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Ghana is best known for such musical genres as highlife, hiplife, afrobeats and gospel. But one Kumasi-born artist is bucking that trend by carving a name for himself as Ghana’s first opera singer, (see here ). Nino's staff is a reminder of his journey* Nino – aka Agyemang Kofi Offeh – has been singing and composing since childhood. Thanks to his father’s interest in classical music, Nino developed a passion for this genre even though he started out singing gospel and highlife. Despite gaining some success as a highlife artist, Nino couldn’t shake the feeling that he was destined to do something else. A turning point came when he was hospitalised after having a car accident that could have cost him his voice and limbs. “I remember lying in the hospital bed and watching myself performing my highlife tracks on TV and hearing my songs on the radio, but I thought - I haven't done what I am supposed to do," he said Inspiration As softly-spoken as Nino is, his...

In the 12 months since I last attended Africa Fashion Week London (AFWL) 2014. Two trends have emerged that - for me - are indicators that fashion inspired by Africa's many cultures and people is coming into its own. The first focuses on the professionalism of exhibitors at the two-day event in August and the second trend looks at factors that are shaping the direction of designs inspired by the Continent. AFWL 2015 attracted designers from South Africa © MisBeee Writes Business-savvy exhibitors Exhibitors at the London Olympia hall were engaging, business and marketing savvy, and knowledgeable. You may say that these observations should go without saying, but I have lost count of the number of times I have been on the receiving end of a disinterested retailer unwilling to show flexibility when selling and marketing their products. Exhibitors - such as Ricoton and Quincy's Collection - excelled in making the most of their pitches at AFWL 2015. By constant...

Rubbing shoulders with Atumpan © MisBeee Writes As African Fashion Week London matures into its fifth year, so too does the calibre of designers, entertainers and exhibitors at the show this year. The two-day event started on Friday 7 August at Kensington Olympia's exhibition hall. The event brought together talented fashion designers, artisans skilled in jewellery-making, as well as those adept at creating stylish clothes and footwear. But the vibrancy was not just confined to the clothes. Music from some of Africa's brightest stars was also showcased.   In the first of two instalments from the vibrant fashion event, MisBeee speaks to Ghanaian afrobeats singer Atumpan, whose energetic performance got young and old on their feet. Atumpan, which means talking drum in Ghana's Akan languages, is a trained teacher. He is best known for his controversial hit 'The Thing'. Check it out here . by Kirsty Osei-Bempong. For more blogs abo...

African pride was in abundance across central London as musicians and fashion designers showcased their creative talents on Saturday 1 August. You can't go wrong with a Singer © Anthony Ayakwah As part of the Africa Centre’s ‘Africa in August Summer Festival', designers including those from the Gambia, Ghana, Nigeria and Kenya drew in crowds keen to acquire one-off designs and sample some of the Continent’s unique live music. Singers including Nigerian-French singer Asa and Angolan folk musician Bonga helped to capture the vibrancy of the day and showcased how rich and culturally diverse the Continent is. British-Ghanaian Fuse ODG aka Nana Richard Abiona made sure the audience didn’t lose sight of the need to foster balance when portraying images of Africa and Africans globally.  Interspersed between his uplifting tracks, he recounted his dealings activist Bob Geldof KBE during the West African Ebola crisis in 2014. He used his musical platform to explain ...

Look by Lee White image © MisBeee Writes London artist Lee White is a young talent that has designs on creating his own comic characters and establishing an illustration business in the future. In his work, he aims to capture the beauty and vibe of everyday life and has a growing repertoire of illustrations. This young artist enjoys Japanese animation productions known as Anime and Japan's Manga comics but surprisingly has never watched a Marvel comic-inspired film. Check out his illustrations in this  YouTube clip  in the first of MisBeee 123's three-part interviews. MisBeee 123 aims to celebrate the creative skills of everyday people. In the vlog, Lee also gives us a short demo on his depiction of Kwaku Ananse the Spider. Kwaku Ananse is a much-loved but pesky character used in Ghanaian story-telling tradition, which was exported to the West Indies and the US as a result of the Slave Trade. By Kirsty Osei-Bempong. For more blogs on art check out...