Bernard George Kobena Brako, known professionally as Ben Brako (born 20 May 1952), is a

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

ian

highlife Highlife is a Ghanaian music genre that originated along the coastal cities of present-day Ghana in the 19th century, during its Gold Coast (region), history as a colony of the British and through its trade routes in coastal areas. It encompasse ...

artiste. He rose to prominence in the mid- to late 1980s, with the release of his first solo studio album, ''Baya'', which he also produced and wrote, in 1987.

Early life

Brako was born on 20 May 1952 in

Accra Accra (; or ''Gaga''; ; Ewe: Gɛ; ) is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , had a population of ...

, Ghana, but grew up in his mother's native

Cape Coast Cape Coast is a city and the capital of the Cape Coast Metropolitan Assembly, Cape Coast Metropolitan District and the Central Region (Ghana), Central Region of Ghana, Ghana. It is located about from Sekondi-Takoradi and approximately from Ac ...

with his seven siblings. He took an active interest in the music and entertainment world at a very young age, but took his formal education very seriously. Brako began performing for live crowds in 1960, and in his own words he has "been performing ever since..."

Education

Brako had his secondary education at St Augustine's College in

. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Economics from the

University of Ghana The University of Ghana is a public university located in Accra, Ghana. It is the oldest public university in the country. The university was founded in 1948 as the University College of the Gold Coast in the British colony of the Gold Coast ...

, and he also obtained a BA (Hons) in Media Communication Studies from the

University of East London University of East London (UEL) is a public university located in the London Borough of Newham, London, England, based at three campuses in Stratford, London, Stratford and London Docklands, Docklands, following the opening of University Squar ...

(1994).

Achievements

Brako's single titled "Shame and Scandal" topped the Global Music Charts at number 1.

References

Ghanaian highlife musicians Living people 1952 births St. Augustine's College (Cape Coast) alumni {{ghana-musician-stub