On The Line: Gyakie talks about being pulled off stage

I did a performance at Republic Hall and

it was very terrible.

They pulled me off the stage, they wanted

me to leave and yes, I remember crying

when I went backstage.

[MUSIC] There is something about a phone call.

No cameras, no studio, just two people.

A connection and whatever truth sits between them.

I am Donald and this is On The

Line.

Today I called Gyakie.

Yes, the girl from Kumasi who turned the

campus dream into an international movement.

Daughter of a legend, I have to emphasise

on that.

But building her own name, one honest lyric

at a time.

I have been a fan since 2019.

A song called Never Like This found me

when I was going through the mill and

it hit me so different, we'll talk about

it.

So I had to tell her that story.

Let's see where this call takes us.

[PHONE RINGS] Hello?

Hi Gyakie, can you hear me?

Yeah.

How are you doing?

I'm doing good, how are you?

I'm doing good man, it's good to hear

from you today.

How's the day been so far?

It's been amazing.

Right, I can tell from your voice that

it's been really good.

So before I go ahead to say anything

else, I'm going to actually sing a song.

It's your song actually, but it's a song

that actually made me get to know your

music.

And I'm going to perform some real acapella

right now.

I don't have the best of the voices,

but I'll try.

So...

Okay.

Yeah.

Oh, you can join me in singing please.

I'm not good with my trees, so forgive

me.

Right, yes.

So this is actually the song that actually

got me to know your music and I

actually fell in love with your music with

this.

And this was as far back as 2019

June, I think it was in June if

I'm right.

Yeah, you're right.

So the main way I actually got to

find this particular music, it was on a

sad note actually.

And I'm going to tell you, yes, I'm

going to tell you the story of how

I heard the song.

And you know that funny thing about music

where it finds you in your most vulnerable

state.

Like yes, when you're actually really vulnerable and

all of a sudden it hits you.

So I was actually going through it because

like if I say going through it, you

should know how I mean with a broken

heart and songs.

Yeah, I was actually going through it that

time and this music actually found me and

that was how I got to discover your

music.

That's how it works, right?

Music finds you when you are not looking

for it, when you need it the most.

But I wanted to know when Gyakie writes,

is she pulling it from her own pain

or is she writing for ours?

I want to ask you, what is it

about your music with how you actually compose

it?

Is it directly from your experiences, personal experiences

or is it based off of stories that

you believe other people would actually blend to

it, like would understand it?

Most of the time it has to do

with something that I'm going through at that

time, that I'm in the studio or a

past experience or sometimes I just love to

write stories.

I write a storyline that I believe maybe

if a listener is going through that particular

experience, they would be able to relate to

the song.

So I could write a song about life

in general.

Maybe at that particular time, I'm not going

through a situation, but I just write the

story in a way that it will fit

into the listener's real life story as well.

Yeah.

Because I personally feel like most artists actually

write about love music.

They try to put our lyrics on love

and emotions and all that.

But with the kind of distinct thing you

put into your music, the unique angle, I

just want to understand what the angle is.

Whenever you make music, whenever you actually go

into the studio to record, what is the

first thing that actually comes to mind before

you make the music for your audience?

The first thing that comes into my mind

before I record music.

I need to read the question again.

Okay.

So let's say you have a song written

down, right?

And you believe the song is actually going

to your fans.

You know how your fans move and how

they love your music and everything.

What is that one thing that comes into

mind in terms of the pitch, in terms

of the style, the tone and everything to

get the music together and put it out

there for your fans?

Right.

Most of the time, I'm able to write

music really well when I fall in love

with the beats.

Okay.

So I'm able to pick a lot of

influences from the production.

And when I keep listening to the beat

over and over again, that is where I'm

able to know what I want to talk

about, how I want it to go.

And sometimes I even involve myself in the

production as well.

So there we have it.

She actually writes from experience, but she also

writes with intention, crafting stories that can hold

somebody else's truth.

That's made me curious.

With all that honesty in her pen, has

she ever written something too personal to release?

Let me ask you this interesting question.

Have you ever actually held back a song,

like maybe you recorded a song and you

felt like this song is very too personal

or too vulnerable to release?

And how does that debate in your mind

look like?

Brush me through that feeling.

How does it feel like?

Well, I have a couple of songs that

are extremely intimate.

It's like for bedroom activities, those have not

come out yet.

I feel like I need to tap into

a very, very bold realm for those tracks

to come out.

