Veteran Ghanaian hiplife artiste, Sidney Kofi Ofori, known professionally as Barima Sidney, has offered an apology to former President John Dramani Mahama for releasing his viral track dubbed “Papa No” three years ago.
Speaking in an interview with Joy Prime’s Roselyn Felli on Prime Morning on Wednesday, May 15, 2024, the “Scent Nooo” hitmaker disclosed he never released the song for Mr. Mahama, as many Ghanaians claimed.
Sidney said the song’s lyrics were inspired by a social media squabble between actress Tracy Boakye and Gloria Kani, where the two women were accusing each other of having relations with an affluent and wealthy individual in power whom they referred to as “Papa No, to wit, “That man.”
“I heard two ladies conversing on social media about ‘Papa No’ and we all know those two celebrities, Gloria Kani and Tracy Boakye. So, when I heard of Papa No, I was like, this is very interesting. Let me just work on something. So, I just went to the studio one night from 12 to 7 a.m.; we just released it, and by 9:00, it was all over.”
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Even though Sidney did not mention any names in the “Papa No” song, the lyrics indirectly referenced the ongoing saga at that time.
According to Sidney, some individuals went ahead to insert the former president’s pictures into video clips of the track, which went viral, without his permission or knowledge.
“I didn’t have anybody in mind, but then some people gathered some rashes of the former president and put it behind the music, and they were using it to promote their own stuff. So, at the end of the day, people thought it was me. I had no idea,” he explained.
A lot of Ghanaians blamed the controversial song for the former president’s defeat in the 2020 general elections.
Sidney, who is notoriously popular for producing controversial socio-political songs, rendered an apology to the NDC flagbearer for any harm the song has caused him.
“I’ll take this opportunity to apologize to the former President John Mahama. I mean, it wasn’t about him, and I wasn’t the one who did those videos and rashes that circulated on social media. ‘Papa No’ goes to everybody,” he pleaded.
Barima Sidney gained fame in 2003 with most of his songs critiquing political leaders and addressing social issues. He is known for his smash hit song “African Money” featuring Morris Baby Face. The lyrics of the song focus on how African leaders lavishly spend money meant for the development of the nation. He currently has eight studio albums to his name.
Watch excerpts of the interview here:
https://youtu.be/lAjaextga2E?si=093TieRjdbVqwoHw
