History of Music in Ghana

Accra vibrates on weekends in the clubs of Osu and Jamestown¹. On the wooden terraces of La Banta or under the chandeliers of the National Theatre, dancers follow a rhythm that has crossed more than a century². Ghana — the first sub-Saharan African country to gain independence, on March 6, 1957³ — has placed highlife at the heart of its national culture. More than a century after the first sounds of colonial brass instruments, the country continues to shape the sound of modern Africa⁴. But how did a crossroads of ga, akan, and ewe rhythms become the cradle of a musical genre that conquered all of Africa?

From Drums to Early Brass Instruments (Before 1940)

Ghanaian music draws its roots from millennial traditions. The Akan (people who include the Ashanti and Fante) and the Ewe (people of the east-Ghanaian and Togolese coast) each possess sophisticated drumming systems, with communicative drums transmitting messages and news over kilometers⁵. The Ga of the Accra coast practice gombe, a dance music linked to ceremonies and weddings⁶. These rural traditions are the soil on which everything is subsequently grafted⁷.

In the 19th century, British colonial presence transformed the scene. The Portuguese had imported the guitar in the 15th–16th centuries via Elmina (Fort of Elmina, on the Gold Coast), but it is the British administration that introduced military brass instruments⁸. Large colonial wind ensembles recruited local musicians, and Ghanaian musicians adopted foxtrot, waltz, and quickstep⁹. In parallel, acoustic guitar bands prospered in the Asante region and the coastal ports: the palm-wine, a name given by the musicians themselves to this music played in taverns, developed with guitarists like Kwa Mensah, nicknamed “the Grandfather”¹⁰.

In 1932, a young 13-year-old flutist, Emmanuel Tettey Mensah, joined the Accra Orchestra directed by Professor Joe Lamptey¹¹. In 1939, Mensah and his brother Yebuah won the “Lambeth Walk” dance competition at the King George Memorial Hall (the current Parliament of Ghana), marking a symbolic step in the professionalization of the local scene¹².

Did you know? Ghana has more than 100 different languages and ethnic groups¹³. This linguistic diversity directly nourishes music: E.T. Mensah’s songs alternated in ga, twi, fante, and ewe, creating a universal music for West Africa¹⁴.

The Golden Age of Highlife (1948–1966)

Highlife was born from the meeting between European instruments and African rhythms¹⁵. According to historian John Collins, three elements determine its foundation: West African gong rhythms, the two-finger guitar, and the Christian hymn¹⁶. The result, from the 1920s onwards, is an urban, danceable music that speaks to black colonial elites — the high ups — hence the name¹⁷.

The decisive turning point arrives after World War II. On May 31, 1919 in Ussher Town, a neighborhood of Accra¹⁸, Emmanuel Tettey Mensah — nicknamed E.T. Mensah — leaves his pharmacy training (he becomes a qualified pharmacist in 1943) to join the Tempos, an Accra orchestra that has just transitioned from a military music group to a dance band¹⁹. In 1948, Mensah takes the direction of the group, which becomes E.T. Mensah and the Tempos²⁰. The style is a fireworks display: powerful brass instruments, tense rhythm sections, Afro-Cuban percussion brought by drummer Guy Warren (future Kofi Ghanaba), return of Jamaican calypso²¹. The recipe works. From 1952 to 1960, the Tempos’ records are released by Decca West Africa and sold throughout West Africa²².

Mensah becomes the “King of Highlife”²³. In 1956, Louis Armstrong himself plays in a jam session with him in Accra²⁴. In 1957, he composes “Ghana Freedom”, the independence hymn²⁵. The Tempos tour in Nigeria (1949), Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia (1958–1959)²⁶. Young Nigerian leaders — Victor Olaiya, Rex Lawson, a young Fela Kuti — learn highlife from their records²⁷. On January 1, 1971, the Soul to Soul festival in Accra brings together Roberta Flack, Ike & Tina Turner, the Staple Singers, and more than 100,000 Ghanaian spectators²⁸.

In the 1950s and 1960s, other groups shine: the African Brothers from Akan (Nana Kwame Ampadu), the Carousel Seven of C.K. Mann²⁹. The lyrics speak of the hope for independence, the realities of daily life — love, death, money³⁰.

Crisis and Resilience (1966–2000)

The 1966 coup that overthrew President Kwame Nkrumah plunges the country into political and economic instability³¹. Highlife, associated with the overthrown regime, loses its official support³². New sounds — American soul, Congolese rumba, afrobeat — attract the youth³³. In the 1970s, Mensah’s brass orchestra style is eclipsed by acoustic guitar, disco, and reggae³⁴.

Audio cassette (portable recording medium powered by battery, competitor to vinyl) and then piracy broke the Ghanaian recording market³⁵. Studios closed, musicians left to work in Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, or London³⁶. The country saw the emergence of an identity renaissance: Kwaa Mensah, rediscovered in 1975, recorded his album Wawo Christo³⁷. George Darko, based in Berlin, founded Burgher Highlife³⁸. But records became rare, copyright rights almost non-existent³⁹.

In 1989, the Ghanaian government conferred upon E.T. Mensah the title of Okunini (“the Sage”)⁴⁰. He received an honorary doctorate⁴¹. The “King of Highlife” passed away on July 19, 1996, at the age of 77⁴².

The renaissance: from Amaarae to Black Sherif (2000–present)

In the 21st century, the Ghanaian music scene has experienced a digital renaissance that transcends continental borders. Streaming, digital platforms, and international collaborations have placed Accra at the heart of afrobeats and African urban music⁴³.

Amaarae, born in the Bronx and raised between Atlanta and Accra⁴⁴, embodies this new generation. Her EP Passion Fruit Summers (2017) and album THE ANGEL YOU DON’T KNOW (2020) blend afrobeats, R&B, and soul⁴⁵. Her song “Sad Girlz Luv Money” reached international audiences; her track “A Body, A Coffin” appears in the soundtrack of Marvel’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever⁴⁶. With over 5 million Spotify subscribers, Amaarae is the most-streamed Ghanaian artist⁴⁷.

Black Sherif, a 24-year-old rapper from the Bantama district in Kumasi⁴⁸, fuses highlife, drill, and hip-hop⁴⁹. “Kweku The Traveller” and “Kilimanjaro” (with Tiwa Savage and Young Jonn) have garnered millions of streams⁵⁰. American producer DJ Khaled describes his music as a “piece that touches the soul”⁵¹.

Stonebwoy (real name Livingstone Etse Satekla), a 45-time national award winner, has made afro-dancehall — a fusion of afrobeats, dancehall, and reggae — his trademark⁵². KiDi, King Promise, Shatta Wale, Gyakie, and King Paluta complete this explosion of talent⁵³. In 2022, the Ghanaian government officially inscribed highlife on the register of intangible cultural heritage⁵⁴. The Afro Nation festival takes place annually at Black Star Square, the very site of the 1957 independence proclamation⁵⁵.

Ghana is not merely a country that invented highlife. It is a permanent laboratory where tradition and innovation blend, a fertile ground that, from E.T. Mensah to Amaarae, continues to make the entire continent vibrate⁵⁶.

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