The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Maestro Africa Group, Francis Doku, has urged Ghana to position highlife music as a strong tourism product to attract more visitors to the country.
Speaking to Kwame Dadzie on Joy FM’s Showbiz A-Z, Francis, a seasoned culture and tourism practitioner, emphasised the need for Ghana to capitalise on highlife as a unique cultural asset.
“Does anybody travel to Ghana because of highlife? I think that is a question we need to ask. People travel to Jamaica because of reggae and it’s part of the tour that they go to,” he said.
Francis proposed that Ghana could develop a structured tourism strategy that incorporates highlife music into travel experiences.
“Can we have a strategy that says that at least if you come to Ghana you visit at least five homes or studios of the big highlife artistes as part of your package? So people will travel to Ghana because of that. At the moment it is not,” he added.
He also pointed out that Nigeria draws music lovers to Fela Kuti’s Shrine in Lagos, highlighting how other countries are successfully leveraging their cultural icons for tourism.
Highlife, which originated in Ghana in the early 20th century, blends African rhythms with Western instruments such as guitars and horns. It became the foundation for many contemporary African music styles and remains one of Ghana’s most significant cultural exports.
UNESCO is currently considering highlife for listing as an Intangible Cultural Heritage, a move that could elevate its global profile and attract even more cultural tourism to the country.
Francis Doku made these remarks during a discussion on how to preserve the legacy of Daddy Lumba, one of Ghana’s most celebrated highlife musicians.
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