2 Months in Ghana
Why am I in Ghana?
I’ve been in Ghana for over two months now and I’ve finally made the time to share some of my favourite parties, spots and music that I’ve discovered since being here. But before we get into that, it’s quite important for me to talk about why I’m even here. 2022 has been a year, to say the absolute least. I started the year in Ghana with my ex and her family. I had a very layered time on that trip but one thing I was left with was the overwhelming feeling that I needed to be in Ghana for much longer than just 3 weeks.
When that relationship ended, I definitely knew I needed a complete change of scenery and lifestyle. I just needed to put myself first. So going home in October started to feel like the light at the end of a very dark tunnel. As the months went on and I passed through the varying stages of grief after a breakup, going to Ghana felt less like an escape and more like a vital step in reconnecting with myself. My spirit was being called home, in ways I’ve never experienced before. In September, I found out that my Grandma, who lived in Ghana was in hospital so I knew that prioritising spending time with her was incredibly important. Now that she has unfortunately passed away, I’m so glad I listened to my spirit. I got to spend a lot of time with her this year. I was her last grandchild to see her alive. I also feel like she waited for me to come home before she passed. So amidst all the sadness, I feel so blessed.
*rewinds back to my pre-October feelings*
Slowly but surely, my life became more and more untethered from London. I spent a lot of time feeling incredibly anxious about leaving and wondering about what I was leaving behind. But as October 2nd rolled ever closer, it felt like the universe cleared the path of inflexible jobs, strained friendships and a beautiful yet complex romantic situation and I left for Ghana feeling like I was making the best decision possible. I was finally putting my needs first.
A few days before my flight departed I got a really amazing professional opportunity to do research for a dream brand in Accra about youth culture and the creative scene here. So as I said before, things really fell into place. So here I am, running on vibes, working, meeting new people, hanging out with my family and taking care of myself.
Reality of life in Accra
So I want this piece to be balanced and fair in its illustration of what it’s like living in Accra. I also acknowledge my privilege in being a child of the diaspora and not experiencing a lot of the hardships that local Ghanaian people are facing. If you take a look at my social media, Accra looks lit. And it is, but I don’t want to romanticise what life is like here. Ghana has incredibly good PR on the global stage but the lived realities of the people here tell a different story.
Let me give you a quick run through of a handful of the issues Ghana is facing right now:
The Government and the Economic Crisis. The NPP Party led by Nana Akufo-Addo, has led the country into a state of economic ruin. Ghana has the second highest level of economic borrowing in Sub-Saharan Africa. Couple this borrowing with the value of the cedi depreciating at an alarming rate and youth employment rising (Statistica, 2021)…it’s very peak out here.
So we have an economic crisis and we also have a rising inflation rate. So everything from food, fuel and transport are tangibly more expensive. Reactions to this are best described through these tweets compiled by one of my fave Instagram accounts Ghana Twitter.
Source - Ghana Twitter (Tweet 1)
Source - Ghana Twitter (Tweet 2)
It would be short sighted of me to not highlight the Anti LGBTQ+ legislation and conversation that is popular in some circles of Ghanaian society. I’m going to talk more about the creative scene later on but I’ve definitely found myself in a bit of a bubble full of creative, open minded people. This bubble bursts quickly when I read about the Ghanaian government’s inhumane “Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill". Organisations like Rightify Ghana and LGBTQ Rights Ghana are doing amazing campaigning work.
I think it’s important from a diasporan’s point of view to not perceive Ghana wearing “the motherland” tinted glasses. This is especially pertinent as we now are in December. In the next few weeks people from the UK and US are going to descend into Accra in search of a good time. Detty December has been prominent in Accra and Lagos for the past few years. “The Year of Return'' which kicked off in 2019 has delivered Ghana’s biggest tourism spike ever. According to BBC News, Ghana saw a 45% increase in tourism in 2019 compared to the previous year. This pumped a staggering $3.1billion into the Ghanaian economy (Statistica, 2021). But the issue with Detty December/The Year of Return is that the poorest people aren’t feeling the material benefits of this tourism push. In fact, this increase in tourists at the end of the year is detrimental to a lot of local Ghanaians. Ghanaians are being priced out of events which are priced at a rate that diasporans can afford. Our poor road infrastructure is exacerbated even further in December. I think this is something that all diasporans should be aware of when returning home. What does your return home look like? How does it impact the lives of local Ghanaians?
Source: Twitter
The creative scene in Accra
In spite of all I’ve said, the creative scene is absolutely thriving here. The level of musical and artistic talent in this city is unmatched.
Every second Thursday at Palm Moments is the motive. Palm Moments is a multi-functional creative space, co-working space and bar with two branches in the Asylum Down and Osu. My fave DJ’s I’ve seen playing at Fake Fridays are: badgalbob, Temple XTD, Emily in Accra.
iMullar, which is a music platform, has a regular event called iMullar soundsystem at Front Back. This is where I heard one of the best B.Frvnkie sets ever. I’ve become a B.Frvnkie stan since being here.
Kakai’s Halloween party was another highlight. The theme was African Fantasy and it was a wonderful excuse for me to try something new with my hair.
Soul singer and all round lovely babe Ria Boss’ solo show which happened at Alliance Francaise was literally a production. She gave us four outfit changes, persona changes and just the most immaculate vibes. Her set design was inspiring and the home videos of her family were really touching.
I say all this to say that despite the government’s BS, the level of talent, entrepreneurship and community here is on another level. This is one thing that I’ve learned this year that the power of community to get shit done, support and uplift is so fucking important.
If you made it this far, I appreciate you. My next update will be in the New Year. Until then, please enjoy this playlist of songs I’ve discovered or fallen in love with whilst being out & about in Accra.