BISMARK ENTERTAINMENT

Friday, 7 November 2014

'MILK INTAKE DOESN’T MAKE YOUR SKIN LIGHTER' – AMA K. ABREBRESE

Ghanaian actress, Ama K. Abebrese, has condemned gospel musician, Ama Boahema for lying about how she attained her new skin complexion.

The ‘Poisoned Bait’ actress who is also running the "Say No to Skin Bleaching" campaign expressed her disgust over Ama Boahema’s claim that the change of her skin colour is due to her excessive intake of milk and the weather in Europe.

“Really?! We’ve all lived in Europe and hello we’ve drunk milk and we’ve drunk milk and didn’t get lighter. Just lies!” she said in an interview on the Morning Star with Kafui Dey and Jackie Ankrah Thursday.

Ama believes the scourge of skin bleaching is not talked about enough. “...It’s usually very clear when people do it. Whether it’s your mother doing it, auntie, most people never want to talk about it or admit it.”

Ama K. Abebrese’s anti-skin bleaching campaign has attracted support from a number of her fellow media and entertainment personalities.

Singer and actress Paulina Oduro, actress Nana Ama McBrown and model Hamamat Montia are all part of the movement aimed at encouraging Ghanaians to love their natural skin tone and resist the temptation of skin bleaching.

The campaign also highlights the risks and dangers of using different chemicals, lotions and pills used to alter the skin complexion.

"People will lie and lie about it, I feel like we also need to get to why we bleach.”

She said although she had come under a lot of criticism since the campaign started, she is encouraged by the knowledge that she will be able to help save the lives of younger people and individuals who do not know the dangers of indulging in the practice.

“I think I should start with the younger ones especially, so we will soon be going to the schools and talking to them.”

STONEBWOY DARES SHATTA WALE

Popular dancehall artiste, Shatta Wale may be biting more than he can chew after setting his eyes on a new target for what some entertainment commentaries refer to as, his favourite past-time – “rival-bashing”.

His new target, Ashaiman-based dancehall sensation, Stonebwoy, has dared the Shatta Movement King to call him (Stonebwoy) by name and unambiguously direct his insinuations of plagiarism against his person and music.

‘Burniton's dare comes days after the ‘Dancehall King’ released a new video in which he attacked Stonebwoy for “stealing” his friend, Rashid Metal’s ‘Baafira’ song.

In Shatta Wale’s words…“Me the Baafira, Baafira make nobody try take the title cos e be Rashi Metal wey I dey hear from am. The boy be my youth, straight from Tankase line so make nobody try like he wan use the Baafira; make we give people chance make den do dema thing. I hear say some Artiste wan claim he bring the Baafira, herh herh if you bring your Baafira come, herh, herh, herh, don’t do that e be wanna language.”

In a response to Shatta’s veiled swipe at him, Stonebwoy said the ‘Dancehall King’ is only trying to remain relevant to his fans by doing what he knows to do best.

“… He would want to stay relevant in the system because we all know that he is one of the Artistes who made it onto the scene hugely by propaganda and then all sort of negative influence. For a guy like him, I don’t blame him, he will continue to be smart to feed that ego so that he keeps relevance,” he said in an interview with Eboo, host of Green lounge Empire FM’s Saturday afternoon entertainment programme.

The “Ghetto Love” hit maker also advised Shatta Wale to be brave enough to address issue head-on.

“… Exactly, he is referring to me but cowardly enough he hasn’t still mentioned my name so why would I take it personal you understand? If you are starting the fight and you want to really refer to somebody and you are brave, yo, you just have to say my guy this is to you.”

“Although indirectly he is referring to me, I’m supposed to be wise because I don’t find my name in there. He is just trying to be smart to create wave to feed the original image he has brought on himself. It is no news to Ghana that Shatta is that kind of Artiste who has some kind of negativity around him,” he noted.

He added that he is now well-known because he made "good music".

"That is why I came on the scene not because I insulted anybody or started beefing, so the masses respect me for the fact that if they want good music and intelligent music, they can always turn to Stonebwoy”.

He, however, said he will not be swayed into releasing a reprisal video.

“I think he has not gotten to that extreme that he requires my reply but if he tries, ah ah ah ah, me and Ashaiman we will not wait for one second”, he threatened.