So those are some records that after I

finished making, I was like, let me hold

on to this for a while because it's

too explicit.

Yeah.

So those are the kind of tracks I'm

still holding.

Hey, please don't hold those.

Some of us are waiting for those kind

of songs.

Don't do that.

We're waiting for the songs, you know, but

okay, let's play some fun, interesting game.

Like, can you actually sing like two lines

out of a particular song like that?

So we get to know how, you know,

come on.

My people would like to hear that.

We would hear it at the right time.

Yeah.

Yes.

What an interesting way to find out.

She is holding the heat.

Bedroom music.

She's not ready to share yet.

I respect that.

But the music she has released like the

After Midnight album.

Now that's where I wanted to go next.

Specifically, a collaboration I didn't see coming.

Let's come to After Midnight.

I've listened to After Midnight a couple of

times, and one of the features I wasn't

expecting was with Omar Sterling.

And to be honest, I listened to Omar

Sterling a lot.

And when I heard him on Y2K, I

was like, oh no, like my two people

on one favourite song.

How did it happen?

Like, I'm very curious.

Yeah, I have been a, I had payday

fan.

Exactly.

You know, from the payday days, like I'm

actually jazzy, but it's very funny how I

really follow Omar Sterling from back in the

days.

I really love him actually.

Yes.

I love the fact that you like him

as well.

That means our energies is right.

Exactly.

Yes.

I've been a fan of his music.

I've always wanted to, you know, jump on

a record.

I do have a song with R2B, but

it wasn't with Payday only.

That was Need Your Love.

That dropped in, I think, 2022.

I was always yearning for a record with

Omar Sterling, and I knew it was going

to happen at the right time.

Yeah.

So I did the record already.

We didn't do it together.

I did the record and then big shouts

to Ultra Nova.

He produced it.

So when I finished, I was trying to

see which rapper would actually sit so well

on it.

And he was the first name that came

to mind.

So I reached out to him.

We went to his studio, played him the

track, and he was in love with it.

So he recorded his verse right there that

evening as well.

And then the track was brought to life.

Wow.

That's very interesting.

And there's one thing I actually noticed with

that particular record, is the fact that you

sampled your father's song, Music Legend, and now

it's Champon.

And how did that hit you, like, after

you were done with the song?

Because I want to find out the reason

why you actually sampled that particular song from

your father.

What was the inspiration behind that?

Okay.

So now the name of the song is

Y2K Love, which is the year 2000, which

is old school, which is vintage, which is

nostalgia.

Now the sample coming in was me trying

to sprinkle some creativity, you know, okay, the

song is done, but what can we also

add or take out to make people really

feel that nostalgia?

I wanted to make that track really feel

old school.

Right.

It actually really felt old school.

And the mix was actually crazy.

Big ups to the person who had done

that.

I really like it so much.

Yes, absolutely.

So sampling my dad's song on it just

made so much sense because, I mean, we

don't have a separate record on the album.

So it was only right.

So I called my dad and then, you

know, I did the necessary things that had

to be done.

Yeah.

Yeah.

The musical memory and all that.

We had to go through it.

Yes.

And then we were able to have a

sample done and it sounded so, so perfect.

So yes, Y2K of that album, I must

admit, is one song I truly love.

And sampling her father's music, collaborating with her

favourite rapper, that's legacy meets an ambition.

But there was another feature of the album

that even caught her off guard.

Let's find out.

Looking at the album after Midnight, were there

any collaborations in there that actually surprised you,

even until now, how they turned out?

That will be Party Galore with Kojo Radikal.

When I sent him the song and he

sent his best, I was asking myself why

would you, why would you do this to

me on the song?

Why?

Is it in terms of the delivery?

In terms of the flow?

He killed his verse.

So his verse is like a whole different

song on its own.

Oh yeah.

That guy, that guy is treacherous.

So I was so, so, so like hyped

when I heard his verse.

He really puts in a lot, even with

the backings that he did.

He actually carried the whole song.

His verse is my favourite song on Party

Galore, that record, yeah.

She is collaborating with her best, but Gyakie

didn't get her by accident.

She came up with an industry that doesn't

always make space for women.

I wanted to know what that journey has

really been like.

So I went ahead to ask her.

There's this notion about women in music right

here in Ghana.

And I want to understand from your perspective

as a female artist right here in Ghana,

how has the journey been for you so

far?

I've had an interesting one.

