The President of the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA), Bessa Simons, has urged musicians to charge politicians who hire them to compose songs for their political campaigns or parties.
Bessa Simons, speaking at the National event for World Tourism Day held at the Sekondi Youth Center in the Western Region, which was themed “Tourism and Peace,” emphasized that musicians should be compensated for their work.
According to him, when a political party hires a musician to create a song, it is a professional job that deserves payment. “As musicians, we make music to sell, and we expect to be paid.
However, if you wish to write a song for a political party out of passion, affiliation, or personal reasons without expecting financial gain, that’s entirely your choice. Just remember to keep the lyrics clean,” he advised.
He further encouraged musicians to use positive, clean lyrics to promote peace during the upcoming elections.
“We encourage all musicians to keep their lyrics clean; it means the words they use in their music should inspire people, make them tolerant, open minded and understanding. Don’t use words that will bring confusion. No calling of names, no, we want peace with this election and musicians, we play a big role, especially when it comes to tourism. You know December in Ghana is very big and so we want to have peace this December so that more people can come to move this country forward,” Bessa noted.