GHANAIAN MUSICIANS DON’T SUPPORT THEIR OWN - CHASE FOREVER

Chase Forever, born Fianko Bossman, is an award winning recording artiste and songwriter.

He was born in Hackney Town, London, and partly grew up in Ghana. He grew up listening to the likes of Michael Jackson, Luther Vandross, Paul Simon, Milli Vanilli, Usher, Bobby Brown and Boyz2Men, to name a few.

At age ten, Chase had already started writing song verses and performing. He participated in every talent show organised by his school.

Chase spoke with NEWS-ONE’s Francis Addo over the weekend in an interview that touched on industry issues, his Unappreciated album, the relationship among Ghanaian artistes and his thoughts on the Nigerian music industry.

What have you been up to?

Well after the album I’m just looking to expand the brand, do more tours and focus on building an empire, LFO Group worldwide, which will be a group of different talents family and songwriters and composers. My ‘Fire’ video is also ready so I’m looking for the appropriate time to drop it.



What is LFO?

Loyal Friends Only.



How is your new album, Unappreciated, doing so far?

Well, yeah we’ve actually run out and reprinting more for sale. The people who have listened have had great reviews and remarkable comments about the album.



Wow! So how many copies have you sold so far?

On the day of the launch we sold close to GH¢50,000 that night.



Why did you title the album ‘Unappreciated’?

Well it’s a phase I went through. I work hard a lot to put out the end product for people to hear. I think I kind of expect more than the attention I received but that’s just me being over the top with my feelings I guess. It applies to my past relationships and all; you know I always put my ‘A game’ into whatever I’m doing. So I kind of always expect more. Unappreciated spoke my falling out with the people I have love for. You know it’s kind of still ongoing but I’m learning the game fast now.

Some think you feel the industry does not appreciate you.

The industry flushes out artistes every day. You know I’ve been relevant since I took off and I appreciate that. What I don’t appreciate is the way we gravitate to everything that comes from outside. I feel like even we the artistes do a lot of “ass kissing.”



What do you mean by that?

Say I have an album out, how many artistes did you see post that to promote it? We don’t even support each other, to begin with.



Ghanaian musicians are not united?

Yeah, then we turn around and complain the foreigners (Africans) are more successful—Nigerians, etc.



Why do you think Ghanaians gravitate to anything foreign?

It’s pretty a generational thing. But we misuse that feature. We are warm-hearted people. How do we solve it, if we can’t love ourselves? Who would love us? It’s a big problem. And honestly as artistes some of us have a lot of work to do.

How did Chase end up in music?

Passion brought me here. I love music so much I overlooked a lot of other opportunities to forgo my dream. I mean if we are living to die why not live being happy.



How did it all start?

I started as a rapper. I was in a rap group called Soljas Inn. We used to ‘battle’ rappers and ‘kill’ them for real. It was me, Treasure, Bils Rayoe and X.



Treasure is still around, how about the rest?

Bils Rayoe is in the States. X found God and got married. I’m still doing my thing.



How did you break onto the limelight?

I think my songwriting made me popular. At the time I wanted to start song writing, there was an artiste in Richie’s camp called Salimi. So I wrote a song for her, then when I went to Richie to sing it for him to give the girl, he was like why don’t you do this yourself? So then I started to record. Some songs leaked and got me popular. Then I left Lynx Entertainment and dropped ‘Tell Me Your Name’ featuring Paedae. God was just good because I didn’t even have a marketing plan for the song. It just took off. Then when the video dropped it went extra. Shouts out to Nana Asihene.



What will you describe as your biggest achievement in the industry so far?

Well dropping my album meant a lot to me. My Channel O nod was also a great feeling. But there’s more to come.



Who do you see as competition in the industry?

Well nobody and I say this out of respect and sincerity. My style is different…



Who is Chase?

He is Forever. Whatever lingers in your mind too long trickles down to your heart eventually. My music that.



Which part of Ghana are you from?

Akuapim/Ashanti.



What is your education background?

I was at Aggrey Memorial for a year then left to Pope Johns. After, I went to Central University and years down the line here I am.



Any massage for the people who follow you?

Stay true to yourself and address your fears at all times. That’s all I want to tell the people.

GHANAIANS MADE ME WHO I AM – SARKODIE

Award?winning rapper Sarkodie has commended his Ghanaian fans for remaining loyal to his brand throughout the years.

