Entertainment entrepreneur, Nana Yaw Wiredu aka Nana Yaw 18, has shared his pain over the decline of highlife presence in Ghana's music scene.

According to him, the industry's failure to acknowledge the pioneers of the music genre has contributed greatly to the situation.

“We killed our own genre because some people felt Reggie Rockstone didn’t deserve to own hiplife, or Zapp Mallet didn’t have a stake in it. That mindset hurt us,” he said on Channel One TV’s The Chat programme on Saturday, July 12, 2025.

He noted that ancient genres like heavy metal, funk, and electronic music have maintained relevance up to the Grammy level due to sustained support.

Unfortunately, Ghana failed in this area, which has led to the reason highlife is currently losing relevance.

“When you go to the Grammys, you’ll see categories like heavy metal, funk, and electronic music, and you’ll wonder if people still even do those genres. But they’re there because they’ve been sustained. That’s what Ghana failed to do with hiplife,” he said.

Ghana's vibrant music scene has been blessed with the rise of various genres that have shaped the cultural and social landscape of the nation.

One of the most influential of these is "Hiplife," a fusion of highlife, hip-hop, and African rhythms.

While Reggie Rockstone is celebrated as the founder of Hiplife, the contributions of Ghanaian producer Zapp Mallet have been unjustly overlooked, even though he played a crucial role in crafting the sound that defined this genre.

Meanwhile, the President of the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA), Bessa Simons, has announced plans to organize seminars aimed at reviving the fading identity of highlife music in Ghana.

Speaking on Atinka TV’s Entertainment Lounge, hosted by Odefour DiAsa Paapa, Simons expressed concern over the genre’s gradual decline, noting that while highlife remains widely recognized, it is losing its stronghold as Ghana’s signature music style.

“It is worrying,” he stated.

As part of efforts to preserve and promote highlife, MUSIGA is set to roll out a series of educational seminars to highlight the genre’s unique characteristics.

“We will start organizing seminars about highlife. We are also working on a documentary with Prof. John Collins for our Golden Jubilee to showcase how highlife has evolved over the years and the key elements that make it distinct,” Simons revealed.

He stressed that highlife is deeply rooted in Ghanaian culture and remains an integral part of daily life.

“Highlife music is played and consumed in every Ghanaian home. It is unique, and once you start singing on a highlife beat, everyone—whether Black or white—can relate to it,” he emphasized.

Simons further highlighted the genre’s rich instrumentation, pointing out its incorporation of various guitar styles such as Amponsah, Odo Nsor, and Dagomba rhythms.

“These elements are what make highlife special. That is why the seminar is very important—not just for Ghanaians but for anyone who wants to learn. Even in London, I saw white musicians traveling to Côte d’Ivoire to learn highlife guitar, and when they returned, they were playing highlife perfectly,” he noted.

Despite concerns over highlife’s diminishing prominence, Simons remains optimistic about its future. He acknowledged the contributions of renowned Ghanaian guitarists such as Odekro Kyekyeku and Aka Blay but stressed the need to train younger musicians to uphold the genre’s legacy.

“Fortunately, we have great guitarists like Odekro, Kyekyeku, and Aka Blay, who are holding the fort. But we need to start building the next generation so that Ghana can officially claim highlife as our musical hallmark,” he urged.