HOGBETSOTSO SAGA

Shatta has been criticized on so many occasions for missing shows when he was billed to perform as a major and a headline artist. Recently talked about is the show that was organized by Ebony condoms in collaboration with Onua TV/Onua FM to mark the festival of Hogbetsotso in Anlo state in the Volta Region. The Asantehene, Ga Mantse, Kwahu Omanhene, The Vice President of the Republic of Ghana, and other important dignitaries were all present for the festival.

In a response to the criticism, Shatta Wale made a video on social media outlining the reasons he was absent from the show. Shatta disclosed that he made demands and agreements which were all agreed upon by both parties. The artiste claimed on social media that he agreed only to a radio interview from Onua TV by captain smart on his morning show. He made it clear to the organizers that he would not want to have any other radio or media tour or elaborate diplomatic exchange of pleasantries when he attends the festival. His only objective was to go and perform at the show for which he had charged a paltry sum. He claimed in the video that he made it crystal clear on several occasions about his demands and on that he agreed to perform. Shatta also claimed he only realized, later on, that his convoy had driven him to a radio station for a supposed interview which he never agreed to. That was when he realized he had been taken for granted so he would also pay the organizers in their own coin.

EGO A section of the Ghanaian populace believes that Shatta could have on moral grounds let down his ego a little and just offer the interview. The artiste in his video post said what even provoked him further was when he heard one of the organizers mention on the phone that if Shatta Wale did not attend the radio interview, he would not be taken to his hotel room. That statement broke the camel’s back and got the artiste so angry that he had to return to Accra. On this note, some think that Shatta could have just ignored the whole drama and just gone ahead with the radio interview and performed the show.

PRINCIPLE Shatta Wale said he and the organizers/sponsors of the show had an agreement that he was not going for any of those supposed interviews or pleasantries. So why on earth were the artiste and his entourage driven around town for close to supposedly 2 hours and finally ended up in the radio station for the supposed radio interview. Shatta kept repeating the phrase “agreement is agreement”. In Shatta’s statements, one could deduce that he did not expect any surprises and drama of going round in circles and not according to the outlined agreement and normal principle of business practice.

In the light of this, many have the view that, the artiste did the right thing by insisting on the agreed proceedings for which all parties penned their signatures on

CONCLUSION There are lots of questions to answer on the part of event organizers and performing artistes. Could there be some disconnect or disrespect between artistes and event organizers? Are event organizers giving Ghanaian artistes the same respect they give to their foreign counterparts? Should artistes give in to the whims of organizers even at the eleventh hour because they have the budget and the business? Is Shatta Wale setting the precedence for his colleagues to walk out of a deal at the last minute with the smallest provocation or is he setting the precedence for event organizers to respect the artistes’ craft and abide by the agreed terms and conditions of contracts to the letter?

Author: Andy Pratt