George Darko (born 12 January 1951 in Akropong, Ghana) is a

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

ian

burger-highlife Burger-Highlife is a distinctive form of highlife music created by Ghanaian immigrants to Germany. It is considered a Ghanaian musical style. In the 1980s, reggae music was gaining popularity worldwide and was carrying with it a growing popularit ...

musician, guitarist, vocalist, composer and songwriter, who has been on the music scene since the late 1960s. Darko was popular in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, and his songs are some of the most timeless and enduring

highlife Highlife is a music genre that started in present-day Ghana in the 19th century, during its Gold Coast (British colony), history as a colony of the British Empire and through its trade routes in coastal areas. It describes multiple local fusions ...

tracks in Ghana's music circles. Some of his contemporaries include Ben Brako, C.K. Mann, Daddy Lumba, Ernest Nana Acheampong, Nana Kwame Ampadu, Pat Thomas, among others. He is widely considered to be one of the pioneers of burger-highlife with his first hit "Ako Te Brofo" ("The Parrots Speak/Understands English") which was released in 1983. The song remains popular among Ghanaians both at home and abroad, and is still played at funerals and parties. Son of a

paramount chief A paramount chief is the English-language designation for the highest-level political leader in a regional or local polity or country administered politically with a chief-based system. This term is used occasionally in anthropological and arch ...

, George Darko was educated at the Presbyterian School at Akropong. After playing for an army band entertaining troops in the Middle East, Darko returned to Ghana and formed the Golden Stool Band. In the late 1970s the band moved to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, where Darko went solo and formed the Bus Stop band in 1982. Returning to Akropong in 1988, he was made Tufuhene of

Akropong-Akuapim Akropong is a town in South Ghana and is the capital of the Akuapim North District, a district in the Eastern Region of South Ghana. This town is known for producing snails and palm oil.

in 1991 with the stool (throne) name of Nana Yaw Ampem Darko. In January 2010, he demanded and received apologies from a newspaper which had reported sex allegations in connection with him. He is the biological Father of the German Rapper and Singer Manuellsen.

Discography

;Studio albums * ''Friends'' (1983, Taretone) * ''Highlife Time'' (1983, Sacodisc International) * ''Moni Palava'' (1986, A&B Records) * ''Soronko'' (1988, Musicolor) * ''Highlife in the Air'' (1994, Boulevard Records) * ''Come to Africa'' (2006, Okoman Records) ;Contributing artist * '' The Rough Guide to Highlife'' (2003, World Music Network)

Awards

VGMA Lifetime Award for Outstanding Contribution to Hilife (2020).

References

1951 births Living people Palm wine musicians Ghanaian highlife musicians {{Africa-musician-stub