No money, no ‘blow’ —Gospel act Bohyeba Victoria

While others blame style and changing music tastes of consumers for their inability to make it in the music industry, Gospel act Bohyeba Victoria believes that is just a fraction of the bigger picture.

According to the singer, “not having money means you will not ‘blow’. I know there are other factors but for me, someone who has been in the industry for about 20 years, I will point to one thing—money. The industry is such that if you don’t have money, and I mean a lot of it, your song will not get airplay and that will be the end.

“There are other factors like promotion rates of electronic media; for your videos to get airplay, you need to have a huge sum of money stashed somewhere.
 
“The thing is, one video play is not enough, so it means it has to run for some time and it all depends on your pocket. Simply put, if you do not have money, you will not ‘blow,’” she told Graphic Showbiz.

Giving some suggestions on how to get around such issues, Bohyeba Victoria said, “We need to revive our distribution system, there should be proper royalty systems in place and we need publishers, all these people will help in making things run smoothly.
 
“You release a song and it doesn’t go anywhere because you don’t have what it takes to do promotion simply because rates are high. When these things go on, we end up burying talents and we will be complaining and asking why our industry is dying. The system is killing us.

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“The government should support the industry by encouraging local and foreign investors to invest in the industry; they should invest in musicians and other sectors in the industry,” she added.

When asked what concerns she had to flag when it came to the Gospel music industry, she noted, “For me it is simple: their attitude should match the lyrics or messages in their songs. You cannot be singing about this in your songs and then do the contrary.”

Bohyeba Victoria is vying for the position of Treasurer in the upcoming Ghana Music Rights Organisation (GHAMRO) elections and she urged members to vote for her.

“I know I have the capability to manage the finances of the organisation. I also have the skills to get sponsors for the union's programmes and I am very disciplined to handle the funds.

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“Again, I will make sure all funds are paid through the bank, make sure financial reports are sent to members every quarter and I will institute programmes and events that will raise funds to support the organisation,” she stated.