"Ma la ma wie Ga" ("I will sing and speak of Ga"): Wulomei and the articulation of Ga identity in stylized form

Abstract

In 2001 Dan Kermah, a documentary film maker based in Ghana’s capital Accra, succeeded in arranging a video-taped performance of the pioneering Ga folk group1 Wulomei at their founder Nii Tei Ashitey’s house, located in the Accra suburb of Mamprobi and in anticipation of Ghana’s 50th anniversary celebration as an independent nation. What made this particular recording unique were the individuals assembled that day, consisting of Wulomei’s foundational members who began performing together in the early 1970s. Despite some reunion concerts scattered over the years, Wulomei in its original form started to splinter with the exodus of their lead vocalist Naa Amanua and guitarist Nene Acquah around 1975 when they left to form their own ensemble Suku Troupe.