In February (2010), Ghanaian rapper Sarkodie became the first musician to be signed with Akon‘s label Konvict Africa. ‘Borga’ is one of Sarkodie’s first songs with the label. It’s a great catchy song with funny lyrics and a great video clip to support it. Unfortunately for some people, most of the song is not in English. The word ‘Borga’ is the term used to describe someone who has been to or lived in Hamburg. Ghanaian people use the word to describe someone who lives/lived or has been abroad, and also to describe someone who has never left Ghana but acts like they have. My Dad was telling me a story about my belated Grandma. She was nicknamed ‘Abrewa Borga’ (Old Lady Borga). She has never stepped outside of Ghana. Yet she lived her life like a high-roller and loved her nickname. My Grandma had a friend who had been to America. When her friend returned to Ghana, she was expecting the Borga to be her name name. She became frustrated that she wasn’t being called Borga, but my Grandma who had never left Ghana has the title. It is as if the term carries some sort of prestige! When I went to Ghana in 2008, my cousin would mockingly call me ‘Borga’. He thought I was too Westernized. I wasn’t offended by it, but once he said it in public everyone knew that I didn’t live in Ghana. It made me look like a Diva – which I am not.
The quality of this clip is amazing. Probably one of the best I have seen from the Ghanaian and Nigerian hiplife genre. It is a nice change from other clips where you just see women in hot pants booty shaking for 5 mins.
‘Hey Babe’ is a another great song by Sarkodie which was realised late last year. You can easily tell which clip has the benefits of being signed to Konvict.
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