Ghana and the Afrobeats Debate: The Roots Beneath the Rhythm

If Afrobeats were a dinner party, Nigeria might be the flamboyant host—sending out invitations, curating the playlist, and soaking up global applause. But Ghana? Ghana is the quiet chef in the back, the one who first invented the seasoning—drawing on ancestral ingredients like Highlife, Hiplife, Azonto, and polyrhythms that echo under baobab trees.

Now comes the question at the heart of a growing conversation: Is Ghana just watching someone else throw the party, or is it still the soul of the sound?

Roots, Branches, and the Seed of a Genre

Ghana’s musical story stretches deeper than many acknowledge. Highlife, born in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in colonial Gold Coast, fused Akan and Ga melodies with guitars, brass bands, and Western instruments. More than entertainment, it was a soundtrack of identity, resistance, and modernity—a declaration that Ghana had found its voice.

Highlife produced some of Africa’s earliest global music stars. E.T. Mensah, dubbed the “King of Highlife”, spread the sound across the continent, while Osibisa took stadiums in Europe and America by storm.

Then, in the 1990s, Reggie Rockstone introduced Hiplife—a bold mix of rap, dialect, street slang, and Highlife/dancehall rhythms. That hybrid spirit primed Ghana’s musical DNA for what would later blossom as Afrobeats.

Why the World Says “Nigeria = Afrobeats”

Let’s be clear: Nigeria has played a massive role in globalizing Afrobeats. Its sheer market size, promotional muscle, and megastars—Wizkid, Burna Boy, Davido, Tiwa Savage—have carried the sound into global headlines. In that sense, the association isn’t wrong.

But it is incomplete. Many in Ghana argue that the world’s view of Afrobeats has been narrowed to Nigeria alone, overlooking the Ghanaian foundation. Producer Beatz Vampire made the case in 2023: “Afrobeats belongs to Africa, not one country.” Artists like Sarkodie, Stonebwoy, Shatta Wale, and countless others have deeply shaped the sound.

Part of the confusion lies in language. “Afrobeat” (singular)—Fela Kuti’s politically charged, jazz- and funk-infused sound of the 1970s—has often been carelessly conflated with “Afrobeats” (plural), the contemporary dance-pop hybrid. That simplification erases Ghana’s role, shrinking its pioneers to footnotes.

Proof in Collaboration & Charts

Ghana’s influence can be traced not only in rhythm but in numbers:

Black Sherif’s “Kwaku the Traveller” became the first Ghanaian track to hit #1 on Apple Music Nigeria, topping charts across Africa, the UK, and even Billboard’s U.S. Afrobeats list.
Amaarae’s “Sad Girlz Luv Money” (with Moliy and Kali Uchis) landed on the Billboard Hot 100 and UK charts, proving the power of diaspora crossovers.
Strong Ghana–UK ties—from Sarkodie x Giggs to Yaw Tog x Stormzy—show how Ghanaian artists help weave Afrobeats into global culture.

Spotify data backs it up: Afrobeats streams in Ghana grew by 181% year-over-year in 2023, powered heavily by international collaborations.

The Struggle for Attribution

Beyond hits, the fight is about legacy and ownership.

Many industry voices stress that Afrobeats should be recognized as a pan-African creation, not pigeonholed as purely Nigerian.
Some historians claim that even the word “Afrobeat” may have roots in Ghana, coined during a conversation between Fela Kuti and Raymond Aziz in an Accra nightclub.
Critics argue that international documentaries often highlight Nigerian stars while glossing over Ghana’s Highlife legends, Hiplife pioneers, and Azonto wave—reducing them to prelude instead of foundation.

Reclaiming the Story

So how does Ghana ensure its role isn’t erased?

Archiving & Documentation – More research, films, and books that record Ghana’s contribution to Highlife, Hiplife, and the Afrobeats lineage.
Awards & Recognition – Pushing for Ghanaian names to appear prominently on international stages, not just African charts.
Deeper Collaborations – Joint labels, co-productions, and diaspora partnerships to cement Ghana’s footprint.
Cultural Credit & IP – Ensuring melodies, slang, and rhythms rooted in Ghana are properly credited and compensated.
Owning the Narrative – Telling the story of how Highlife → Hiplife → Azonto built the bridge that Afrobeats now dances on.

More Than Borrowers—Originators

Nigeria’s dominance is real, built on infrastructure, hustle, and investment. But dominance doesn’t erase contributions. Ghana was there from the start—fusing guitars with local rhythms, shaping hybrid genres, and launching sounds that inspired a continent.

So the fight isn’t about rivalry. It’s about history. It’s about making sure that when someone presses play on an Afrobeats hit and feels that pulse—they know those roots run deep, and many of them began in Ghanaian soil.

Source: Richmond Adu-Poku