This blog is managed by the content creator and not GhanaWeb, its affiliates, or employees. Advertising on this blog requires a minimum of GH₵50 a week. Contact the blog owner with any queries.
Rocky55 Blog of Thursday, 28 November 2024
Source: Isaac Appiah
The multi-talented entertainment artist Kofi Okyere-Darko (KOD) has recollected the occasions that brought him to the spotlight. He was interviewed by Nana Romeo on Ayekoo Ayekoo on Accra 100.5 FM. Following high school, KOD claimed to have spent some time working for “his company called KDS” with media and cultural figure Kwesi Kyei Darkwah (KKD). He explained, adding, “Sunshine Radio started at the time. I was a copywriter and production assistant at KDS, which was an advertising company.”
When I joined Radio Gold in 1997, they had been in business for a year,” the media personality added. He explained that although he “learned hard on the job,” he had no professional training in broadcasting. “There’s so much to learn if you walk with Kwesi Kyei,” he added. In a variety of ways, every day and every instant is a school [session]. Individuals like Kwame Sefa Kayi and Kwasi Sainti Baffoe-Bonnie, who “took me as their personal project making sure I survive and succeed in the industry,” surrounded and mentored him at Radio Gold, he claimed, making him feel “lucky.”
The Ghana Music Awards were founded in 1999 by fashion icon and businessman Charterhouse, who invited him to serve on their planning and selection committee. KOD stated, “I’ve been on the board [since then] until about two years ago.” He hinted that all of these things will lead to his fame in “1998-1999.” Although controversial at Radio Gold, the creator and president of Nineteen57 acknowledged how his commitment to the then-emerging genre of Hiplife helped build his reputation.
When Hiplife first started, I was young, and some stations did not favor the music’s airing. I recall that playing rap music resulted in a two-week suspension. Radio Gold was a huge fan of Highlife. They believed that hip-hop and rap were raucous and illogical,” the media executive and radio DJ stated. “When my friends, Reggie Rockstone, Mark Okraku-Mantey, and Lord Kenya, released music, I saw no reason not to promote it because I had the platform.” I was young. KOD praised those years, saying that “before anything is established, some people have to make sacrifices.” This highlights his legendary contribution to the growth of the groundbreaking Hiplife movement, which has influenced today’s well-known Afrobeats.
