Okyeame Kwame

Kwame Nsiah-Apau (born 17 April 1976), known by his stage name Okyeame Kwame and nicknamed Rap Doctor, is a Ghanaian musician, songwriter, creative director fashion icon and a Developmental Activist. His dual roles as an artist and an activist have led to his recognition as an “artivist”.

Life and career

Early life

Apau was born on 17 April 1976 in Kumasi, Ashanti Region of Ghana. He is the third of six siblings. His two younger brothers, Kwaku Nsiah Boamah nicknamed “Flowking Stone” and Kwaku Nsiah Amankwah nicknamed “Kunta Kinte”, also perform as a duo, under the brand name “Bradez”. As he was growing up, Kwame’s parents expected him to become a physician, yet he gained an interest in rap music from a very young age, writing his own songs and performing at local shows since his days at the Anglican Senior High School in Kumasi. His primary education was difficult because he suffered from dyslexia, which posed challenges for him in learning, particularly in the areas of reading and writing. Based on his childhood experiences, he has been actively promoting the inclusion of dyslexia management in the school curriculum in Ghana.

Tertiary education

Kwame is a product of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology where he studied Akan and Sociology for his first degree with formal education in music under the tutelage of Dr Daniel Amponsah a.k.a. Agya Koo Nimo. Agya Koo Nimo taught him Classical Guitar and Philosophy in African Music. Subsequently, he enrolled at the University of Ghana and graduated in 2016 with a master’s degree in Strategic Marketing.

He is also an associate co-opted member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing Ghana in recognition of his professional use of marketing in creative arts.

In March 2024, Kwame and his wife, Annica Nsia-Apau, graduated from the Institute of Paralegal Training and Leadership Studies (IPSL) with professional Master’s degrees in Alternative Dispute Resolution. This marks the second Master’s degree Kwame has earned.

Music career

In 1997, he achieved notoriety as a member of the “Akyeame” hiplife duo, together with fellow Ghanaian Daniel Kofi Amoateng (under the stage name Okyeame Kofi). They recorded together the albums Nyansapo (“Witty Knot”, 1997), Nkonsonkonson (“Shackles”, 1998), Ntoaso (“Continuity”, 2000) and Apam Foforo (“New Testament”, 2002). He performed a solo under his own record label One Mic Entertainment, since they parted in 2004. He also featured some renowned Ghanaian highlife and hiplife artists such as Daddy Lumba, Kojo Antwi and Ofori Amponsah.

For declaring himself B.R.A (Best Rapper Alive) in a song he recorded after winning Ghana Music Awards Artist of the Year award in 2009, Okyeame Kwame sparked a conflict with fellow Ghanaian rapper Obrafour, who saw himself as more deserving. This resulted in one of the most memorable feuds the Ghanaian music scene has seen, with Obrafour challenging Okyeame Kwame to a rap battle on the streets, which was never honoured. In 2011, after Obrafour had apologized for his actions, Okyeame Kwame explained he declined Obrafour’s challenge because there was no need for it at the time, since winning Artist of the Year was vindictive enough.

Okyeame Kwame has made significant contributions to education and scholarship promotion. His rap lyrics (which incorporate didactic themes, social consciousness and poetry) are being studied in some Ghanaian universities.

He is an advocate for the incorporation of researchers into the music industry to provide expert perspectives and data within the field.

Style

Most of Okyeame Kwame’s raps and songs are performed in the Twi dialect of Ghana’s Akan language. However, due to his diversity, he also performs songs in English. His stage name Okyeame, chosen to reflect his lyrical fluidity, means “linguist (of the royal court)” in his native Akan.

His ability to also perform other music genres, including hip-hop, reggae, highlife, R&B, jazz, and other styles, has garnered him the title “Mr. Versatile”.

Significant music events

Aside from musical performances, Kwame launched “The Versatile Show” in 2012, produced by himself and performed biannually at the National Theatre. He incorporates poetry, drama, and music in this theatrical production.

In 2016, Kwame and his wife initiated another event called “Flaunt Your Lover”. The purpose of this event was to provide a platform for couples to come together and celebrate love.

Other events

From 2019 to the present, Okyeame has been organizing the Hiplife Party, an annual event with the objective of evoking nostalgia and preserving the hiplife heritage. Additionally, Ok Stripped was initiated in 2016 as a fundraising initiative for the Ghana Paralympic Team and to support his hepatitis B vaccination programme.

