An interview with Nana Asaase. By Darko Antwi
Nana Asaase, a graduate of the University of Ghana, is a poet / spoken word artist who blends English with local languages. His evocative lyrics and warm cathedral costume have framed him as a favorite performer of television audience, and a distinguished actor among stage peers. Bearing the desire to promote the excellence of Ghanaian literature, Asaase founded Ghana's first literary coaching bureau, Asaase Inscriptions, in July 2012.
DARKO: Expressing his views on the
significance of names and aliases, Lawyer Maurice Ampaw said on the legal desk of New Day that "People
choose names that they believe would take them far". Being curious about
how you landed on Asaase, may I ask if the use of a pseudonym (over your honourable birthname)
is mindful of the lawyer's statement?
NANA: Not exactly. When I sought a pseudonym, I needed something to suit my style and I remembered a name my grandmother used to call me. I later found out it was a corruption by my younger cousin, of Nana Boakye. I found it suitable for my style, and also found some Biblical basis for it. The two factors couldn't be better. At the time of decision, I wasn't sure, but now, there is no telling what the name would do.
NANA: Not exactly. When I sought a pseudonym, I needed something to suit my style and I remembered a name my grandmother used to call me. I later found out it was a corruption by my younger cousin, of Nana Boakye. I found it suitable for my style, and also found some Biblical basis for it. The two factors couldn't be better. At the time of decision, I wasn't sure, but now, there is no telling what the name would do.
DARKO: "Life is hard,
but there is hope in the flatulence of a bee", is the line which moved
Kofi Awoonor during your performance at the 55th Anniversary of Ghana
Association of Writers. Since then, you have consistently astound your audience
with creative speech at the highest sense of sovereignty. If I cast prejudice
over your youthfulness, what would you count as a factor of your
linguistic experience?
Time
and consistency have done the work, maybe. But I sure know that
studying literary pieces from varied cultures continues to shape my
tongue. There is the determination to stand out by saying it differently
than anyone else would. Mark this, I have some friends who are advanced
in years, hence: 'I crack my nuts on the knees of the elders, so I know
the sound of a hollow-bone-experience.
DARKO: You have been a firm
advocate for the use of one's mother tongue. And you have, on several
occasions, emphasized the need for such usage. Can you please deliberate on the
importance?
NANA: A man can only be as true as his mother tongue. Most known literary masterpieces have been in the mother tongue. Check Homer's Odyssey, The Bible, Beowulf, etc. It brings one's identity to the market place and helps to blend others in. It is the first claim to home in the literary instance, and mind you, the mother tongue is richer and more definite than any borrowed tongue. Simple example? How many versions of the Holy Bible are there in the English language? Compare same with Akuapem Twi.
We think in the mother tongue, or at least I do. That way, when you write or speak any other tongue, it is refined and has this uniqueness about it. The mother tongue has preserved civilizations like French and Chinese and they keep growing stronger.
DARKO: If the lyrics and stage intrigue of a spoken word artist earn him a place in the history of Ghanaian literature, would the lack of (his) commercial success be a bother for sustenance within a developing economy whose per capita income falls below four thousand dollars, and worst of all, a nation that is less enthused about literary investment?
NANA: It would be a big bother. We are no longer about Trojan wars and legendary spaces in literary volumes. Would you have me say more on this?
DARKO: I understand Facebook to be a place where people are at liberty to discuss their red-coloured underwear and chamber pots. You are no different a social being. So, at a point in your career, you typed your frustration to the attraction of public sympathy, except one sharp rebuke from Harold Abbey. Looking back at your profile, do you reckon how reckless, as a model, you played with your emotions, however honest you were?
NANA: I was out on a test stint. Ever since I decided to walk away from that PR desk, I have never regretted a single day. I believe I strengthened the point that most young people do not believe in consistency versus results.
DARKO: Talking about the
quality of contemporary Ghanaian poetry, Nhyira Addo dropped a bombshell during
an interview with you at Citi breakfast Show. He said: "Poetry and
creative art have been booming. But I haven't heard anything sensible until I
met Nana Asaase. There's a lot of crap in the system". If you should
receive the portion of praise with gratitude, which I guess you did, would you
as well admit the general mediocrity in good faith? Going by the truthfulness
of Addo's remarks, how can the standards be uplifted?
