Time to see creative arts as business

­The absence of proper artiste managers has remained one of the reasons the creative arts industry has remained underdeveloped as it is now. Without a doubt, if the Ghanaian creative sector is to come into its full potential then proper artiste management is needed. 

For far too long, “errand boys” have been parading themselves as managers for some of the biggest artistes we have in the country. This development has left we at Showbiz baffled because we would have expected that as our artistes mature and gain international recognition, they would come to the realisation that the friends who served as managers can no longer provide the needed services to take them to the next level. 

We believe this attitude stems from the failure of our artistes and other players in the creative arts to consider what they do as business ventures. Talents in the creative arts industry deserve the same level of strategic and professional guidance being delivered to their peers in the corporate world in order to boost productivity and profitability. 

Proper and professional talent managers do not only handle the day-to-day affairs of artistes but their business, legal and financial interests as well. Although this type of representation does not come cheap, effective leadership is needed to propel their careers to the next level. 

We urge our artistes to have a global outlook with respect to their craft and do away with the armies of “errand boys” they surround themselves with. Until they do so, there is very little chance their careers will take off outside the shores of Ghana.