Top 10 Popular Ghanaian Music Artists

The Ghanaian music industry has evolved tremendously in recent years. This change is being driven by several Ghanaian music artists. Like many other African music artists, Ghanaian musicians have blended traditional and modern music to create beautiful genres.

The country has a popular music style called hiplife that seems to be a favorite of Ghanaians. This Ghanaian musical style uses hip hop with Ghanaian culture. There is a long list of music artists in Ghana that are shaping the industry. Below is our list of the top 10 best musicians from Ghana.

The 10 Best Ghanaian Music Artists

1. Sarkodie

Sarkodie, a celebrated rapper in Ghana and Africa. Photo credit – Sarkodie

Sarkodie is a celebrated African rapper and one of the top Ghanaian music artists. His real name is Michael Owusu Addo. He is also a songwriter and an entrepreneur. Sardokie has contributed immensely to the Ghanian music industry.  This has made him quite popular.  In fact, he is considered one of the most successful rappers in Ghana and Africa.

This music star has won many awards.  His contribution and influence in Ghana’s music industry earned him the “Artiste of the Decade Award” during the 2019 Vodafone Ghana Music Awards. In the same year, he was also recognized as the first winner of the BET’s Best International Flow Artist during the BET Hip-hop Awards.

This Ghanian music star was born in 1988 and began his music career in 2005.  He specializes in 3 music genres: Hip hop, Hiplife, and Afrobeats.  He also collaborates with other artists.  Currently, he is signed with the Duncwills label.

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2. Reggie Rockstone

Reggie Rockstone. Photo credit – Scooper

Reggie Rockstone is another Ghanian rapper born in 1964.  He was born in the UK but he, later on, moved to Ghana. After pioneering the Hiplife or Kasarasara music in 1991, Ghana became his home.  Hiplife is a unique African genre in Ghana’s capital, Accra.

Rockstone is a natural performer.  In 2004, he performed with the legendary Shaggy in a performance that was graced by about 50,000 people.  In the same year, he won The Best African Video Award during The KORA All Africa Music Awards.

Rockstone has recorded a track with Jamaican Dancehall Singer, Beenie Man. Unknown to many, Reggie is also a trained actor. His real name is Osei, and he performs in both English and Twi languages. Rockstone has had the opportunity to perform in West Africa, the UK, France, the US, and Switzerland.

3. Efya

Efya, a popular Ghanaian musician. Photo credit – Dklassgh

Efya, whose real name is Jane Awindo, features in our list of the best Ghanaian music artists.  Songwriting and acting are also in her domain. The 1990-born musician began her singing career in 2008.

Efya became popular when she participated in the maiden edition of the ‘Stars of the Future Talent Show.’ The performance saw her win the ‘best female Vocal Performance Category.’  This was at the ‘Ghana Music Awards.’  The winning went on 4 times in succession.

Efya specializes in the Neo-soul, Afro-soul, pop, and Jazz genres.  In 2016, she got signed to Wizkid’s Starboy entertainment. Her “Forgetting me” single, which is about love and heartbreak is one o the songs that made her very popular in Ghana.

Efya mainly sings from personal experiences.  Over the years, this music star has garnered many awards.  These include the African Female Artist of the Year, Best International Female African Act, and Most Stylish Music Artiste of the year among others.

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4. Shatta Wale

Shatta Wale. Photo credit – Urbanislandz

He is a Ghanian music artist specializing in reggae and dancehall. He was born in 1984. Shatta wale, whose real name is Charles Nii Arma Mensah Jr., was at first known as Bandana. Dancehall King, My Level, and We Taking Over are Shatta’s most popular singles.

These songs made him win The Artiste of the Year award in 2014 during the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards. This Ghanaian music artist is also an actor. He appeared in the films: Never Say die, The Trial of Shatta Wale, and Shattered Lives.

Shatta is one of the most influential Ghanaian musicians. He was among ETV’s top most influential Ghanaians in 2014. He also emerged as the most influential musician on social media in 2017.  This Ghanaian music sensation and actor set the record in 2019 when he won 11 awards at the 3 Music Awards as the dancehall artist.

5. Batman Samini

Batman Samini. Photo credit – Glusea

He also goes by the stage name Batsami or just Samini. His real name is Emmanuel Andrews Sammini. He was born in Accra. Batman is a great performer. His stage performances are so electric that they make his audiences feel like they are part of them. He either performs with a live band or just freestyle.

This thrilling Ghanaian music artist got his music career starting in 1999. He then chose dancehall, reggae, and hip-hop genres.  Before starting his record label, Samini was with Ashanti International. Samini’s popularity began when his very first single, “Linda,” was released. It was so successful that it appeared on other successful singles by other artists.

