Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda: A Toxic Relationship Between Shatta Wale and The Music Industry.

Many have associated criminal or controversial behavior with dancehall music because of its traces to Jamaica. In fact, at some point in time, leading dancehall artistes in Jamaica embodied criminal figures and controversial characters over the years making the genre depict real-life situations on the streets and in shanty towns, rather than a figurative expression from an artiste’s point of view. It is almost akin to dancehall being for hard men, the tougher and badder in society or what we may collectively call ghetto or street anthems. However, some also argue the genre speaks on youth struggles and everyday life in deprived areas. Honestly, I reckon it is a valid point of view to an extent; perhaps due to its revolutionary roots. It is also quite evident how African dancehall artistes have subtly carried on the tradition of controversy after controversy, criminal charges, and lyrical threats amidst their revolutionary traits.

One such person is one of Ghana’s brightest shining stars Shatta Wale; who many have said has lost his luster in recent times. Influential, talented, entertaining, controversial, and legendary are words often attributed to Charles Nii Armah Mensah, also known as Shatta Wale FKA “Bandana, From Ghana.” The story of Shatta can be told to capture so many highs and lows. They say life only gives you one opportunity to make the most of it, but for Shatta, he had it twice, or perhaps he forced life to give him a second. Shatta’s story can be traced back to the early 2000s when he used to go by the name Bandana. The young, charismatic, and talented artiste was part of a group of artistes who were pushing the dancehall genre away from the dominance of Highlife and Hip-hop pmusic. Generally, the dancehall genre on the continent has been moving in a subtle wave beneath the mainstream genres on the African continent until the fusion of indigenous African sounds became a household tune within countries like Ghana and Nigeria. He secured one of the biggest hits at the time ‘Moko Ho,’ which to this day is a fan favorite and gets the crowd going bonkers at parties and events. He teamed up with other artistes like Madfish to serve Ghanaians some sweet music. However, he would be seen less and less until he became absent from the scene for years.

Years down the line, there would be a takeover of the streets by an artiste by the name of Shatta Wale, who was the very same Bandana who had been absent from the music scene for years. A typical breakout example was Shatta Wale’s 2014 hit track ‘Dancehall king‘ filled with elements of high tempo Highlife, Azonto sounds, and Dancehall rhythms to establish his position as a major contender for the ‘King of the African Dancehall’ title. With songs like ‘Kakai,’ ‘Shatta Movement and ‘Taking over,’ the dancehall badman would go on to quickly solidify his position as the hottest artiste in the country with one of the largest fanbases. His comeback would be met with a lot of love from the people who knew him from his days as Bandana and a younger demographic who loved his personality and his style. Proclaiming himself as the “Dancehall King,” Shatta would go on a spree of dropping hit songs which were almost everywhere. From the ghettos, pubs, schools, clubs, events, and media, you could not escape the Shatta Wale pandemic. Many have described his comeback as the biggest the country has ever seen. An article by Cultartblog, alluded Shatta’s drive to the fear of going back to the trenches.

It can be perceived that his publicity stunts and controversial nature is what makes him endearing to his fans beyond his music, as this can be said to be both his blessing and his Achilles heel. At a time when dancehall music itself has seen a sharp decline in consumption generally due to many once dominant stars fading out as a result of numerous controversies and incarceration, one will hope their African counterparts will carry the genre with a lot more modesty and decorum for some time. For an artiste like Shatta Wale, his revolutionary antics kicked off after a series of verbal attacks and diss songs (letters) to event management company Charter House and fellow dancehall artiste Kaakie after he (Shatta Wale) lost out to Kaakie for the best Reggae/dancehall song at the 2013 VGMAs. His attacks would extend to other dancehall artistes like Iwan and Samini, who would go on to reply through songs. Within few months, dancehall acts came out for a piece of the pie, eventually spotlighting the dancehall genre and its long tradition of beefs and fallouts. This saw the amplification of the careers of acts like Mzvee, Stonewboy, Iwan, Jupitar, the late Rudebwoy Ranking, Rashid Metal, Epixode, Ras kuuku, Masaani, and many others. The dominance of reggae-dancehall was so huge that Hiplife/Rap acts like Sarkodie, E.L., Edem, Eazzy, and 4×4 would hop on the reggae-dancehall-influenced wave with songs of their own.

In most parts of African societies, defiance and controversies constantly revolving around an artiste courts a lot of friction and creates room for passive and aggressive commentary for a musician in an emerging market, especially in circumstances where there is a perceived decline of the said artiste’s career. A section of the music community believes the controversial dancehall artiste Shatta Wale has lost the Midas touch to produce hit tracks as previously, due to his controversial lifestyle and numerous fallouts with his former compatriots and music industry key players despite his recent album MAALI garnering over a million streams on digital streaming platforms like Audiomack and charting number 3 on US iTunes reggae charts. Interestingly, other viewpoints suggest his career has taken a downturn after the biggest milestone of his career came courtesy the Beyoncè collaboration ‘Already.’ As expected, many envisaged more internationally worthy collaborations, an improved touring career, and even a life-changing record deal in the aftermath of this achievement but that hasn’t been the case, probably not yet. 

Every artiste, I believe, has a lifecycle and a phase, hence the need for evolution at a steady pace to catch up with the ever-changing music scene. After all, the only thing that remains constant in life is change. Frankly speaking, I do not subscribe to the rebrand of Shatta Wale’s controversial nature but it should rather come with evolution and refinement as is expected of every established artiste regardless of genre. In the last couple of years, there has been a lot more coverage of his supposed tough exterior and negative highlights than the promotion and marketing of his music and brand affinity. In sharp contrast, I believe Shatta Wale will argue he’s being painted negatively by the media, however, I find it puzzling how one builds a brand of “all publicity is good publicity” constantly in a negative light and expects positive PR or media coverage. Even though I believe the rebel brand suits his persona and should continue to assert himself as the dancehall boss not to be messed around with, his ulterior outlook on his career should evolve. He should be able to open up more for international collaborations and find accommodating ways to work with industry people and the media in general. 

I believe he should be more bag focused and eager to finish the work he has started in regards to breaking international barriers especially when there has been a major shift in what we know as African mainstream genres making waves internationally (Afrobeats). It is imperative for him to relook at what would and could be at this stage of his career..

Regarded as one of the most decorated and awarded artists from Ghana, many are of the view Shatta Wale has peaked locally yet underachieved, while others still believe his best days are yet to come. But what’s the actual case? That’s for you to answer.

Written by: Nana Kojo Mula & Allen Kwesi Adjei