US embassy cable - 05ACCRA644

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ACCRA 000644 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: KPAO, SCUL, OIIP, OEXC, PGOV, GH 
SUBJECT: SPEAKER DEBUTS HIPLIFE DOCUMENTARY TO WIDE 
GHANAIAN AUDIENCE 
 
 
1. Summary.  From February 17-26, 2005, post 
sponsored a series of film screenings across Ghana 
of a PAS-funded documentary that described links 
between Ghanaian hiplife artists and the United 
States.  The film showings were part of post's 
African American History Month celebrations.  Post 
used I-Bucks to bring out the documentary filmmaker, 
a former Fulbright researcher in Ghana, Dr. Jesse 
Shipley, who introduced his film to enthusiastic 
audiences at two state-run universities, the British 
Council and the residence of Ambassador Mary C. 
Yates in Accra.  The film screenings were enhanced 
by the presence of local hiplife artists, who 
performed and/or answered questions about their 
music and told of the impact U.S. rap music had had 
on them. End Summary. 
 
2. The documentary was first shown at the University 
for Development Studies-Nyampala campus, in the 
predominantly-Muslim Northern Region, near Tamale. 
Nearly 200 students showed up and stayed to watch 
the one-hour film despite a series of technical 
problems that threatened to disrupt the event. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Some members of the audience jumped from their 
chairs and danced when the film was followed by a 
live performance by Big Adams, a Ghanaian hiplife 
artist, who sang and strutted across a makeshift 
stage. 
 
3.  Dr. Shipley's film, entitled "Living the 
Hiplife: Reggie Rockstone and Ghanaian Popular 
Culture", uses interviews with younger hiplife 
musicians, disc jockeys and record producers to show 
how the well-known singer, Reggie Rockstone, became 
known as the "godfather" of hiplife music. One 
record producer in the film is Rab Bakari, who grew 
up in New York and who helped Reggie Rockstone 
develop his unique music style. In the film, Mr. 
Bakari said that when he first met the musician and 
his group in 1994, as he put it, "I thought I was 
listening to rappers from Brooklyn."  He worked with 
Reggie to produce an album, which featured mostly 
songs in English.  However, before its release, 
Reggie's father urged his son to tailor the album 
more toward an African audience, so Reggie added two 
songs in Akan-Twi, and the album took off, creating 
hiplife, Ghanaian style. In the film, Mr. Rockstone 
said he believes his music became popular in the mid- 
1990s with Ghanaian audiences because, "I sounded 
and dressed like a kid they'd seen in a N.Y. video, 
but then I'd sing in (Akan) Twi." 
 
4. Reggie Rockstone, who still performs, but also 
produces records for younger artists, attended both 
the screening at the British Council for an audience 
of 80 students, music buffs and cultural figures and 
for guests at the Ambassador's residence.  Dr. 
Shipley and the artist explained that hiplife music 
is a fusion of Ghanaian languages and U.S. hip-hop 
music. The Ambassador was enthusiastic about the 
film and its portrayal of this segment of the youth 
population that she has recommended it to the 
President and shared a copy with the Foreign 
Minister. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5. Following the successful showing at the British 
Council, Dr. Shipley, CAO and Cultural Affairs 
Specialist, travelled to Kumasi, Ghana's second 
largest city, for a screening at the Kwame Nkrumah 
University of Science and Technology (KNUST). 
Despite suffering a severe bout of malaria on the 
eve of his talk at KNUST, (he was hospitalized for 
12 hours), Dr. Shipley went ahead the next day with 
his talk before an audience of 700 KNUST students 
and faculty.  Again, post sponsored a performance 
after the film by a nationally-known singer, Obuor, 
who is Kumasi-born.  Several students were so taken 
by the performance that they ascended the stage to 
dance alongside the singer.  Several members of the 
audience, including professors, said they were 
thrilled because they had never seen Obuor in 
person, only on television. 
 
6. Results of the film screenings, talks by Dr. 
Shipley, live performances and interaction with the 
hiplife artists were outstanding, with the programs 
reaching hundreds of university and high school 
students and promoting greater mutual understanding. 
Post received a message from Dr. Shipley saying the 
trip was amazing, and had given him opportunities he 
had never had before. 
 
7.  Post greatly appreciates the support of IIP and 
ECA for their assistance in arranging this speaker 
program featuring Dr. Shipley, and looks forward to 
building upon this effort to engage younger 
audiences for PAS programs. 
 
YATES