Sarkodie, who put up a marvellous performance at the ‘Tigo Music Unplugged’ concert over the weekend, stated that he was overwhelmed by how his fans cheer, listen to his music and even fight for him when issues about him come up.

“Ghanaians made me who I am today. You guys are the best. The way some of you even fight for me when issues about me come up is touching,” he stated after his performance at the Accra Sports Stadium.

The ‘Adonai’ singer also commended organisers of the ‘Tigo Music Unplugged’ concert for putting together a massive crowd of music lovers for the show.

Sarkodie performed a lot of his hit songs including ‘Baby’, ‘Illuminati’ and his new track titled, ‘M?gye Wo Girl’, among others.

It would be recalled that the artiste was recently in the news after he released his ‘Inflation’ song which centred on the current economic hardship in the country.

Michael Owusu Addo, as he is known in real life, has managed to stay on top of his game despite the keen competition in the music industry. He is also the Chief Executive for his Sark clothing line.

NAFTI BOSS COMMENDS MOVIE LEGENDS

The Rector of the National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI), Prof Linus Abraham, has paid glowing tribute to TV Africa’s CEO, Kwaw Ansah, for what he described as his interest in creating a new dimension in the film industry.

Prof Linus Abraham made the commendation at the launch of Kwaw Ansahs’ new 146 page comic book written from his movie, “Love Brewed in an African Pot”, at the British Council Hall, Accra recently.

The brief event was also attended by ministers of state, players in the movie industry, heads of private educational institutions and school pupils among others.

“Love Brewed in an African Pot”, which was produced in the late 1970s, has been described by intellectuals and people in the industry as being a classic movie for its content and editing among other qualities.

Prof Linus Abraham added that many intellectuals across the world prefer to read comic books rather than movies for their ability to capture readers’ attention.

The Rector urged the young breed of film directors and producers to take advantage of what he described as a new dimension in the industry opened by Mr Kwaw Ansah to create an easy to read comic series for all age groups.

A member of the cast, Anima Misa Amoah, was happy that the movie continues to be relevant in portraying the ideals of society.

Mike Eghan was happy that “Love Brewed in an African Pot”, though more than three decades old, had lived on to tell its story in a book form for all to read.

The director of the movie, Kwaw Ansah, who also authored the book, said the introduction of the “Love Brewed in an African Pot” as a comic book was to give a new dimension to the business of film production as well as capture more patronage for the movie.

He expressed satisfaction that ‘Love Brewed in an African Pot’ had won a large international patronage, adding that the comic series will equally be a hit on both local and international markets.

The author of the comic book praised the cast and crew for what he described as their high level of professionalism when the movie was being shot.

According to him, the cast includes Anima Misa Amoah, Kofi Yirenkyi, Mary Yirinkyi, Kwadwo Dadson and Doris Kuwornu.

I HAD TO COME OUT TO SAVE MY MARRIAGE - KACEY MOORE

Kacey Moore, one of Ghana’s representatives in the ongoing Big Brother Africa (Hotshots) reality show who was evicted after 28 days in the competition says he had to leave the show to save his family.

The Ghanaian was among three housemates - Arthur from Rwanda and Namibia’s Luis who were evicted during Sunday night’s eviction show.

Kacey Moore, born Desmond Aidoo Amoah, and Beatrice Maame Adwoa Boabeng Oppong (M’am Bea) were selected to represent Ghana through a special audition in South Africa.

Organizers of the 91-day reality show, Endemol selected representatives for Ghana in South Africa due to challenges with visa acquisition by the four Ghanaians selected in the Accra auditions.

Kacey Moore speaking in an interview with Myjoyonline.com from Johannesburg South Africa revealed he badly wanted to leave the Big Brother house to save his family.

Family first:

According to him, he cried a lot in the Big Brother house because he was dealing with a lot of pressure from within and outside the reality show.

He revealed that, he “was dealing with a lot of pressure. If you watch the show, you will realize that I was the go-to guy, everybody came to dump their stories on me – sad stories, issues that they needed help with and I was always advising people and I got drained by that. In the natural environment outside the house, I don’t get that much people coming to me in a day.”

“I cried sometimes in the house not because I was feeling pity for me, I cried because of the stories that were in me and the only way to let them out was to cry. I knew that I was supposed to stay in the house but at one point, I couldn’t take it I was breaking.

