Journal #11

This weekend was much needed. I have been so busy with writing papers and studying for tests this week that I didn't really get any sleep so last night I came home early and crashed. I value my sleep and am so happy when I get to catch up on it. 

My mom, bless her heart, is extremely nervous for me to go to Africa, so to calm her nerves a bit, she emailed one of her family friends who has been to Ghana 7 or 8 times. He is a doctor so most of what he mentioned was health and safety related but still very helpful. He told me which anti-malarial pills (EXPENSIVE!) and what I should drink and eat over there. 

For today's Journal post I thought it would be really interesting to look at the entertainment side of Ghana. I realized that I am good at building rapport here in the United States because I am educated on what is going on around me. I know most celebrities, lots of different bands, and have seen a lot of movies. I am not a pop-culture fanatic or expert but I am aware of it. So that got me thinking… I should do some research on Ghana's pop culture. I thought I would mainly dip into the music aspect. To me music is everything. Music brings people closer together and can change your mood in an instant. I am a fan of most every genre but my favorite is very mellow acoustic music. As I was researching Ghana music I found that rap music was the most popular. I don't know if that is the case in Ghana or if that's just what people look up on Google but I actually like some of it. Although, they don't call it rap, they call it either "high-life" music or "hip-life". Sarkodie is one of the most popular Ghanaian rapper that wins a lot of awards at the African MTV awards. I love it when he raps in Twi because he speaks it's SO fast! His music isn't the most appropriate so I won't put it up on the Blog but other songs like Black Star by Sway are really catchy and pretty cool. I have already learned a lot about Ghana from just listening to their songs. 

However, they do have a lot of traditional music too. It really all depends on the region of Ghana you go to. 

What I have learned about Ghana through their music

1. Ghanaians are PROUD of Ghana. 

2. They are very celebratory people, they love to dance.

3. They like Soccer, A LOT.

4. Ghana is a very diverse country. No one part is alike

5. I'm already in LOVE with the people over there.