Healthy 'beefs' necessary for music industry – Stakeholders

WHILE Stonebwoy and Shatta Wale's 'beef' might have escalated into something physical, 'beefs' among musicians have for the most part been limited to lyrical battles.

And although music lovers have enjoyed the 'beefs' over the years; think Obrafour/Lord Kenya, Ex-Doe/Chicago, Sarkodie/M.anifest and recently Medikal/Strongman, some stakeholders have cautioned against it saying it does not bode well for the industry in the future.

However, there are some industry players like musician, Trigmatic who believe that healthy 'beefs' are necessary for the music industry.

“If the 'beefs' are devoid of insults and personal attacks I see nothing wrong with them. I call it a lyrical battle and not 'beef'. Everyone enjoyed Medikal and Strongman because the two wanted to tell Ghanaians they were the best at what they do,” he told Showbiz recently.

Entertainment critic, Halifax Ansah-Addo, said he wished there were several Ghanaians artistes 'beefing' each other to keep the industry alive.

“What else can an artiste want if he or she can do things to increase their fanbase on the music landscape. Medikal and Strongman gained a lot of following when they engaged in a battle and I personally didn’t want it to end,” he said.

According to Halifax, 'beefs' push artistes to bring out their best. “When there is competition you try to bring out your best devoid of insults and personal attacks,” he said.

Shatta Wale has an ongoing 'beef' with rapper Sarkodie

Halifax also suggested that event organisers take advantage of 'beefs' and cash in on them. “Can you imagine an event that has Strongman and Medikal or Shatta Wale and Stonebwoy on? The venue will be packed and that is what we want for our industry,” he said.

He was of the view that too much of the focus has been on the showbiz aspect with little attention paid to the business aspect of 'beefs' and it was time that changed.

Musician, A Plus, said 'beefs' had their negatives and positives depending on how they were handled. According to A Plus, a rapper like Strongman benefitted a lot from the 'beef' with Medikal because it propelled him to the next level.

“Strongman is a very good rapper but until the 'beef' with Medikal no one was talking about him. The 'beef' should not lead to violence like it did with Shatta Wale and Stonebwoy at the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards.

“We always want to talk about something. Kotoko and Hearts, NPP and NDC but in all these, its competition and it makes people work harder,” he said.

Sound engineer, Fred Kyei Mensah said beefs are necessary for artistes to bring out the best in them. “'Beefs' create awareness for an artiste's brand. Sometimes when a musician has a small fanbase he or she needs these kind of 'beefs' to keep them in the public eye.

“The Medikal and Strongman 'beef' was just fantastic but the only thing I didn’t like was the two artistes involving their girlfriends and mothers. Strongman had about three shows because of the 'beef' and which was a plus for him,” he said.