One of Ghanaian music’s most celebrated projects, E.L’s “B.A.R” series, has a compelling origin story, and he finally reveals it. According to the rapper, it stems from a a moment of creative frustration and a conversation with a former girlfriend.
In his recent interview with Kula, E.L admitted that the overwhelming success of his Azonto hits had a surprising side effect. He felt that his identity as a rapper was being overshadowed.
“I was complaining to [my ex-girlfriend] that I was doing Azonto so much that people are beginning to forget that I’m a rapper,” E.L explained.
According to the “Kaalu” hitmaker, that moment ignited him after his ex-girlfriend delivered the line that would become the foundation of his signature project.
“She gave me the idea that I need to show them I am the ‘Best African Rapper’. That hit me and I was like B.A.R and it made sense. So that was what pretty much gave me the idea to start putting the album together,” he recounted.
What was originally conceived as a one-off album was so immense that it demanded a continuation. This led to the creation of a series that has since become a cornerstone of his discography.
The “B.A.R” concept also expanded beyond music, evolving into a celebrated concert series that began as “E.L and Friends” and has now grown into the highly anticipated “B.A.R Concerts.”
“It was ideally supposed to be an album not a series but the first did so well that I needed to keep it going. A concert came out of it and that was initially the E.L and Friends Concert at the Alliance Fraincaise and from there into the BAR Concerts,” he added.
