Black Sherif is a Ghanaian musician
Black Sherif has shared insights into how his sound is reshaping the identity of Ghanaian music both now and for the future.
He has established that overtime, he has been able to bring a new level of “realness” to the soundscape.
In a conversation with Pause Magazine, the celebrated Ghanaian musician reflected on the authenticity he brings to his craft.
He noted that although he is still learning and evolving as an artiste, his music stands out because it expresses raw emotions and real-life experiences.
According to Blacko, his approach to music is driven more by instinct and emotion than by structure or formula.
I never thought I could make a life out of music as a Muslim – Black Sherif
While he is known for blending genres like highlife, reggae, and rap, Black Sherif emphasized that his creative process is deeply personal and rooted in honesty.
The “Second Sermon” hitmaker explained that his songs often carry layers of meaning, with many lyrics and sounds drawn from his personal life and emotions, sometimes hidden in melodies or harmonies that only he fully understands.
“Hmm, I mean, it’s bringing some realness to it, you know, because I’m actually still figuring everything out. But I just know if there’s one thing that I’m bringing to the soundscape, it’s some realness. Yeah, some realness and some rawness into the music, into the melodies, into the being… because I love to experiment, right? But when I started making highlife songs, I could write like ten verses in five hours.
“And sometimes when things come too easy, you don’t really rate them like that. The reggae, the highlife—that’s me. Even when I’m rapping: the rhythms, the melodies, the scalings, the topics, the things I want to talk about. Even the perspectives I bring to love songs—like very romantic stuff—my perspectives are always so real and raw that sometimes it brings me some…
“I won’t say problems, but it makes me anxious. It makes me super anxious. Even in interviews. Because these songs I’ve made are super real. And in some of them, I hide the stories in the melodies. Some of the things I can’t say, I hide in the ad-libs. I hide them in the harmonies,” he stated.
He added, “But then when I’m at interviews and I have to explain everything… in the moment, I’m very, very anxious, and I’ll just start fumbling. These are things I’m still finding ways to deal with.”
Meanwhile, catch this week’s episode of Nkommo Wo Ho, packed with showbiz gist and street buzz here!
AK/EB
