Jowaa: Asokpor Corner @ Chale Wote

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After rocking European stages from Fusion to Lisbon, Jowaa is spearheading the Asokpor Corner at Accra’s Chale Wote Street Art Festival. Chale Wote, now in its eighth year, is one the largest and most influential events happening in Ghana. It will be ridiculously fun to have Jowaa and guests rock the Old Kindsway Building from 4 til 10pm both Saturday and Sunday August 25-26. Here’s the lowdown:

IFKR (Ghana): DJ K3V and Eff the DJ are long time Akwaaba friends and collaborators. After years DJing, it’s great to see them work together on IFKR, releasing tracks and giving us their worthy take at the crossroads of afropop and EDM.

Qumasiquamé (Germany): another captivating Berlin head exploring the intersection of electronic beats and African rhythms. With two decades of DJing under his belt, expect a tightly woven set capturing the various phases and gems amassed throughout the years, as he does in this fantastic set for Boiler Room.

Afrolektra (Ghana): This Accra based producer has been releasing a slew of dance music remixes of current afropop hits, steadily pushing to bridge the gap between EDM and afrobeats. We can expect some unreleased material to be unveiled over the weekend.

Lukas Walters (Germany): free from musical boundaries, we can expect Lukas to give us his exploration of the world of grooves and bass driven music, blending influences from Berlin to Lisbon, from Africa to Brazil and the Caribbean and back to Europe via Detroit, Chicago and London. Check out his Boiler Room set.

DJ Mark (Ghana): a familiar name in many of Accra’s most popular pubs, Mark is one of the DJs pushing the coastal asokpor sound gig after gig all across town.

DJ Future (Ghana): another DJ who’s played sat countless venues in Accra. He brings his dancefloor expertise and passion for asokpor, so don’t expect your feet to stay still.

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DJ Spotlight: DJ Fro (Ghana)

Music, especially of the loud, danceable kind, is ubiquitous in most of Africa. Yet DJs, the artisans behind the walls of sound, often remain in the shadow. This is not how we roll: we want you to find out who is pushing the envelope throughout the continent.

This week we feature DJ Fro from Accra, Ghana.

When did you start DJing – and what or who were your early passions and influences?

It all started in 2012, at the University of Cape Coast where I had my tertiary education. I was in my hall of residence, Kwame Nkrumah Hall one evening and I didn’t like the music that was being played via the hall’s radio so I called the request line to ask them to play something better. They said, “If you can do a better job come downstairs to the studio then” so I went over and played a few songs using Virtual DJ, soon they had a lot of hall mates calling in to say they were enjoying the songs. I was told to come play every Friday evening and that’s where my unprofessional career as a DJ started. Soon after, my professional career as a DJ also started when I started my internship as IT Support at Xfm and was given the opportunity to DJ live on air.

What type of DJ are you and how do you fit into the industry in Ghana ?

I believe a “Mobile DJ” best categorizes me currently. I mostly play Afrobeats, Hiphop (both new school and old school), Funk, Afrohouse, Deephouse, Funky House, Reggae/Dancehall, Moombahton, Grime and Afroswing. However, I’ve always loved to DJ on radio to promote Afrobeats and Ghanaian music. I currently still promote Afrobeats and Ghanaian music, so I guess that’s how I fit into the entertainment industry in Ghana as a DJ.

What single night out has been the most memorable for you? As a DJ? As an attendee?

Well, this question is golden! There has definitely been many memorable nights but the most memorable one for me as a DJ and an attendee was when I DJ’ed at an event by Xfm where I met my girlfriend 5 years ago. There were many DJ’s on rotation that night so I was able to have a dance with her and that was the start of something magical for me.

What is your goal as a DJ, and what are the next steps for you to get there?

As a DJ, I aim to own a radio station someday so I can share my love for music with Africa and the entire world.

Can you tell us a bit about this mix, what it represents and means to you? Does it reflect what you sound like when djing live?

I made this mix to illustrate how songs from “some unsung” music artists in Africa also fit in the mainstream Afrobeats scene. Yes, we can mix it up not always music from the popular artists. This mix mostly has new music from Africa for the period of July to the start of August with your favorite unsung artist also in mind.

Tracklist

Juls ft. Kwesi Arthur & Akan – Saa Ara
Tiwa Savage ft. Duncan Mighty – Lova Lova
Simi – I Dun Care
Osa – Body Bad
Joyce Olong – Lush Vibes
Zed Ay Kay ft. Dahlin Gage & Yaa Pono – Lemonade
Harmonize ft. Sarkodie – DM Chick
Fuse ODG – Island
Ciara ft. Tekno – Freak Me
R2bees – We Dey Vibe
King Promise – Abena
Max Le Daron ft. Joey le Soldat, Gan Gah & Eli A Free – Sougri
Mr. Eazi ft. Mo-T – Property
Busiswa ft. Moozlie – Bad Galz
2Baba ft. Perruzi – Amaka
ToyBoi – Somtin
Samini – Give Me Love (Overseas Riddim)
Gafacci & Moni ft. Joey B – Juana
Sarz x Wurld – Trobul
Quayba – G.O.D. (Good Ole Days)
Bwoy Tab – Tso Kpa Kpa
Elevated ft. Joe El Amadi & JiggyJegg – Omo De Yi
E.L – Yo Geng
Joey B – You Peh
Skales ft. Yung L & Endia – Pass
Joey B ft. Wanlov x PonoBiom – Beautiful Boy
Ryderz x Samini – BKBK (Boko Boko)
M.anifest ft. Worlasi – Okay

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