In less than two days, the world will
bid farewell to the year 2014 which
birthed many events. For the
Ghanaian Showbiz fraternity, 2014
hasn’t really been good with records
of death.
But despite death laying its icy hands
on some personalities, the year also
recorded some interesting incidents.
In this piece, “the good, the bad, and
the ugly”, stories that shocked and
amazed which will be highlighted in
this column.
A recap of stories that made
headlines and news in Showbiz.
Deaths
The media fraternity was hit with the
shocking news of the death of Komla
Afeke Dumor. He died on January 18.
Until his death, Komla was the host
of BBC’s Focus on Africa. His death
was a blow not just to Ghanaians but
to Africa and the world.
It was such an unpleasant news when
in the early hours of Thursday, March
13, news broke in that manager of
hiplife artiste, Kwaw Kese, Fennec
Okyere, had been murdered at his
Manet Court residence. The year is
almost ended and those behind the
heinous crime are yet to be arrested.
On May 3, the unfortunate news of
the death of fashion icon, Kofi Ansah,
was received. He died at the Korle-
Bu Teaching hospital at age 63.
In March, another death was recorded
of artiste, Araz. Known in real life as
Peter Aryee, Araz was murdered at his
Weija residence. Until his death, Araz
was the Chief of Joma, a village in
the Greater Accra Region.
In May, bubbly TV presenter and
hostess of GTV’S Movie Chatroom,
Irene Asante died on May 14. Irene
was scheduled to tie the knot some
few weeks before she passed away at
the age of 42. She was the former
wife music producer, Hammer of the
Last Two Music Group and manager
for female artiste, Mzbel.
The Akan Drama scene was not
spared of the deaths. Veteran actor,
Richard Kwame Agyeman, popularly
known in the Akan drama series,
Obra, as Odompo passed on October
21. He was 60 years.
When we all thought the year would
end with no death anymore, the
unexpected death of the CEO of Exopa
Modeling Agency, Ibrahim Sima.
According to an autopsy report, he
died from acute appendicitis.
Controversies
Juliet confirms break up
Despite the many speculations of
crashed marriage which she has
always denied, actress, Juliet
Ibrahim, in June finally confirmed the
breakup of her marriage to Kwadwo
Safo Kantanka Jnr. She revealed that
she had been divorced for two years.
Miss Ghana resigns
Miss Ghana 2013, Giussepina Baafi,
resigned of her position as the Miss
Ghana. She gave irreconcilable
differences as the reason for her
resignations. It was one of the
biggest news on the entertainment
calendar in 2014.
World Cup Scandal
Despite the poor performance of the
Black Stars in Brazil, there were many
scandals the pursued them even after
the tournament. Report of the
embezzlement of funds was key but
what drew the attention of showbiz
fanatics was the allegation that the
female ambassadors were engaged in
sexual favours from the players. It
was one the biggest news in the
year.
Castro’s ‘demise’
Where is Castro? This is the question
on everyone lips till now. Sunday,
July 6, will definitely go down in
history as one of the saddest days for
the music industry. It was the day
that Castro went missing when in the
company of some friends including
Black Stars captain, Asamoah Gyan
went to have fun at Ada. Reports that
later came in had it that the hiplife
artiste, who with a female friend had
gone jet skiing never returned.
As of now, no one knows the
whereabouts of the two.
Grace Ashy exam shame
It was definitely not a good year for
gospel artiste, Graze Ashy who was
suspended from the Methodist
University in July for cheating during
examination. Even though she denied,
a statement issued out by the school
authorities confirmed the story.
Tiffany’s Sex tapes
Perhaps, she is no stranger to leaked
tapes but on November 7, female
rapper, Tiffany, might have the shock
of her life when her leaked sex-tape
popped up. She later accused her ex-
husband, who she is fighting over the
custody of their son as the one
behind the leaked tapes.
Court cases
In January 2014, rapper Apaatse
dragged Ghanaian technology
company, rLG to court for illegal use
of his Wedding Day song as the
default ringing tone on their android
phones without his knowledge and
approval. The case is still pending in
court and sources say, out of court
settlement is on the table now.
The last quarter of 2014, event
company, Charterhouse and
dancehall artiste, Shatta Wale have
been in and out of court for a
defamation suit brought against the
latter.
It was a welcome decision taken
against a musician by a major
company. Personally, I think if Shatta
Wale had any grievances against
Charterhouse, he had a beret way to
handle it than insult them.
Comedian and musician, A-Plus, was
dragged to court by Lawyer Maurice
Apaw for what he claimed were
defamatory comments made by A
Plus against his person. The case
was withdrawn and the two settled
their differences.
Kwaw Arrest
Controversial rapper, Kwaw Kese, was
arrested by the police in Kumasi for
smoking a substance suspected to be
cannabis at a pub in Nhyiaseo, a
suburb of Kumasi. He has been
refused bail even though he has
taken ill and has been admitted at
the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital.
The world waits for the outcome as
he will appear in court again on
January 5.
Lawrence Hanson popularly known as
Bulldog was also arrested as a prime
suspect in the murder case of Fennec
Okyere. He has been bailed as
investigation continues.
Female producers
In 2014, lots of female actresses
became producers and had their own
movies.
Amongst them were Nana Ama
McBrown, Zynnell Lydia Zuh, Yvonne
Nelson, Yvonne Okoro, Nadia Buari,
Kafui Danku and Lydia Forson.
Big Brother Hotshots
This year, Ghanaians did not fully
participate in Africa’s biggest reality
show, Big Brother Africa when
Ghanaians auditioned in Ghana were
swapped with Ghanaians based in
South Africa.
Best Shows
The Versatile Show by Okyeame
Kwame by all standards was the best
show I attended in 2014. Miss year’s
Miss Malaika pageant would be my
second best show in 2014.
Of course, I couldn’t have recollected
and written about all that happened
in 2014. Happy New Year!
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