“If you are married, there is spiritual connection that is not physical and when something is happening to your partner you feel it. I was at that point I felt that something was going wrong in my house and the house is more important to me than $300,000. So when I started talking and saying ‘I don’t care I want to go home’ …I meant it,” Kacey Moore added.

After being away from his family for four weeks, the father of one said on Sunday night, he “was the happiest man in this world when I was evicted because I came home and I saw that if I had stayed a week more in that house my family would have been messed up, my wife would have been broken because she couldn’t stand what she was seeing although what she was seeing was not exactly what it was I had to come out a save my marriage.”

Never been a fan of Big Brother Africa:

Interestingly, the 29-year-old Ghanaian has never been a fan of the Big Brother Africa reality show which is rated as the biggest reality show on the continent.

According to him, he never watched it but his wife, who was addicted to it, fed him with information about it from time to time.

“When I got the brief, I thought I was going to go perform at the [the Big Brother Africa] live show and then when they sent me more details I realized I had to audition and my first impressions were I’m not going to do this because I’m married and we know what goes on in the house,” but he decided to audition after thinking about the exposure and money.

100% Ghanaian:

With the drama that preceded this year's show and selection process, Kacey Moore said he read a lot of comments and stories about the fact that the selected candidates to represent that country are not ‘Ghanaians’.

After the comments and stories, “the impression I got was he is not from here, he lives in South Africa so that makes him less of a Ghanaian that was the impression I went into the house with.”

“I’m a 100% Ghanaian, I’ve only been overseas for about eight years. I speak my language very well and when I got in the house, I was there as Kacey Moore the Ghanaian, I didn’t go there as a Ghanaian called Kacey Moore. I’m a Ghanaian and I don’t have to act a Ghanaian,” he stressed.

Asked if he thinks he has failed the country, the poet thinks otherwise and rather put the blame on people who “did not understand me. They did not understand Kacey Moore. They expected a ‘Ghanaian’ …first of all there was the idea that he is not from Ghana, he is a Nigerian and they just put him there and said he is Ghanaian.”

He observed that people were expecting him to live and behave in a certain way that he wasn't: “I couldn’t do that...I was not ready to go and become something else for $300,000.”

Life after Big Brother Africa:

For Kacey Moore, although he has been evicted from the Big Brother Africa reality show, the endless opportunities the show has provided are what he is going to tap into to build his future and career.

He revealed that he will continue writing poems and performing, saying he knows there are a lot of prospects in Ghana that he is ready to tap into.

Ghana’s chances in Hotshots:

With Kacey Moore out of the reality show, Ghana’s chances of winning the reality show for the first time now rests with M’am Bea.

He believes that the remaining Ghanaian representative stands a chance of winning the Hotshots if she keeps her composure.

“M’am Bea has a chance if her being calm is anything to go by, I think it can get her far. I believe, I pray and hope that she wins so that at least somebody can redeem the failure [that has bedeviled] Ghana [in the reality show].”

Even though he is no longer in the show, Kacey promised that he will start a campaign for M’am Bea to win.

GOSPEL MUSICIAN AMA BOAHEMAA HEADS FOR COURT

Gospel musician, Ama Boahemaa has threatened to sue anyone who accuse her of bleaching her skin.

She has also announced plans to take legal action against a journalist for allegedly distorting her image in order to put her in a bad light.

Social media was agog over the weekend when pictures emerged of a very fair looking Ama Boahemaa, she of the “Awurade wo ba 33ko” and “Bue kwan ma me”, looking very different from the black lady of the hit songs days.

In an interview with Nkosuohene of TopAfric Radio, Ms Boahemaa claimed her dramatic change in complexion was due to her love for milk. She also admits to ‘toning’ her skin.

Analysts and cosmetologists have however accused her of bleaching her skin to an almost white state for reasons best known to her.

Some media websites and blogs have posted ‘before-and-after’ photos of the gospel singer to prove she is bleaching.

While admitting that the person in the pictures is indeed the renowned Ama Boahemaa, she insists her facial expression has been touched up.

“I am not bleaching. I won’t deny the fact that the picture is mine but it does not look like me because the facial expression is different. I know that the person who took it has changed me totally. My lips have also changed.

“I don’t know why I should bleach. In fact I will sue the person if the picture is not removed from social media” she said on Adom FM Tuesday.

Ama Boahemaa urged her fans not to be disappointed by the actions of her ‘detractors.’