Bongofari praises musicians for peace appeal

The word that bounced off everyone’s lips at the A.M.A Forecourt, High Street in  Accra on November  29, 2024 was ‘Peace’ and it flowed on wings of different styles of music at the Election 2024 Peace Concert organised by Greenline Music and the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA).

It was a big roll-call of artistes who all seemed fired up to press home the need for citizens to pay serious attention to peace. Theme for the concert was ‘Peace Before, During and After Election 2024.’

“I was impressed with the turnout of musicians for the concert,” said Afro-Reggae act, Bongofari. “We always have to be at the forefront asking for peace because our survival as musicians depends on the public. If there’s no peace, how can they come and pay to see us perform or go online to patronise our products and services? I wouldn’t have missed that show for anything.”

Other musicians that performed at the concert  dubbed ‘All Stars Jam’ included Pat Thomas, Smart Nkansah, King Ayisoba, Abena Ruthy, Kofi Agyemang, Samuel Owusu, Empress Gifty, Okyeame Kwame, Joe Wizzy, Orkore, Ras Caleb Appiah Levi, King Benja, Hanx Bexx, Mr Merror and more.

Ghanaian musicians have, for many years, advocated for different positive causes in our society.  They have done so sometimes collectively or on individual basis in areas relating to formal education, safe motherhood, prisoner welfare, safe driving, drug abuse and more. The desire for peace in election years has, however, always had a special pull on them.

In Bongofari’s view, nobody should get tired of campaigning for because the alternative is never a desirable product. Backed by King Benjah and his Boomers Band at the concert, he said people should always be mindful of the ugly consequences of conflict and always stay on the path of peace and progress.

“All I can tell everyone is that we shouldn’t set ourselves back by any irrational attitudes on the voting day. We have held our country together all this while and we must continue in that same way to tolerate each other,” the musician honoured at the 2023 Ghana Reggae Dancehall Awards (GRDA) for his commendable contributions to Reggae and Dancehall said.

The peace concert pulled a sizable crowd and as people danced away into the night, it was everyone’s hope there would be peace before, during and after Election 2024.