Ghanaian musician Guy One built up a fervent following in local villages amongst the Frafra people in northern Ghana, in which no funeral or wedding would take place without his soaring voice and deeply rhythmic playing. He plays the kologo, a plucked lute.
While traveling through Ghana, Max Weissenfeldt, owner of the German Philophon label bought a copy of a CD by Guy One. Weissenfeldt loved the music and was determined to locate the artist. Weissenfeldt took a bus to Bolgatanga and asked where he could find Guy One. Ten minutes later they were shaking hands. Hours later, the pair drove to a funeral. The village members gathered between the mud huts as Guy One quietly picked up his Kologo. As he started with his eulogizing voice, the village members immediately formed a huge circle around him. Witnessing this intense and potent interaction between music and community and life and death, Weissenfeldt knew he needed to get Guy One to Berlin and into a studio.
In 2013, Guy One left Ghana for the first ever time and made it to Berlin where he participated in various recording sessions.Several other sessions followed until One completed an album titled #1.
Discography:
#1 (Philophon, 2018)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
