Q and A: Ghanaian singer Tiisha

Tiisha recently spoke to Music In Africa about her journey so far, her unique challenges as a female act in search of pop success in a male-dominated industry, and what 2021 holds for her.

MUSIC IN AFRICA: What genres of music would you say you do?

TIISHA: I am an Afrobeats artist, but I’m also a versatile artist in that I’m able to do other songs and genres if the need arises.

Who are your musical influences?

I love Rihanna. She inspires me a lot. I love her because of her stagecraft as well as her fashion sense. I admire Tiwa Savage, too. She has this African goddess influence on me.

What themes do you explore in your music?

Well, I just don’t want to focus on a single theme. I love to explore a whole lot of things when I need to express myself. I love to talk about new relationships, friendship and marital heartbreaks, among other subjects. 

How did your marriage with Zylofon come about?

I was working with Zylofon FM for a while, hosting a show there. I met my manager Skinny Willis, who introduced me to the label. Everything else fell in place organically. 

You recently consolidated your entry into the industry with ‘Goddess’. What is the message of that song and why did you choose it as your maiden single?

‘Goddess’ portrays who I am. Both the music and the accompanying video discuss who Tiisha is. So I just wanted to give people an idea of who I am.

What unique challenges have you experienced as a female artist in the music industry here?

It hasn’t been an easy journey for any female. You tend to lose some things and face constant disappointment. However, my greatest challenge is to really break into such an overwhelmingly male-dominated industry.

What differentiates you from other Ghanaian female acts?

Well, we’re all unique people but I think I’m powerful, and it finds expression across the various avenues of my craft, including my voice, songs and music videos.

What other projects are you working on?

I have a new song in the coming months. It’s going to be a good year. We’re going to be releasing back-to-back singles, so music lovers should be on the lookout.

How would you say COVID-19 has affected your work, negatively and positively?

The real impact of COVID-19 on my music is that it has given me more time to do a lot of practice. I’m pretty sure if there was no pandemic, there would have been a lot of things and little time for practice. However, on the negative side, it’s ruined a lot of plans. There are several plans my team would have loved to have executed from last year but unfortunately, particularly due to social restrictions that have come with the health crisis, we have had to delay a lot of those plans.