Renowned event MC and entertainment pundit, MC Portfolio, has weighed in on the ongoing debate around who truly deserves credit for coining and championing the Afro‑Dancehall genre.
Speaking on GhanaWeb Entertainment’s X Space on Friday, July 4, 2024, Portfolio cautioned against allowing outsiders to claim what “belongs to us” and lamented Ghana’s poor documentation culture.
He stressed that while one can’t claim ownership of the English word “Afro‑Dancehall,” as a genre, it demands a clear brand and an ambassador to carry it forward.
“You cannot leave out Stonebwoy. He has been someone who is very vocal and intentional about drumming the genre. We are not being fair to Stonebwoy if we don’t give him his flowers,” he asserted.
According to him, this isn’t about erasing the hard work of predecessors who blended dancehall with Ghanaian sounds, but about recognising those who gave the genre a label, a platform and momentum.
“If you are not able to carve a name for what you are doing, how does it become attractive and become a generational sound?” he questioned.
He drew parallels with hiplife, explaining that prior to Reggie Rockstone, others mixed rap and highlife, but it was Rockstone’s branding that gave birth to an enduring genre.
Similarly, Stonebwoy, Portfolio argued, has done the same for Afro‑Dancehall.
“Stonebwoy has been able to give Afro‑Dancehall the label and give it a seat over the years,” he stated.
Portfolio concluded by invoking Ghana’s independence movement, explaining that although multiple leaders played various roles, Kwame Nkrumah is credited for scaling and radicalising the movement.
“So, same thing with Stonebwoy. We have Afro‑Dancehall being credited to Ghana, so, let’s own this and give Stonebwoy the credit,” he said.
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