In the early 1970s, much of Ghana’s popular music was guitar-band highlife and imported soul. A group of musicians in Accra went in another direction. Dressed in white, like traditional Ga priests, they played local drums, bells and calabashes and sang in the Ga language about life in the coastal city. They called themselves Wulomei, meaning “fetish priests” or “traditional priests” in Ga. Founded by the bandleader Nii Ashitey, Wulomei became one of Ghana’s best-known cultural groups and helped revive pride in Ga music.
Nii Ashitey and the Ga revival
Wulomei is the plural of wulomo, the Ga word for a traditional priest. The group’s white costumes reflected that role. Nii Ashitey, a musician who had played in highlife bands, led the group and shaped its sound. The Ga are the indigenous people of the Accra plains. Their music includes kpanlogo, adowa and other drum-based styles.
Wulomei emerged at a time when there was interest in reviving traditional culture in Ghana. The group used local drums, bells, rattles and other traditional instruments, sometimes with guitar. Their songs drew on Ga folk tunes and told stories of fishing, family life, history and social issues.
Popularity, tours and Homowo
The group became popular in Ghana and recorded several albums. Wulomei performed abroad and introduced audiences to Ga music. Many later cultural groups in Ghana followed Wulomei’s approach of presenting traditional music on modern stages. Members changed over time, but the group’s name and style remained respected in Accra. Wulomei’s music is often associated with Homowo, the Ga harvest festival, when traditional music fills the streets.
The group has been used as an example in schools and universities studying Ghanaian music. Wulomei showed that indigenous music could find a large modern audience.
Ga drumming and a city sound
Ga drum music is built on interlocking parts. A bell keeps the time line, supporting drums repeat steady patterns and a master drummer improvises over them. Wulomei kept that structure and added singing in the Ga language on top of it. Their songs belonged to Accra in particular. The fishing beaches of James Town, the markets and the old neighbourhoods of the coast all appear in the world the group sang about.
Most bands of the 1970s dressed to look modern. Wulomei went on stage dressed as Ga priests, and Accra audiences loved them for it.
