Rex Omar says Highlife cannot revolve around one sound

Veteran Highlife musician, Rex Omar is challenging Highlife musicians and promoters not to limit the music style to one sound.

He noted that contrary to views that there is a particular rhythm for the genre, the music style is dynamic and its proponents must be deliberate about it.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Twitter Spaces yesterday, April 5, the Abiba hitmaker lamented about the lack of proper structure to guide musicians in producing highlife pieces.

“There are no musicians who have sat down to discuss our sound and our approach. There is nothing like that. Everybody gets up, goes to the studio, and produces his thing. It’s like each one for himself, God for us all,” he said.

He noted that the situation has come about because of the absence of an agenda to guide players.

 “The various musicians and producers who operate within what we call Ghanaian music industry do not think together. We have organisations like MUSIGA and GHAMRO but they are always involved in rancour, whatever, so there is no agenda.

 “It’s not too late. We can still create this highlife agenda if that is what we really want to do but we should not let highlife revolve around one sound. It is dynamic,” he noted.

Conversations about the sustenance of Highlife music seems to have become a chestnut in the Ghanaian music industry with diverse opinions of the genre which is thought to represent Ghana’s music identity.

 A number of highlife proponents including Gyedu Blay Ambolley have been quite passionate about the dominance of foreign music styles in the Ghanaian music space.

In a recent review with Graphic Showbiz, he noted that it was a fallacy that the genre was dying. He explained that the major setback has been the unavailability of a platform for the older generation to impact the requisite knowledge into the younger ones.

“There should be workshops where old folks like myself can teach the younger ones but that is not happening. I have been talking about highlife music and how the likes of the organisers of VGMA have not help matters.

“ But it appears I’m the only older folk leading such a laudable cause so I have decided to take a break from demanding that the right things are done with regard to Highlife music,” he stated.

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