique style of Classique Handles was enough to win the heart of a music agent who took them to Europe.

However, things did not go as expected especially with regard to maintaining the focus in a foreign land so the members of the group went their separate ways. The pressures of a new culture, according to Kojo, was enough to split them apart, so he went solo afterwards and has never looked back.

One mystery about the maestro, is the fact that he does not just stop at singing love songs, he is also a very strong philosophizer. He can be very philosophical as seen in his song ‘Emmerebi beba’ which is regarded by many as a contemporary voyage of man’s life on earth to eternity and beyond.

This and other songs of Kojo Antwi are deep. They speak to the hearts and minds of people, giving them something to think about. Sometimes, you can adopt something that everybody is using, but you need to be ahead of the people and even your time and this is characteristic of Mr. Antwi.

As a musician, Kojo writes on topics people can relate to and the ‘Emmerebi beba’ song was composed in Berlin which was purely a reflection of the music man's situation at the time as a lonesome traveler in a foreign land with little to no friends.

Everyone has a family member who is somewhere going through the struggles of making a meaning of life for themselves.

If Kojo wrote the song ‘Dadie Anoma’ today, it might not be too reflective of 2010 because now people sit behind a computer and can communicate to a loved one anywhere on the globe by voice or text in the form of email within split seconds.

Back then the maestro said “Anoma a ?rek? ei, b?gye me letter k? ma ?d?, which loosely translate to mean 'please airplane, come take my letter to my lover'. Thanks to modern technology today Kojo Antwi is also documenting his life with the expectation that those not lucky enough to meet him in person will be able to examine his works through the footprints, or if you like, DVDs he leaves behind.

Kojo is the recipient of many awards including the 2003 Kora music award for best West Africa Artist. Despite receiving all the accolades the Maestro still remains modest about them all and he as he puts it... 'we are still in the struggle. I don’t think any African musician can talk about achievement, because you still go through struggles to come out with an album.

African music is the first, and the best. Everybody taps into African rhythms, but we are always the last to be recognized. We are the ones who suffer to get our music unto any format. All the new gadgets that are out there attack our creativity'.

Look out for Kojo Antwi's album in stores around your local music shops and more information about his tour of the USA this year.