Stonebwoy came dressed for the occasion. Hours before he was due on stage at the Hogbetsotso Festival in Anloga on Saturday, the dancehall star stepped out in kente, made his way to the high seat at the festival durbar and bowed before President John Dramani Mahama.
The moment, shared in a set of photos on his Instagram page, quickly became one of the most talked-about images of this year’s celebrations. Other pictures show him among chiefs and kings of the Volta Region, paying respect to the elders before his headline show at Lalana Beach.
“Honouring our Traditions. Upholding our Customs and Keeping Our Culture Alive,” he wrote, before turning to the night ahead: “HOGBETSOTSO festival tonight! LALANA Beach, Anloga.. SEE YOU TONIGHT,” signed off with his #TheTorcher and #Hogbetsotso26 hashtags.
Fans responded within minutes. The post passed 2,000 likes within its first few minutes online, with comments hailing him as “The Torch bearer” and “Togbe”, the Ewe title for a chief.
Stonebwoy headlines Hogbetsotso at Lalana Beach
The Hogbetsotso concert at Lalana Beach is Stonebwoy’s second in two years at the venue. He announced it on Facebook in October, and his show there last year drew a huge crowd. This time MzVee joins him on the bill, according to the Ghana News Agency.
For an artist who has taken Ghanaian dancehall to stages around the world, and recorded with Angélique Kidjo on “Manodzi”, a homecoming show at a traditional festival carries its own weight. The kente, the bow and the caption all said the same thing: on this night, he arrived as a son of the region first and a star second.
President Mahama at the Hogbetsotso durbar
Mahama was in Anloga for the grand durbar, the high point of the festival, and he brought news for the coastal communities. Responding to traditional leaders’ concerns about sea erosion, he said “an additional amount of GH¢257 million has been allocated in the 2027 budget” to complete phase two of the Blekusu coastal protection project, which he launched in July 2025.
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He also announced GH¢685 million to begin coastal protection works under the West African Coastal Areas Resilience Investment Project, and urged chiefs and residents to protect the area’s mangroves and wetlands, warning that their loss leaves the coastline more exposed, GBC reported.
What is the Hogbetsotso Festival?
Hogbetsotso is celebrated by the chiefs and people of Anlo on the first Saturday of November at Anloga, the traditional capital of the Anlo State. It marks their ancestors’ escape from Notsie, in present-day Togo, and the cruel rule of King Agorkoli.
According to oral tradition, the women of Notsie poured their waste water against one section of the town wall until it softened enough to break through, and the people walked out backwards so their footprints would mislead anyone following them. The festival’s days of peace-making and purification lead up to the durbar, where chiefs in full regalia receive homage, and the Agbadza dance is never far away. (For more on the region’s sound, read our guide to Borborbor, the Ewe drumming and dance style from Kpando.)
This year’s theme is “Anlo, Our Heritage and Our Values: Striving to Build One Ghana for a Better Tomorrow.”
A big music weekend in the Volta Region
Stonebwoy is not the only headliner. Shatta Wale takes over the Hogbetsotso Sunday Beach Concert at Eli Beach Resort & Hotel in Tegbi on Sunday, 8 November. Edem’s EdemFest, which had been planned for Saturday at Emancipation Beach, has been postponed, with his Volta Regime Music Group promising a new date.
Away from the big stages, the Tsadidi Street Art Festival runs until Sunday at Fort Prinzenstein in Keta, alongside the Xetoto Arts Festival, the Keta To The World Concert and the Mama Hogbe beauty pageant.
For one night at least, though, the picture of the weekend belongs to Stonebwoy: kente on, head bowed, culture first.
