Released on 9th May, exactly one year to the day of the 27th Telecel Ghana Music Awards, Asiama’s journey and the story of Akoma no longer feel accidental. They feel aligned.
Before becoming a TGMA Best Male Vocal Performance winner, Akoma was Asiama’s prayer song, a deeply personal reflection on the conflict between the heart, the mind, and trust in Nana Nyame’s guidance as he embarked fully on his music journey.
After winning Best Male Vocal Performance at the 27th TGMA with his debut single Akoma, Kumasi born artist Asiama has become one of Ghana music’s most intriguing breakthrough stories.
At this year’s Telecel Ghana Music Awards, one artist quietly emerged as one of the ceremony’s most compelling breakthrough stories: Asiama.
For many people hearing his name for the first time, the reaction has been immediate:
“Who is he?”
Others have described the moment as anomalous, not because the talent feels undeserved, but because such a powerful voice has arrived so suddenly through a debut release.
And yet, once he begins to sing, curiosity quickly gives way to certainty.
With his debut single Akoma, the Kumasi born singer, songwriter, musician, and producer won the Best Male Vocal Performance award. The song also earned a Record of the Year nomination, while its producer received a Best Audio Engineer nomination for the same record.
The breakthrough represents a remarkable trifecta of firsts: a debut single, a first nomination, and a first major TGMA win.
Beyond the awards and headlines, however, it is the voice itself that lingers.
Known for his compelling vocal delivery, Asiama stills listeners with a rare ability to make them stop and feel every word. His voice carries emotional honesty, vulnerability, restraint, and spiritual depth in a way that feels increasingly rare within contemporary music.
To many listeners, Asiama does not feel entirely new. His voice carries the strange familiarity of something long awaited.
Born Emmanuel Asiamah Mensah in Effiduase and raised in Kumasi, Asiama grew up in a deeply musical household shaped by gospel music, choral harmonies, hymns, and Highlife traditions.
Long before the TGMA spotlight, some viewers may remember Asiama as the young contestant on X Factor who softly explained, “My mom sells jollof in the school,” a simple introduction that instantly revealed the humility and warmth audiences would later connect with so deeply.
His musical journey began alongside his elder brother Caleb Mensah, whose passion for Acapella music introduced him to harmony, vocal arrangement, and disciplined musical structure.
By the age of seven, he had already formed his own vocal group, teaching harmonies to friends and organising performances in churches across Kumasi on Saturdays.
Many remember Asiama from his appearance at just 12 years old on X Factor (Glo), where his performance deeply moved judges including Reggie Rockstone, M.I Abaga, and the late Mrs Onyeka Onwenu.
It was Onyeka who would ultimately leave him with words that stayed with him long after the competition ended:
“The rules are the rules, but don’t be discouraged. By the time you come of age to take part in a contest like this, there won’t even be a contest. You’ll be beyond it.”
Those words stayed with Asiama for years and ultimately inspired him to pursue music professionally.
Despite encouragement from people aware of his gift, he deliberately chose not to release music prematurely, believing that if he was ever going to introduce himself properly, it would have to happen at the right time and with the right producer.
That producer would eventually become the musical prodigy, Kwame Yeboah.
Following a recommendation within the music circle, Yeboah, musical director for Yusuf / Cat Stevens and Craig David, reached out to Asiama, beginning the creative partnership that would later shape Akoma and set the tone for his forthcoming EP due later this year.
Speaking about Asiama, Yeboah has described the artist simply as “a rare gem.”
The world surrounding Asiama has also been shaped by the broader creative direction and artistic vision of Be.love, with emotionally immersive and symbolically driven storytelling led by its founder, Tina ‘Belove’ Atiemo, continuing to help define Asiama’s evolving artistic identity.
At its core, Akoma explores the emotional conflict between desire and conscious pleas for divine strength to overcome the temptations of the heart and mind.
“The breakthrough may feel sudden to audiences, but the voice behind it has been years in the making.”
