EL might not be that famous and receiving all attention and hype but he is certainly better than lot of these lame rappers who happen to be find themselves in the frontier of hip music in Ghana. The artist cum producer with his Skillions crew turned out to be the toast of the crowd last Thursday night at the famous OSU joint, Baze Lounge. ‘Bless The Mic’ has come to stay and recognised as an avenue where creative arts and its lovers converge in a common interest every other week.
In a country where people pay no attention not even to talk about appreciating and loving the arts, sessions like the ‘BTM’ will need extra commitment and hard work to maintain its current vibrant status. As the norm, the crowd had started trooping in but will hang out in the parking lot for hearty conversations over drinks, others occasionally stepped in and out the session arena to be sure they don’t miss out on any part of the acts.
Just after 11 pm, the ‘supremo’ who people hadn’t seen much off stepped to the parking lot to signal the commencement of the night’s session. P-Wizzy was largely in charge and wouldn’t hasten to chant the BTM slogan which left the crowd with no option than to respond.
Rhyme Sonny got the spoken word segment started with a brief but rhyming poem. He signed off with this Twi verse about a lady which sounded more like his personal experience. Percy Mutombo came through with a poem chronicling the experience of a guy who had defied all odds to go for greener pastures in Europe. His delivery was just breathtaking leaving almost the entire crowd on their feet with applauds. Mutombo vindicated himself as one of the greatest spoken word artists around advising all of the dangers travelling abroad.
There was a full house with many personalities of the arts in attendance. Reggie Rockstone was in the audience, enjoying the night inside the bar as he occasionally dropped points to Kwaku Tutu and Eddie Blay. His Royal Blackness, DJ Black wouldn’t let his video recorder rest as he made sure every second of the night was well captured.
P-Wizzy was back to introduce the man of the night, this he did in a grand style calling out the ‘DON’. EL looking very relaxed and psyched up for the performance picked up the mic. His Skillions family needed no invitation to join their soldier. EL performed back to back cuts on his upcoming album, a combination of pidgin and rock-solid hip hop flavours.
With the presence and support of comrade, Jay-So, EL drove his fans to scream and ask for more. ‘Gossip’, a cut he performed with Lil Shaker seemed to have worked up on the crowd. ‘Charley’ was just an icing on the cake as he got the crowd to go all out with him till he ended. His body language as well as movement revealed EL was enjoying the moment. His great microphone technique and stage craft added made for perfect delivery. For an artiste who has largely remained in the underground, this performance was a stamp of authority for all emcees that have been cat napping on the way.
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