BBC World Service was in Accra, Ghana, this week to record the world-renowned radio program, The Arts Hour on Tour. The theme for this edition was “The Year of Return.” Host Nikki Bedi was joined on stage, at the Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences, by the award-winning actress Lydia Forson, artist Kwame Akoto Bamfo, award-winning rapper M.anifest, singer Cina Soul and Ghana’s comedy king DKB.
With the mentioned guests, the host, Nikki Bedi discussed issues surrounding the theme; “The Year of Return”, slavery, how to reorganize ourselves as Africans and get back on track were among things spoken at length by the guests of the program.
DKB who was one of the guests and also a representative for the Ghanaian comedy industry spoke at length about how thriving the industry has been over the years. He made mention some of the challenges faced by Comedians and comedy lovers in the country. He [DKB] said “Financially the industry is lacking, there is the need to find investors to invest in the craft because there is an up rise of immense comedic talent in the country. Also the issue about venue; this is a huge problem for the comedy industry. The owners of the venues would rather host music shows than host a comedy show simply because of the profits a music concert will fetch. Meanwhile has the same potential music has, so those that give us venues, we are very grateful for belief.”
The comedian also used the opportunity to appreciate Ghanaians for the support they are giving to push Ghana Comedy. His monthly comedy show; Comedy Express which happens the first Friday of every month, is always packed and even though the venue for the show has been changed to the SOHO Bar inside the Marina Mall, patrons still come in their overwhelming numbers to enjoy a great time. If you are interested in attending any edition follow Comedy Express on social media for further information.
There were musical performances on the night from rapper M.anifest and singer Cina Soul.
The program will air on BBC World Service on Saturday 28 September and will be available on the BBC World Service website after that at www.bbcworldservice.com/artshour
The Arts Hour on Tour is a monthly arts show exploring culture now in the great world cities. With live music, slam poetry, comedy performance, big name interviews and rich discussion, the series brings audiences up close to life as a local.
Source: Fenuku Augustine.
