|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Ghanaian rapper M.anifest is urging artistes and event organisers to focus on building a more sustainable live music industry instead of getting caught up in social media arguments over free entry at concerts.
The rapper, popularly known as the “God MC,” shared his thoughts during an interview with DJ Slim, addressing the recurring controversy surrounding organisers who reportedly open their gates to patrons for free after performances have begun.
The practice has triggered frustration among some fans who purchase advance tickets, only to discover that other attendees are later allowed into the same venue without paying.
However, M.anifest believes the conversation should go beyond blaming individual artistes or organisers and examine the bigger challenges facing Ghana’s concert business.
M.anifest Calls for Empathy Towards Event Organisers
While acknowledging the concerns surrounding free entry, M.anifest said he was reluctant to criticise organisers without understanding the circumstances behind their decisions.
According to the rapper, putting together a successful concert involves significant financial and logistical demands, making it important to consider the pressures faced by artistes and their teams.
“I have deep empathy for every artiste and their teams who organise every event and want it to be successful, so I am not about to criticise how they made their event successful, especially when I don’t know much about it,” he noted.
His comments offer a different perspective on a debate that often intensifies online whenever concert organisers admit patrons for free after initially selling tickets.
For fans who pay to attend, the practice can raise questions about fairness, ticket value and whether early supporters are being treated appropriately. For organisers, however, the pressure to attract a sizeable crowd and recover event costs can create difficult decisions.
‘We All Have to Start Working Towards a More Sustainable Model’
Rather than allowing the controversy to remain centred on individual events, M.anifest wants industry stakeholders to work towards a concert culture that can support artistes at different stages of their careers.
He stressed that developing sustainable business models should be a collective responsibility, particularly for younger musicians who will eventually take on bigger venues and more expensive productions.
“As a collective, we all have to start working towards a more sustainable model in the concert culture and forget the noise and settings. I am more interested in younger artistes hearing me right now to try and build a model that’s more sustainable so that by the time they are where we are, it’s a much better situation,” he urged.
His message places the emphasis on long-term solutions rather than the public backlash that often follows controversial ticketing decisions.
The Bigger Challenge Facing Ghana’s Live Music Industry
M.anifest’s comments have brought attention to a wider business question within Ghana’s entertainment sector: how can concerts remain financially viable while maintaining the trust of paying fans?
A more sustainable approach could involve clearer ticketing policies, stronger advance-sales strategies, realistic event budgets and transparent communication when organisers decide to change entry arrangements.
Such measures could help organisers manage attendance without leaving paying patrons feeling disadvantaged, while giving emerging artistes a more dependable framework for staging live performances.
Ultimately, M.anifest’s position is that Ghana’s concert industry needs more than online debates about individual shows. It needs business structures that reward artistes, protect fans and give the next generation a stronger foundation on which to build.