NANA: I would agree, not to general mediocrity, but to widespread mediocrity and pale creativity. Let me register as well, that there are other great young poets, both known and unheard. Social media seems to be a pool where as you mentioned, everyone can wash everything. People seek to claim literary prowess through these platforms, without attention to quality. Who is the judge on there, really? This is not to say academic claim is the only lease for literary or artistic expression. Reading is a measure to improve the standards. We should make time to watch and listen to others who do the things we do. We must power up on the mother tongue and be more concerned about the general human condition. Creativity is innate and not a tradition. We should seek to be unique in our expressions, give time to meditation and practice, as well as looking deep into the past, so we can see farther ahead. That way, we would see consistent growth and we could only improve our current lot and hand over better standards to our progeny.
NANA: I would agree, not to general mediocrity, but to widespread mediocrity and pale creativity. Let me register as well, that there are other great young poets, both known and unheard. Social media seems to be a pool where as you mentioned, everyone can wash everything. People seek to claim literary prowess through these platforms, without attention to quality. Who is the judge on there, really? This is not to say academic claim is the only lease for literary or artistic expression. Reading is a measure to improve the standards. We should make time to watch and listen to others who do the things we do. We must power up on the mother tongue and be more concerned about the general human condition. Creativity is innate and not a tradition. We should seek to be unique in our expressions, give time to meditation and practice, as well as looking deep into the past, so we can see farther ahead. That way, we would see consistent growth and we could only improve our current lot and hand over better standards to our progeny.
DARKO: In an interview with Jon Jermain, towards the Accra Jazz Festival 2014, Nii Ayikwei Parkes, when asked, moved a definition which states that "Spoken Word is poetry. It is poetry that is communicated to an audience". If Parkes' definition is brought to the forecourt of the intellectual divide, on what basis would you disagree or affirm his position?
NANA: Spoken word, if taken on the basis of a transfer of the written word via word of mouth, would not be difficult to be poetry. Spoken word as a genre could be called a kind of poetry, Spoken Word Poetry. Poetry standing alone, would suggest an original form. On the genre basis however, I maintain that POETRY be left alone in it's pristine case, away from SPOKEN WORD
DARKO: Apart from establishing Asaase Inscriptions as the label behind your stage routine, you have also sought to decorate your themes with a sort of identity and artistic discipline which are unorthodox to the literary service. If the practice of image-building is not a distraction to the key message of your poetry, would you agree that a self-centred concept such as yours does not do the common good of poetry, an art which stands beleaguered in the quest for a revival? In a bid to salvage, would you for instance cherish Nana Agyemang Ofosu's generic advice, which goes: "poets should not throw in the white garment of the art into the dirty drains of branding and popularity"?
NANA: You just made me smile... How did the world hear of poets like Chaucer and Shakespeare; Awoonor and Neruda? Their works spoke for themselves. Communication is an art. Poetry is an art of communication. Poetry, like other art forms, feeds off others and gains some enhancement from other art forms. This is what I have sought to do. The above-named poets produced quality, which could not go unnoticed. Beyond the stage, a writer has a life. It however occurs that what you do permeates life off the stage and you get noticed for what you do. I do not believe that building a reputation for producing unique quality in any way interferes with the purity of any art form.
On record, please note that at Asaase Inscriptions, I am a colleague like everybody else, and all our events have had other people on board as performers, sharing same stage. We are out to help promote Ghanaian literature. Unorthodox is the way to go, otherwise, there would not be creativity, only drab continuity. The arts thrive on exploration and breaking norms.
DARKO: Your stage versatility has driven you far and wide. Records show that you have performed in places which include National Theatre, Goethe Institute, La Palm Royal Beach Hotel, chapels, bookshops, and Ehalakasa Talk Party Grand Finale. Yet it seems Ghana hasn't had enough of you. While entertaining your people, have you thought of performing abroad?
NANA: I have had stages outside Ghana, in Africa, both as a student and now as a full timer. However, I seek to not only entertain, but also to inform and without a word, represent Ghana in Africa and wherever in the world I have cause to be. I told you of the beard and time? While future stages are being prepared, I can only bide my time, preparing to tread on them, as an when they come.
DARKO: Thanks for your time
on The Street. We value your brilliance!
NANA: The pleasure is mine. Thank you!
Pictures of Nana Asaase
NANA: The pleasure is mine. Thank you!
Pictures of Nana Asaase
