Dagbang has a rich culture which includes a great oral culture. It is not uncommon to find griots singing praises of one's ancestors at ceremonies like funerals, marriage and naming ceremonies.
With the changes in social institutions and the reproduction of oral culture into recorded music, film etc., the culture has been modified and carried into these media.
What happened at the launch of Don Sigli's Album #Wunpini was a display of Dagbang culture that was decontextualized and applied to sensationalist, political discourse.
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| Don Sigli at the #Wunpini Album Launch |
If anyone bought the entire album for thousands of Ghana cedis it should have been me because my name is on it. Lmao And just so you know, the album title is #Wunpini no "M" anywhere: not #Wumpuni or #Wumpini. And it means "God's gift." Please get it right.
So as I was saying, if I were at a marriage ceremony and a griot came to me clad in his bin'gmaa (smock/fugu) and zipil'gong (hat) and recounted the history of my ancestors, I would be required to (to borrow Joy FM's words) "splash" money on him to show my appreciation of his recognition of my heritage.
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| Photo Credit: Don Sigli |
At the Don Sigli album launch, he became the griot in this case, he didn't sing praises of anyone, not even the Member of Parliament for Tamale Central, Inusah Fuseini. The song is a commentary on individual success through the grace of Naawuni (God).
The Ghanaian media's report on what happened at the album launch is a clear case of cultural incompetence resulting in cultural misinterpretation that completely left out the cultural context within which the story is situated. N-naaya!
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I was NOT paid by Inusah Fuseini or Don Sigli to post this.