For Sheygey Reasons by LyricalWanzam & M.anifest

You have used the phrase “For Sheygey Reasons” at some point. If you have not used it in conversation you may have used it on social media to express defiance at something or to just flat out sound cool. The man behind the popularity of this mantra is LyricalWanzam. I will go as far as to say he coined the phrase. It has found a comfortable home in the same house as words like “Chaley”, “Wahala” etc.

If you have ever heard of the Afropolytank Mixtape then this is the voice behind it all. He has done collaborative acts with M.anifest, LooneeTKR among others. He is one of the very artistic budding musicians you have never heard of because of all the politics that goes on in Ghana’s music industry.

My favourite work of his is the song For Sheygey Reasons. It is beautiful, down-to-earth and downright relatable that is, if you did not grow up dada bee. If you love the song, then you will totally go gaga when you see the video.

Structure

Just before it starts, a disclaimer is artfully presented capturing the essence of the story. And then the setting is established: “Somewhere in Madina Zongo”. There is a presentation of what I would describe as the typical features of a Zongo: the minaret of a mosque (what would loosely translate form my first language as “head of a mosque”), an old man in jalabbia, a younger man performing ablution etc.

Storyline

The video is very artistic in how it captures the life in the hood. It relates the story of an Area Champion who absolutely torments the lives of the people in his neighbourhood. He is used to having his way but he gets his comeuppance when he meets the Champion of Champions. They join forces when he realizes he is no match for the big guy.

The Hotspot

What I find utterly charming about the video is its expression of the mundane. You see ordinary people going about their quotidian lives. This is a sharp contrast to what we normally find in Ghanaian music videos where we see the over glorification of an ostentatious lifestyle of fast cars, mansions and nightlife. A very successful attempt to capture the life of the average Ghanaian.

Cultural Blend

I cannot get enough of LyricalWanzam because of his ability to blend local culture with hip-hop culture. This is manifested even in his name LyricalWanzam. “Wanzam” is from Hausa it means “barber” or more extensively the person (usually) a man who circumcises new born males and shaves the heads of new born babies. It will be interesting to have him explain why he chose such an artful combination for his name.

In the video, he wears a black Afropolytank Mixtape t-shirt with a locally made hat; the type you will see people wearing at the Damba festival together with the mugri (leather boots). That’s a good way to promote the local industry. His costume later in the video is far from an attempt to appropriate the culture of several Ghanaian communities. It is him revisiting and reliving his cultural heritage drawing our attention to the potential of co-existence between the local and the foreign.

The use of black and white instead of colour for the motion pictures takes us back to the early 80s when many people owned black and white TV sets.

Trivia
LyricalWanzam loves tea, Indomie noodles and studied Economics at KNUST.

This may be a stretch but I think what makes this good good music is a combination of the various types of instruments. When I listen closely I can almost hear the goonje in the instrumentals.

Cryme Records put a lot of work into the production and direction of this music video. Even though it screams low budget, there is a lot to take away from it. I did not regret watching it and you should totally watch it for sheygey reasons.

Check out the music video here  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYOQhKK_rsM