Despite the substantial patronage that hiplife seems to enjoy on the local scene, that style of music does not sell as much as gospel music does and some executive producers are in despair over the huge amounts they have invested in producing hiplife albums.

These businessmen claim they have lost hundreds of millions of cedis on the young genre and some of them have even resolved not to spend a pesewa more on hiplife.

Though the listening public warm up to it, that appreciation is yet to reflect in purchases, the producers say.

“Anytime I produce a hiplife artiste, I lose money. It is not that the songs are not good but I have simply not had any success with them. I am more into gospel and a bit of highlife now and I am okay with that,” said Ahmed Banda of Bandex Music Productions.

According to Banda, the first hiplife album he produced was Auntie Adiza by Nash Towa in 1999. “I lost ¢70 million on that album alone. I even lost more than that later on other hiplife artistes I worked with.”

Hiplife albums on the Bandex label include Wafu (Your Stomach) and Yaa Maame by Joe Frazier as well as Sagaa and African Girl by Abrewanana.

“I didn’t make any profit on all those albums. I lost money and I don’t hope to work with any hiplife artiste again. What puts me off most is the ingratitude they exhibit after spending so much on their works.”

Banda said gospel and highlife albums he has produced brought in substantial profits. These include Isaiah Ampong’s Hossana, Isaac and Ampong’s Nyame Dome, Rev. Prince Nyarko’s Okamafo Yesu as well as Dada K.D.’s Boom Boom, Mewura and Tekyerema albums.

Kwame Mickey of Kaakyire Music Productions has been producing mostly highlife and gospel musicians for over 10 years.

He also admits that hiplife music does not thrive on the market but he believes the success of an album depends on the quality of the songs and how best they are promoted through the media.

“The truth is I did not lose money producing artistes like Bishop Michael Osei Bonsu, Osuani Afrifa, Nana Yaw Asare, Abrantie Amakye Dede, Nana Tuffour and Kaakyire Kwame Appiah.”

He however, said he lost a lot of money working on the late Terry Bonchaka’s debut album titled Ghana Lady.
“ Sales started picking up after his death but given the choice, I would prefer to produce more highlife and gospel since they last longer on the market.”

While these two producers prefer to work more with gospel and highlife rather than hiplife artistes, Mr. Isaac Abeidu-Aidoo of Goodies Music Productions does not waver in his support for hiplife though he also admits that the market is bad for hiplife.

“I have been committed to producing only hiplife since 1999. I will remain attached to that style because it has brighter prospects. We only need the right structures in place to expand its market at the international level,” he said.

Goodies strongly believes that the major reason for the bad performance of hiplife on the market is piracy. He is an advocate for hiplife because he sees it as a form of employment for many youth in the country.

He has been working with VIP, Sydney and Tic Tac for seven years now and says the success of a hiplife album on the market depends on the popularity of the artiste and the quality of the song.

“With VIP, I make sure I am fully involved in the creation of their songs from start to finish in order to get the album the way I want it. This method has worked well for us.”

The producers propose that hiplife artistes should include more singing than rap in their songs. They should also keep on collaborating with good highlife and gospel artistes in order to boost sales of their albums.