Award-winning Dancehall act Shatta Wale has been on top of his game since 2013.
He is loved and hated with equal measure but the story behind the man famed not only for his glory but his controversy in Ghana music is one of great determination and applied persistence.
He started his young music career with a borrowed name and identity-Doggy- a name he took in reverence of his favourite Dance Hall artiste at the time, Yoggy Doggy.
Then he changed to Bandana- a name that shot him to fame after a single hit track. He died in music, got buried for years, only to resurrect with a new name, Shatta Wale, a new identity and a solid repertoire of back-to-back hits in the last couple of years.
Shatta Wale, known in real life as Charles Nii Armah Mensah Jnr walked listeners through the inspiring story of his career-death-and-resurrection and why he may just be the most misunderstood musician of our time.
Rebranding from Bandana to Shatta Wale, here are Nine (9) interesting facts about the multiple hit factory.
1. Early childhood
Wale did not grow up with a silver spoon in his mouth but he grew up with a seed of motivation from his father Charles Mensah to believe he could do it.
Even though the family was ‘book-long’ , Shatta decided to do something different but only after acquiring education.
His father supported all his initiatives and even paid for his first ever recorded music which he could only play in his bathroom, but he did that only on condition that Wale would acquire education.
Started at Seven Great Princess, later to Winneba Secondary, the Kakai hit singer minced no words in celebrating a father who was like a brother and his backbone.
Â
2.Challenges in the Ghana music industry
He was not a man to give up that easily in the face of challenges. He did not. He treasured his little fame after Bandana but he needed to eat from it. Shatta Wale said many event organisers invited him to perform on shows at the time but many failed to pay him.
Like the abusive mother who will force a child to ‘shush’ after spanking him, Shatta Wale said the event organisers did not want him to complain after they refused to pay for his services and when he did, there was a gang up.
Nobody wanted to record him, not even his long cherished sound engineer. He was left in the lurch. For many years he stayed there. Many said his career was over but he said it wasn’t because God said it wasn’t.
If nobody would record him, he decided to record himself. He did. He bought a laptop, built a studio, wrote his songs and recorded himself.
Â
3.He is best known for his biggest breakthrough hit song Dancehall King which led to winning the Artiste of the Year at the 2014 edition of the Ghana Music Awards.
Â
4.In 2014, He was nominated in 17 award categories and he won 12.
5.Shatta Wale acted in Shattered Lives (movie) alongside Bisa K’dei and Majid Michel.
Â
6. Charles attended Winneba Secondary School.
Â
7. He produces most of his music under the name Da’ Maker.
Â
8.Charles Nii Armah Mensah Jnr. was born on born 17 October 1984.
9.He claims he quit smoking weed some years ago and still counting.
Â