Business career

Kwame runs his own record label, OK Music, previously One Mic Entertainment and the defunct Firm Bridges Communications, co-founded with his wife,. The record label has overseen the production and management of artists such as Morris Devoice, Rex Omar, Bradez, Tattoo, Ben Brako, Kofi B, and other music talents in Ghana.

He is also partner in the shoe manufacturing company Horseman Shoes plus a partner to Sante’s Hair for Kids, a hairline business that produces local hair products for kids, with his daughter as the Brand Ambassador.

In May 2021, Okyeame Kwame and his wife launched two books, Finding a lasting love relationship and maintaining a lasting love relationship under the Love Locked Down series. which are both guide books to healthy relationships.

In 2023, Kwame launched his own line of boxer shorts under the brand name Love Equation. He also operates a travel and tour company, OK World Travel and Tour, which helps locals secure job opportunities abroad. Additionally, the company facilitates visits by Africans in the diaspora, offering them the chance to explore Ghana, reconnect with their roots, discover investment opportunities, and experience the richness of the country’s culture and heritage.

Tourism

In 2023, Kwame was bestowed with a national award by the Ministry of Tourism, Arts, and Culture for his contributions to the tourism industry. His “Made in Ghana” album, a collaborative effort with the Ghana Tourism Authority in 2019, was an initiative aimed at fostering a sense of nationalism and promoting tourism.

He has also collaborated with Adansi Travel and Tour in a bid to enrich local and international tours, with a special focus on families.

On his 47th birthday in 2023, Kwame unveiled his merchandise boxer shorts label named ”Love Equation”.

Corporate associations

Due to his notoriety as a national icon in his native Ghana, Kwame has become an iconic figure for corporate Ghana. He has so far become a brand ambassador for MTN Group, GT Bank and Coca-Cola in Ghana, aside being appointed the public relations officer of the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA) from 2012 to 2013 and the Ghana Music Right Owner (GHAMRO) in 2014.

Kwame was chosen to serve as the ambassador for the “My African Union, My Voice” campaign in 2015, which was launched by the African Union in Addis Ababa as part of the “State of the Union” (SoTU) project, which is currently being carried out in several African nations, including Ghana. The campaign’s declaration intends to raise public awareness of the African Union’s goals and to encourage active citizen participation in the Union’s member states’ execution of its protocols, conventions, and policy choices.

In the same year, he was appointed ambassador for the Junior Boys Mentoring Conference, a youth-focused non-governmental initiative in Accra, which seeks to equip young people with the necessary knowledge and skills that will enable them to tackle challenges as they come into contact with the outside world.

Kwame has also collaborated with MDS Lancet Laboratories on his Hepatitis B project, vaccinating more than 10,000 Ghanaians. The screening exercise is aimed at creating public awareness about Hepatitis B which has become rampant among Ghanaians.

Research has shown that insurance penetration has been low in Ghana, partly because a chunk of the population have still not come to terms with the relevance of insurance policies. The need therefore arises for insurance companies to diversify in achieving the intended purpose. To this end, Kwame was appointed by the Insurance Awareness Coordinators Group as an ambassador for its GET INSURED CAMPAIGN project with the responsibility of whipping up the interest among Ghanaians to get insured, particularly against hard times.

In 2020, he was appointed Ambassador for Technical and Vocational Training, TVET by the Ghana Education Service with the responsibility of promoting the preference of TVET among Ghanaians. He shares the same platform with Ghana’s first lady Rebecca Akufo-Addo, ace broadcaster Kwame Sefa Kayi, television host Berla Mundi, actress Martha Ankomah, Founder and chief executive officer of McDan Group of Companies Daniel McKorley, Founder and chief executive officer of Makeup Ghana Rebecca Donkor among other distinguished men and women in Ghana.

Kwame was designated in 2021 as a Climate Ambassador by Climate Clock, a global climate initiative, with the purpose of emphasizing the urgency to enhance climate advocacy, particularly through the utilization of the climate clock.

In 2022, Kwame was designated as the brand ambassador for Waylead Ghana Company Limited. Additionally, he was appointed as an ambassador by Water Aid for their Hygiene Behaviour Change Coalition (HBCC) as part of the COVID-19 Control initiative.

In 2024, Kwame was named an ambassador for the Earthshot Prize—an environmental initiative inspired by the U.S. “Moonshot” project—designed to inspire and reward innovative solutions to the world’s most pressing environmental challenges over the next decade.