Patapaa Patapaa, a music hitmaker and performer from Ghana, has asserted that persons working in occupations that are considered dishonourable in Ghana but are lucrative in other countries make more money than even Ghana's most successful musicians.
On Thursday, July 20, 2023, the performer was a guest on the show Ayekoo Ayekoo, which is broadcast on Accra 100.5 FM.
The host, Nana Romeo, spread the myth that Patapaa, when he travels outside of the country, works menial occupations such as washing cars.
Patapaa's response was, "Let them send you a video to verify," and he said this as he reacted.
He claims that his manager complains about how much he sleeps, but his response is always the same: "I rise only to go play a programme."
As he sat back down, he made his case as follows: "Excuse me, but an artiste who is a star [in Ghana] and throws their weight around does not earn as much or have the same opportunities as a car wash worker in the United States."
He went on to say that persons who wash cars "in America, the UK, or Germany" had it better "both in terms of money and life in general compared to an artiste in Ghana."
"When we Ghanaians get famous, we become pretentious and we lose all respect. He lamented that "when we see other people, we think we're bigger than they are," and he challenged people to "travel and see."
According to him, it is common to find local artists in other countries who "have better jobs" and are disinterested in pursuing a career in music.
"They even get upset when you mention music because the money they would make in seconds is more than a week, two weeks, or a month's worth of an artiste's work here in Ghana," he stated. "The money they would make in seconds is more than a week, two weeks, or a month's worth of an artiste's work here in Ghana."
In light of the dialogue, he declined to remark on Stonebwoy and the like, saying that "Stonebwoy is my boss so let's not bring him into this."
According to Patapaa, it is essential for musicians who perform in "outside countries to get some work behind [in addition to] your music."
He made the observation that the only type of labour to which one should not add another person is priest job.
Because of the success of his song "One Corner" and the Scopatomana catch phrase, Patapaa became famous not only in his own country but also throughout the rest of the world.