Veteran highlife musician, Alfred Benjamin Crentsil Jr. AKA AB Crentsil has said highlife is the pride of Ghana not the Burger highlife or hiplife everyone is now used to. AB Crentsil was speaking to Boyfriend Romeo on Shaft FM drive time show.
“Many old Ghanaians are used to highlife than the hiplife in the market now”, he said.
“All that you can hear outside is hiplife but we must also look into the highlife again”, he added.
Crentsil has played with the El Dorados, Sweet Talks – who in the 1970s, under the joint leadership of Crentsil and Smart Nkansah, were the resident band at The Talk Of The Town Hotel in Tema, with Crentsil as lead singer — and then finally the Ahenfo Band.
Crentsil opened a 16-track recording studio in 1990.
When asked about the welfare of veteran musicians and the monies they get from royalties, he told Romeo,
“All that I can say is that, the money is not good. I can’t mention a specific sum but you just assume any amount.”
“It is from the top, I mean those in charge of our finances. If they do what they are supposed to do, we will also receive what we are supposed to receive”, he added.
He also called on MUSIGHA to help lessen the burden of veteran musicians since their “bolts and nuts” have weakened for them to make music again.
“I am 75 years old … and as you grow your bolts and nuts become weak. Our leaders must make things right for highlife music or things will continue to become difficult for us”.
AB Crentsil has 18 albums and 7 compilations to his name.