I've had a very interesting journey from being

on campus and doing music and school and

also having to move around a lot because

I live in Kumasi.

So I always had to be going on

to the other regions, you know, to promote

my music and all of that.

And being a female, like you mentioned as

well, it takes some extra efforts to do

certain things because, you know, it's really male

dominated and people, people, I feel like people

don't really pay attention to the females as

much as they do.

You know, like I'm not the only person

that has dropped a project.

We have other female artists that have dropped

albums and EPs.

They've done shows, but their attention is not

as heavy, you know, as it is.

But yeah.

That's actually true.

Now back to, you mentioned you schooled at

KNUST and during your entire journey at Tech,

did you actually have difficulty in performances on

campus?

Because as a student of Lagon back then,

like it was actually quite difficult for, you

know, students to put out their stuff there,

like as female artists, you know, I wasn't

really seeing female artists actually hit the stage

and all that.

But how was that journey for you back

in Tech?

Like, were you having that kind of, you

know, environment where people were receptive to your

music coming up as an artist?

When I dropped my first song, Love is

Pretty, I did a performance at Republic Hall

and it was very terrible.

Why was it terrible?

They pulled me off the stage.

They wanted me to leave.

And yes, I remember crying when I went

backstage, but the reception on the grounds in

terms of online, when the song dropped, you

know, my classmates, some of the people I

knew on campus, the reception was very, very

amazing.

But I remember very well, Republic Hall week,

when I went to perform and I was

pulled off the stage by so many people

in that crowd.

Wow.

Now that crowd, we actually have to look

for each and every one of them, put

them in the front row when you're performing,

because they have to understand now what we're

going through right now, what we are doing

on stage and everything.

They need to understand.

Absolutely.

Yeah, they really need to understand.

But I'm so sorry about that.

But I mean, that actually helped in shaping

your craft to be to be a better

musician now that we appreciate you so much.

And yeah.

So have you ever experienced any moments as

a female artist that like, aside school, right?

Because you've actually spoken about that.

So right now, main stage, Gyakie's everywhere.

Everybody's loving your music and everything.

Have you ever felt uncomfortable in a way

that you had to navigate differently because you

were a woman and you were trying to

put your voice out there through your music?

Can you be specific with any moments aside

like what you actually experienced through school?

As in if I've had an awkward experience?

Yes, an awkward experience.

As a female artist?

Yes.

No, not really.

I don't think I've had that, you know,

the kind of things that people do talk

about.

I've not experienced it yet.

I wouldn't wish that on anybody, you know,

but it's just maybe the only difference would

be I just feel like females also need

to get the same type of energy that

is given to, you know, male artists as

well, because the girls are also working very

hard.

The girls work really, really hard.

Yeah.

So I think that's the only thing when

it comes to being a female artist.

Yes, I must admit the ladies out here

making good music work really, really hard.

But to be pulled off stage, cried backstage

and still kept going.

That's the part people don't see, the moments

before the spotlight finds you.

So I ask her, for the women coming

up now, what's the real advice she has

for them?

So speaking about the girls working hard, right?

There are a lot of, you know, upcoming

female musicians and all that, you being Gyakie

now, what advice would you actually give to

female artists, you know, coming up here in

Ghana?

My advice I'll give to female artists is

don't settle for less, and don't be sleeping

with people you work with.

Don't be doing that.

Don't be sleeping with people you are working

with, whether you're a producer, your manager, your

team, your creative director, anybody that you have

a working relationship with.

Yes, okay.

So if your manager is your husband and

there's a working relationship, that one, then?

I mean, you know, that one is a

different situation.

Yeah, it's a different situation.

The ones where you as a female, you

feel like you want to do that in

exchange of getting a slot on stage, or

in exchange of getting a song produced for

you for free, or in exchange of being

invited to a certain event.

If that is your mentality, it is not.

You are going to have trouble in the

future.

So you need to really don't settle for

less.

And if you have the talent, there's a

reason you have it.

You just have to keep doing it.

I know sometimes it sounds annoying to say

keep doing it, but really and truly, the

only thing is to just keep doing it.

And not settle for less.

Don't settle for anything less.

Yeah.

I do side with her on this one.

Nobody should settle to be a denominator.

Straight talk, no filter.

That's Gyakie.

But before I let her go, I had

to ask, what does she really want people

to hear when they listen to After Midnight?

What is one thing with After Midnight, the

album, that you wish more people would actually

pay attention to or talk about when it

comes to After Midnight?

