God Created Everything

There’s so much interesting music coming out of Ghana at the moment, from the explosive King Ayisoba and his disciples Alostmen, who won best newcomer at the Songlines Music Awards last year, and the splendid Saltpond City Band, whose debut album is also reviewed in this issue. We can add to the list Linda Ayupuka, whose voice we first heard on the This is Frafra Power! compilation produced by Francis Ayamga in 2019. Ayamga – who also produces King Ayisoba – has now helmed Ayupuka’s debut album which fuses the traditional Frafra ceremonial style with the Afro-gospel style she first heard and sung in the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, and whose children’s choir she now directs.

Singing in the Frafra language of Gurenɛ, you can tell her voice has a potent immediacy, even after Ayamga has AutoTuned it into something that barely sounds human. She’s heard at her best on the opener ‘Daguna’ (God is Great), one of the more minimalist tracks, before the electro grooves, disco beats, stabbing synths, drum pads and DJ sample loops completely take over with influences ranging from Jamaican dancehall to the Malian street DJ style known as Balani Show.