Gyankroma: "PlayGhana is a patriotic approach, no ill intent"

When the council hosted a stakeholder engagement in December 2023 to get input from creatives and important actors in the creative sector for the promotion of PlayGhana initiative, Gyankroma and the CAA team appeared to have courted the disapproval and complaints of some industry participants.

Interestingly, there was backlash against the PlayGhana program, which was promoted as a way to stop the dwindling popularity of Ghanaian music on the radio.

The goal of forbidding the playing of music, especially from Nigeria, over our airwaves was criticized in particular. Critics contended that this action would be counterproductive and harm the development of Ghanaian musicians.

Speaking, however, at the DJs and Bloggers Forum-PlayGhana Initiative recently to gather feedback on how to make the project feasible, Gyankroma expressed astonishment at how #PlayGhana was received, alleging that it was merely a patriotic stance.

"It's regrettable that the main objective of PlayGhana was overlooked since its inception due to controversy and misinformation. I do, however, want to reassure you that this initiative is a patriotic one.

"The goal is never to outlaw any other genre of music or force Ghanaian musicians to compete with other performers.

By no means that. Simply said, we want to elevate our artists to the foreground, which will benefit our sector as a whole. "The industry requires greater funding. Visitors will not stay to provide money if they arrive and do not hear us.

Sure, we can enact legislation, and on paper it sounds fantastic, but how will it be put into practice? How can we truly ensure that this law is being followed by the radio stations? How can we ensure that our music gets played by nightclub owners and DJs on the radio? This is the reason why stakeholder engagement is important with DJs and bloggers are relevant,” she said. 

Aiming to raise awareness, prioritize local content, and make sure that songs by Ghanaian musicians are played regularly to boost visibility, PlayGhana is a campaign.

Several DJs, including the well-known DJ Mensah, the official DJ of rapper Sarkodie, shared their ideas at the forum.

Two of the main ones were that musicians should make sure their language does not alienate listeners from other countries and that they should approach music from Ghana with the intention of selling it to them.

Put differently, music buyers shouldn't be limited to the local area.

Gyankroma said her organization would deliberately talk to players, like as event planners and club owners, about the need to play and assure the efficacy of PlayGhana and help promote Ghanaian songs.