Music is arguably the most potent tool for influencing global culture. While the industry has seen unprecedented growth in the last two decades on the African continent, it has struggled to be professional in many aspects of its dealings.
There have been instances of song theft, poor artist management and copyright infringements to slow down the fast-growing industry.
The most worrying is the recent arrogance exhibited by music artists who fail to show up for events after receiving their payments in full.
These artists inadvertently, if not deliberately, damage the credibility of show promoters and hurt their reputation. Should this continue, fans will stop attending live shows since there is no guarantee that the artists will turn up.
In August, this year, Nigerian music star, Kizz Daniel failed to perform in Tanzania, with fans said to have paid up to $5,000 to watch the singer perform at a concert.
Angry fans at the venue, after learning that the singer was not coming to the show, allegedly destroyed facilities at the venue. It was learnt that Kizz Daniel landed in Tanzania all right for the show, but he claimed he could not perform as he forgot his bag containing clothes and other valuables in Uganda.
He later performed for free for his fans in Tanzania after the disappointment.
Ghanaian music fans have had their own share of musicians who fail to turn up for events. Just recently, Dancehall artiste Shatta Wale failed to show up at the concert to climax the 2022 Hogbetsotso festival 60th-anniversary celebration.
Shatta Wale in a video on his Facebook page explained that he was called for an interview at a radio station which he declined, since it was not part of the agreement between the organisers and his management.
He said the organisers later informed his team that they would not take him to his hotel room if he did not grant the interview. He then decided not to perform as he felt disrespected.
The organizers have also given a contrary rendition of his failure to show up. Â The Dancehall musician has, however, recently apologised to the sponsor of the event.
Last Saturday, December 10, 2022 fans and patrons who attended the much-anticipated Wizkid Live concert at the Accra Sports Stadium were left disgruntled as the man whose performance they bought tickets to enjoy, failed to perform.
Entertainment is a good way of making us avoid stress, since all work and no play, they say, makes Jack a dull boy. Most of the music revelers were, therefore, at the event to unwind after a long week in the offices and various places of work.
The ticket for the concert ranged from GH¢275 for General entry, GH¢600 for VIP and GH3,000 for Premium. Music Patrons and lovers of Wizkid purchased various tickets for the event, yet the main artist who was used to headline the event failed to appear, for reasons unknown, leaving all those who were present at the venue disappointed and stranded.
The fans were forced to wait for long hours till after 4am when the main act failed to show up. It is still unclear why the artiste was a no-show to the event as a few hours prior to the start, he confirmed his attendance via a Twitter post.
The organizers of the show, LiveHub, have issued an apology to patrons. In a statement on the morning after the flopped event, they said Wizkid breached his contractual obligations and have promised to refund to patrons who paid for tickets.
As we all know, we are in the festive season and a lot of such programs have been planed throughout the month to the New Year. The Chronicle would like to say that it is very important for event promoters and performers to take their contracts serious.
People pay to go and watch their favorite Artists perform and should not be left disappointed due to contractual breaches..
Organizers of such shows should put measures in place to prevent this from happening again.
The Chronicle wants this particular incident to be looked into, and appropriate measures taken to deal with the erring parties to serve as a deterrent for future events.
