I’d Rather Perform With A Guitar -Kissi Kantios

Kissi Kantios

Ghanaian rising reggae icon Kissi Kantios says he finds miming to be a cheap and appalling way of performing music, so he would rather mount a stage with at least a guitar rather than mime.
“ I’d rather perform with  a guitar or keyboard and percussion than mime my own song...but with the current trend of event organizing where organizers do not make provision for live bands ,well man might be compelled to bend his own rules just for the show to go on,” he told NEWS-ONE in exclusive interview.

After 15 years of recording in various studios across Ghana and 20 years of performing on various stages and concerts, the teacher-Rasta-presenter comes out with two singles ‘Ma No Nko’ and ‘Washe Me Time’ which are already making impact on the airwaves on stations such as Hits FM, Joy FM, Radio XYZ, Peace FM, Y FM and Windy bay among others.
The singles blend elements of high-life music with hardcore dancehall music to recreate and rebrand a hybrid of the two called Dancelife which is original to Ghana.
He worked with Zapp Mallet, one of the best sound engineers on the continent and Naa Elizabeth a voice major and teaching assistant in the Music Department of UEW doing the backing vocals. He hopes his Dancelife music rocks the continent.
‘Ma No Nko’ was the anthem of most clubs and shows in the just ended Aboakyir festival and continues to enjoy a dancing ovation of every ear that hears it.
Agyei Kissi Kantios was born in Asamankese in the Eastern Region. He completed secondary school at Aggrey Memorial A.M.E Zion Secondary School in 1997 as a science student, enrolled into Abetifi Teachers College of Education in 1999 to be trained as a teacher.
He completed in 2002 and was posted to teach at various places in the Western Region of Ghana. Later he underwent training as a radio broadcaster while still teaching. In 2006 he started working as a part-time radio presenter at Ankobra FM in Axim presenting reggae and showbiz programmes.
But his passion for reggae and highlife music has been a lifelong one; hence he decided to veer into doing music.
He wrote his first reggae music at the age of 10 after reading Bob Marley and other reggae lyrics from LP covers belonging to his father.
There were the days when he would run from home or school just to follow bands around towns and villages observing the DJ and sometimes asking to be allowed to operate the sound systems.
 In 2010 he left radio to enter the University of Education, Winneba, to continue his study of music.
A guitarist and a student keyboardist, Kantios has great passion for live music.

Source: NEWS-ONE