Enter your personal greeting

This interview was done at Asaase Ase studios in Dansoman, Accra, Ghana. Thanks to Tony for hooking this up. March 20, 2008.

Museke: Can you tell us about your background, family and education?
Samini: I grew up in Dansoman. I am born and bred in Accra. I attended Holy Family Catholic school at Mataheko, and then went to St Margaret Mary Secondary school. I have 6 siblings made up of 4 boys and 2 girls and I am the 4th born.

Museke: How did you get into music?
Samini: I got into music through personal inspiration and inspiration from other people. I also had advice from close observers that I grew up with. Before I got into secondary school, I knew he had the talent. After school, I started actively.
I had been doing stage performance in secondary school and even before that, especially after junior secondary school. I sang songs from Steel Pulse, Bob Marley, Beenie man, Buju Banton, etc.

Museke: What was your first big break?
Samini: The collaboration I had with Mary Agyepong, a song from her second album called ‘Twe no bre me’. I was introduced to her by Sonni Bali before he left for the UK. I continued working with Mary. More musicians wanted to feature me in songs. In 2004, I released my own album called Dankwansere. It was faced with a lot of challenges and criticism, and questions were asked whether I should stick to doing collaborations. Finally I had to come out and prove to the masses that I was worth standing alone.
2004 was a very good year, I won two Ghana music awards. It took me to the UK to perform to the Ghanaian community.

Museke: What are your most memorable features?
Samini: One is Aayefe notse with King David. When I went to the studio, I did a track with him and after that King David said there was another track he wanted me to work on. He convinced me to do it and then that track became the hit of the album.
Also Zaa-za and Suudwe, done with Kokovelli n K.K. Fosu. This brought about the formation of the Hiplife Trinity. We took over the hip-life scene, the collabos were the force that brought Batman to life.
Another one is Odwo with Ofori Amponsah. We met at the World cup in 2006 and went to the Bodo Steiger studio in Germany. We had gone there to go and honour invitations on events organized to mobilize the fans for the mundial.

Museke: Which African musicians did you listen to growing up? Or foreign?
Samini: Kojo Antwi. Salif Keita - could always relate to his voice anytime I heard it. Also Youssou Ndour, there was this particular video that they showed on GTV that always rang in my head. Listened to the late Lucky Dube as well.

Museke: Which African musicians do you idolize or admire (presently)?
Samini: Youssou Ndour is still climbing heights, I also like Tuface Idibia, Faze, HHP (Hip Hop Pantsula). I met HHP at the MTV Europe music awards, I may do a song with him.

Museke: How long did it take you to do your debut album? How did it do?
Samini: I had alwas wanted to record, I had a lot of songs but hadn’t recorded any yet. It took me 2 years to get the album together, the next album was in another 2 years and the third one is taking two years too.
Dankwansere did great in terms of popularity but the money didn’t really come. It gave me the stand that I can do my own thing, the right to prove to the rest of the masses that I could do music on my own. It brought me out as an artiste and it was successful.

Museke: Would you classify yourself as a hiplife artiste?
Samini: No. I am a musician who can do some hip-life. I do some reggae, dancehall, hip hop, etc.

Museke: Is the word Boi, buei or kpoi? Where did it come from? And where did Yagga yoi come from?
Samini: It is Gboi!
While I was coming out, I had to brand himself properly. I had to have that extra that could readily be attributed to me. On one recording day, it came out, I was doing freestyle. One of the engineers, Kwame G, said I should maintain it.
It signifies a gun shot, the wicked announcement for Samini.
Yagga yoi is a term in dancehall so anyone can use it. It’s like gboi, it comes out. Yagga yoi is more general.

Museke: What is the inspiration for the songs you write?
Samini: I realised that a musician is people’s mouthpiece, you have to speak for the people, your writing and singing must touch people’s real issues. Even if they are love songs, they must be tackled properly so that their emotional parts would be felt in the right way.

Museke: What was the idea behind the anniversary song?
Samini: It was a single, the album came out before Ghana@50. I did a single for the occasion, my former producer (Lexyfri) thought it wise to put it on the album. I did it on my own, own inspiration.

Museke: How did it feel to win the MOBO Best African Musician?
Samini: It felt great. It came with mixed feelings; it gives you a challenge, you have to keep up and stay up and prove that you deserve it. Something tells you at the back of your mind, do you want to keep on doing this, and then you have to tighten up and work extra hard.

Museke: What is your take on awards and the incident with Linda at the 2004 GMAs?
Samini: We don’t work for awards, we work for rewards for Zion, people gather themselves and judge thinking what they want to say. I don’t really target awards.
The biggest award you can get is when the vibe you want the people to get, they get. You can’t afford to misdirect or misinform people. These are the real issues that come into play when I am composing.
The Linda album had a lot of bashments, they said it was sexually suggestive and all that. Like a child grows up and picks up the wisdom, I only think I have to constructively write my songs so that I don’t get the bashments, but I can’t control it.

Check out part 2 of the interview here