Samini has performed alongside other music celebrities. Some of these are; Sean Paul, Akon, Shaggy, Wyne Wonder, and Jay-Z. He has won awards like; Best African Act, African Artiste of the Year, and the ReggaeVille2018 album of the year.

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6. Stonebwoy

Stonebwoy. Photo credit – Unorthodoxreviews

Stonebwoy, the CEO of Burniton Music Group, specializes in the dancehall, Afro-pop, and reggae music genres. His real name is Livingstone Etse Sakela. Stonebwoy has been described as the king of reggae and dancehall artists in Africa, and for good reason. In the 2015 BET Awards, he won The Best International Act. In the same year, at the Ghana Music Awards, he took home two Billboard Plagues.

Stonebwoy is an actor too. He has appeared in “Happy Death Day” and “My name is Ramadan” movies. The Ghanaian music artist is also a global ambassador for sanitation. In September 2019, he became the brand ambassador for Volcanic Natural mineral water. Techno Mobile Ghana has also made him their brand ambassador.

The 33-year-old has been musically active since 2009. He realized his music and acting talents at an early age. His music was exposed to the world he recorded his first hit single, ‘Climax’ and ‘Ghetto Love.’ The songs got him nominations at the Ghana Music Awards.

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7. R2 Beez

R2 Bees. Photo credit – Hhgossip

R2 Bees is a Ghanaian hiplife and hip hop duo made up of two cousins – Faisal Hakeem and Rashid Mugeez. The duo, who are cousins, specialize in hip-hop, hip-life, afro-beats, and highlife. Hakeem and Rashid were both born and brought up in Tema, Accra.  Hakeem is the CEO and leader of the group. Mugeez is the lead vocalist. As they were growing up, the cousins lived in the same house and went to the same schools.

R2 Beez’s music journey started when they were still in school. They represented their school in rap and other interschool music contests. When they participated in a radio competition Kasahare, they won most of the shows. They were known as Buzz then.

These Ghanaian music artists released their first single in 2008. It is titled ‘Yawa Gal’ and was an instant hit. When they released ‘I Dey Mad,’ it topped the charts across Ghana for weeks. R2 Beez sing and rap in their native languages Twi and Pidgin

8. Fuse ODG

Fuse ODG. Photo credit – WorldRemit

Fuse ODG is a Ghanaian English Afro-beats recording artist. Born in south London, England, in 1988, fuse ODG’s real name is Nana Richard Abiona. Best known for his singles “Antenna” and “Dangerous Love,” Fuse combines genres like Afro-pop, hip-hop, R&B, Funk, and rock. That is where his name Fuse comes from – fusion. ODG means ‘Off-Da-Ground.’

In 2013, this Ghanaian music artist won the awards at the Urban Music Awards. That is The Best Music Video, Best Single, Best Artiste, and Best Collaboration. Fuse ODG currently uses his platform to change Africa’s image. He is now a global star.

9. Daddy Lumba

Daddy Lumba. Photo credit – Daddy Lumba Instagram

Daddy Lumba is a well known Ghanaian music artist.  He was born in 1964 as Charles Kwadwo Fosu and is said to be among the greatest Ghanaian musicians of all time.  Besides being a musician, Lumba is a producer and a songwriter. With his dad dying when he was a child, Lumba was mainly brought up by his mother.

Unfortunately, she also died in 2001, leaving Lumba devastated.  For that reason, he sang many songs in dedication to her. Lumba’s music career started when he was 16.  He was by then the leader of his high school choir.  After high school, he traveled to Germany where he met Earnest Nana Achempong.

Ernest introduced him to high life music, and together they formed a group, Lumba Brothers. Lumba has released at least 33 albums.  He is one of Ghana’s most popular singers in the highlife genre.

10. Medikal

Medikal. Photo credit – Myjoyonline

Medikal, whose real name is Samuel Adu Frimpong, is another popular Ghanaian music artist.  He is also known as MDK or AMG Medikal, and he was born in 1993, in Accra. Samuel’s stage name Medikal comes from his love of the medical world. He likes rapping about doctors, surgeons, medical practitioners, and hospitals.  He collaborates with many successful artists.

Medikal is a hardworking artist.  In 2017, both he and Sardokie had the highest nominations in the Ghana Music Awards. He has also won the Best Discovery Video in the MTN 4Syte Video Award in 2016. Medikal specializes in the hip-hop and Afro-beat genres. He is also a rapper and a songwriter.

Conclusion

These Ghanaian music artists are going places. Their popularity in Ghana and beyond is indeed a result of hard work. This has made them known not just in Ghana but across Africa and the world as well. Many are now looking into creating songs with Arica in mind. They also look forward to more collaboration with international musicians. As they strive to achieve their goals, many aspiring and upcoming musicians in Africa look up to them for inspiration.