There is no denying fact that Nambawan is one of the most revered artistes in the Upper East region when it comes to fan base and numbers. No wonder he controversially took home 20k which has since been a mirage to many with different uprisings daily in his name.
He was the only artiste to be acknowledged by Sammy Flex during the creative seminar for building a solid fan base in the region though there are other artistes in the region who have bigger fanbase, like Rockcity Bongo who have won “Fanbase Of The Year” consecutively.
As artistes meet with Sammy Flex to discuss their journey so far and the way forward, much anticipated on the list was the reigning HMB-UEMA Artist Of The Year, Nambawan who finally appeared to have an interaction with the seasoned media figure, Sammy Flex on his “Talk Show”.
Opening up on his feelings about being the reigning artist of the year, Nambawan affirmed that it is a great feeling but comes with a lot of responsibilities. He attests that there is a lot of pressure on the crown but that’s what helps him to be on his toes and to up his game. “It feels good sometimes to wear the crown but a lot of responsibilities as well. It’s a two-way thing, on one hand, it’s good, on the other hand, it comes with let me use the word pressure and it’s good” Nambawan stated emphatically.
Touching on the benefits of his title as the Artist of The Year, he acknowledged Happy Man Bitters for fulfilling their promise of giving the overall AoTY a cash prize of 20,000 cedis which he has received. He added some benefits come indirectly, which are the bragging rights as AoTY, sponsorship and ambassadorial deals, and a positive projection of his craft to the outside world which have him receiving numeral calls from many media houses wanting to know more about him.
He noted that he didn’t spend the money handed over to him extravagantly since he has always advised his team that this isn’t the time to enjoy the fruits of their labor but to still wait a bit. As a result, he decided to push all the money into projects he is currently working on which. He has managed to secure collaboration as well with Wiyaala and many more as he plans on releasing an EP which the money helped him a lot.
Deliberating on his next stop after conquering Upper East, Nambawan stated that this stage of his career to him is the introductory aspect, that this is the stage they have to work to convince the people that if they indeed throw their support on them, they wouldn’t disappoint them. He however made it clear that though he is not under pressure to move out of the region, he has started contacting some big wigs and very soon will be working with them. “I have started making some calls already to work with some of the big notches out there, to see how we could expand our wings to other parts of the nation not only Upper East. So hopefully next year, two when you go down to Accra, Kumasi, or anywhere when they mention Nambawan then it will also be a household name,” the reigning HMB-UEMA AoTY revealed.
Touching on his style of music and his uniqueness, Nambawan disclosed that he raps in the local language sometimes with a blend of the English language, Twi and Hausa. But the local language is where he is much focused on. He also revealed that most of his rap style is centered around the “kologo” music, a native two-string guitar popular among the people of the Upper East region.
Summing up his submission on the show with Sammy Flex, Nabawan shares his worry over the lack of exposure for artists from the Upper East which is kind of dragging down their efforts. He revealed that when it comes to talent, they have all it takes to rock shoulders with their counterparts out there but less is known or heard of them since they don’t have TV stations to also project them beyond their territories just like others. “Looking at the north, for instance, Tamale alone have about three TV stations and whatever they do something, someone somewhere in Accra will get to see it, but over here we don’t have even one when you fill a venue or does something extraordinary, it doesn’t go anywhere beyond your doorstep, the one or two bloggers I get small to settle them might voluntarily do it or might not but at the end of the day, the value remains same” Nambawan lamented.
He assured the host that he has done marvelously well in the year under review and doesn’t doubt the fact that he will still make an impact in this year’s edition of the awards scheme. He revealed he is convinced he can still defend his title as the AoTY as no artiste in the region has done enough work to match what he did and that even his songs in the previous years are even doing wonders than most of his colleagues.
Nambawan has addressed the controversies surrounding the industry, that specifically emanated from his win as the HMB-UEMA21 “Artiste Of The Year” in new music cautioned “20k Issues”.
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