The lyrics.

I think people need to see the kind

of efforts I put in my songwriting.

Because most of the songs on the album,

I wrote myself.

I did have a few co-writers on

two or three tracks, but the majority of

the songs on the album I wrote.

And I think people need to just not

listen to the tracks.

But also pay attention to the lyrics because

there's some storylines in there.

There's words of motivation.

You know, there's love songs.

There's a gospel track as well.

And yeah, so they should basically listen and

enjoy, but also pay attention to the lyrics

as well.

That is very interesting to know.

She wrote most of the songs on her

album.

That is true pen game.

The lyrics.

That's what she wants you to catch.

We wrapped up with some fun stuff.

What's she listening to right now and what's

coming next?

Here's what she had to say.

Let me ask you a fun thing.

What are you listening to right now aside

your very own music you make?

Are there any, you know, artists in Ghana

here, both, you know, underground and, you know,

up there?

In Ghana here, currently I'm actually going to

my music app right now as we're talking

so that I can give you like real

time.

In Ghana, I'm actually loving, I don't know

if you know this lady called, what's her

name?

Please give me a second.

Hold on.

A second, a second, a second.

I got you.

I got you.

I have all the time for you.

I'm waiting.

Oh, how could I forget your name, girl?

Well, anyways, I'm not remembering her name and

I'm trying to check the list, but I

don't know where her name has gone to.

Yeah, that's fine.

Can you perform any of her lyrics if

you remember any?

I think I'm under pressure right now, so

my mind is blank.

Oh, relax, relax for me, relax for me.

Yes, yes.

So there's a lot of good new artists

that have come out.

Yeah.

Oh, jeez, I need to find her name.

Yes, she's called Ria Boss.

Oh, okay.

I'll look her up.

Please, you need to.

Ria Boss, you would love Ria Boss if

you love like Sade.

Oh yeah, I listen to Sade too.

Yes, if you love Adele.

She is a very, very soulful R&B

and her live performances are very, very strong.

Wait, can you help me with the spelling

of her name?

Let me try and look her up.

Yeah, R-I-A-B-O-S-S

Boss.

Okay, yeah.

Ria Boss, yeah, yeah.

Listen to her song called...

Oh, she's from Paris.

Somali, her song called Somali Girl.

Okay, I will check her out.

I mean, we have kind of a similar

taste in music, so I know you're putting

me on game.

Yes.

Yeah, I'll check her out.

She is really good.

Recently too, I chanced on one guy that

I loved his music as well.

So all these names are leaving my head

right now.

We have some good, good, good talents out

here.

Yeah, that's nice to hear that you're listening

to these very good artists out there.

But before you leave, can you give us

a sneak peek of what you're working on

for this year, what we should expect?

Yes, so the album, like I said, 17

tracks is a lot of work.

We're not done with the album.

We're still pushing it.

Oh, so there's an album coming.

Look at you, I'm talking about the same

album.

Right, right.

I thought you were talking about a different

album.

Wow, you guys want me to breathe?

Yeah, we are on your necks for good

music.

We are on your necks for good music.

Yeah, right, right.

Understandable.

Anyways, I'm talking about the After Midnight album.

We're still shooting videos.

Videos, oh, okay.

A visualiser is coming out.

You know, we've not dropped any music video

for any of the collaborations.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, that I know.

A visualiser for Party Galore.

That is, yeah, but we are shooting music

videos and there's going to be more content.

We're also going to be, we're going to

be playing shows as well outside.

Oh, nice.

And yeah, the main focus is the album.

And we're going to be dropping singles on

the side, you know, just to spice things

up.

Yeah, yeah.

And drop some collaborations as well.

So there's going to be more Gyakie this

year.

Oh, nice.

I'm looking forward to that.

My mind is dead for that.

So we'll be out here waiting.

But thank you so much for joining me

on the line, man.

It's been a wonderful conversation.

And do enjoy the rest of your day.

Likewise.

Yeah, always remember that we're here.

We love the stuff you're doing, Charlie.

Keep pushing.

Thank you.

You're welcome, man.

Thank you so, so much.

Bye.

So there you have it, guys.

Gyakie pulled off stage once, now selling out

shows, writing her own songs and holding music

she isn't ready to share yet.

Eventually, we will get to hear them.

And still figuring it out, just like the

rest of us.

That is what I love about these calls.

You get the person behind the sound.

That was Gyakie on the line.

If this conversation meant something to you, share

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