Obrafour’s Yaanom has been accepted by connoisseurs, fans and all music lovers as the best rap song of all time in the annals of Hiplife music in Ghana.
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Yaanom was released by Obrafuo in 1999, off the legendary album titled Pae Mu Ka. Obrafuor, real name Michael Elliot Kwabena Okyere Darko was also considered the best Ghanaian rapper of all time before the explosive emergence of Sarkodie a little over a decade ago.
Sarkodie himself has often acknowledged the influence of Obrafuor on his career and says modestly that he doesn’t come anywhere close to him (Obrafour) despite his huge achievement in the music landscape. The Executioner as Obrafuor is sometimes called was adjudged the Rapper of the Year, New Artiste of the Year, and Best Hiplife Song of the Year with Pae Mu Ka at the 2000 Ghana Awards.
There have been hardcore rap songs that have been churned out by a lot of Ghanian rappers which could unarguably been thrown in the mix here. Veterans rappers like Lord Kenya, Okomfuor Kwadee, Reggie Rockstone, Tinny, Kwaw Kese, Okra Tom David amongst others have contributed great raps to the genre and equally deserve recognition.
The new school block compromising of Teephlow, Strongman, Koo Ntakra, Medikal, Tulenkey, Lyrical Joe, etc also have some wicked bars that can be held in the same breath. However, Obrafour’s Yaanom is in a league of its own. The rhyme scheme, witty lyrics, and timing all gave the song space it currently occupies in the Hiplife industry. Sarkodie rightly acknowledged the Pae Mu Ka album, of which Yaanom is derived from as the best album of all time in his song, Okodie.
Although Obrafour’s Yaanom being the best rap song of all time hasn’t been made official, it resonates in the heart of rap music lovers who understand the rudiments of music.
At the age of 8, Obrafuor sang with his late mum at church. ‘Sometimes I sang along with my mum whilst she was working and to tell you I partially music was part of me at a tender age. I never dreamt of becoming a musician rather it was my dream to become a lawyer since my granddad was a lawyer’ he once told the media. Obrafour had his secondary school education at Abetifi. After one term at St. Peters where he was being trained for his A-Level, he dropped out in 1995 when his mother died.
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The diminutive rapper believes that he was born with music. His mum was a chorister. At the age of 4, he watched her mum sing at church with keen interest. It got to a time that she would invite him to church to sing with her. When he was in secondary school, he formed a quartet and they were doing Gospel songs until his mum passed away.
SOURCE: www.Ghgossip.com
‘Yaanom’- The Song Considered The Best Ghanaian Rap Song Of All Time .