Sarah Hunt K0937368

A Critical Analysis of Style, Technique and Cultural Identity in the Ghanaian Film Musical Coz Ov Moni
MU3403
Sarah Hunt
K0937368

Faculty Of Arts and Social Sciences: Music Musical Technology (2011/12)

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ABSTRACT Coz Ov Moni is the first ever Ghanaian pidgin film musical. It was written by and stars rap duo Wanlov the Kubolor and Mensa Ansah who aimed to present Ghana as realistically as possible in the work. The work has a compound identity and this dissertation both examines its hybridity and dissects the relationship between techniques, structure and message. It also reviews the socio-cultural significance of Coz Ov Moni and its contribution to Ghanaian and international culture in postcolonial times. Primary and secondary sources have informed this study and those, which are close to the creators, have allowed their aims and ideals to be expressed unequivocally and examined thoroughly. The findings of this research acknowledge that the innovative spirit of Coz Ov Moni sets it apart from stereotypical practices and portrayals, which are sometimes associated with the culture industries today, while embracing (rather than resisting) the contradictions and complexities of the post-colonial life. Coz Ov Moni was released in 2010 and has attained international recognition.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1 Introduction

Page no.

Chapter 2 Compound Identity: Coz Ov Moni as Genre 3

Chapter 3 Coz Ov Moni: Genre, Structure & Manipulation of Message 9

Chapter 4 Coz Ov Monis Context in Post-Colonial Ghana 13

Chapter 5 Coz Ov Moni & Stereotyping: Comparisons with Hollywood 18

Chapter 6 Conclusion 24

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

Coz Ov Moni is a Ghanaian musical offered in the format of film. The creators of the movie are two Ghanaian artists and producers named Wanlov the Kubolor and Mensa Ansah. The work was

Sarah Hunt K0937368 directed by King Luu and released in 2010 and is presented in the language of Ghanaian pidgen English along with subtitles in standard English.

Wanlov and Mensa star as the two main roles in the movie. In the story they wake up with hopes of collecting a debt owed to them by a friend. After they receive the money they visit various places in Accra, Ghanas capital to spend it. They also visit Cape Coast. But their journey leads to dangerous consequences. The movie delivers the story through humour but also touches on serious issues young people in Ghana are faced with today.

The concept of Coz Ov Moni arose when Wanlov and Mensa were writing their first album together as a duo in 2009. The pair knew they wanted the album to encapsulate a day in their life in Ghana. We were going to tell the story in the album and then on every track we can continue with the story (Mensa 2010). But when writing the album they began to develop such vivid images in their mind that they felt a screenplay was needed to amplify the points they were making. They also felt that the public responds more readily to a combination of images and sound: People want more pictures accompanying the sound because once they have seen a video clip of you on the TV they are not happy with just buying the audio. They want to buy the DVD so they can either watch or just listen to it (Wanlov 2010). The story intended for album then became the narrative of the musical Coz Ov Moni.

The artists wanted to present Ghana as colourfully as possible (Anoff 2010). Wanlov and Mensa had a huge hand in the production of Coz Ov Moni. In a way, we knew exactly what we wanted, making the directors work easy (Wanlov 2012). This gave them a great deal of directional independence. They also single-handedly edited most of the film and Mensa produced half of the songs. We have the ability to master all fields (Wanlov 2010, when talking about how they are more than just the entertainers because they take part in a majority of the creation in Coz Ov Moni).

Coz Ov Moni has a compound identity. Techniques from two dramatic genres have been synthesised, resulting in a work that resists classification. The work is neither a piece of musical theatre nor a film of a musical. This hybridity contributes to the nonderivative character of the work.

Sarah Hunt K0937368 The main objectives of this dissertation are outlined below.

1. To analyse the flexibility of practice surrounding the making (in the broadest sense) of Coz Ov Moni. This will cover the integration of techniques from two genres, film music and musical theatre, and the relationship between structure and message.

2. To analyse the socio-cultural significance of Coz Ov Moni and examine the techniques used to convey its messages with particular reference to the works hybridity. Coz Ov Moni was set, created and originally released in post-colonial Ghana so it is important to assess the contribution of Coz Ov Moni to this context and the means by which it confronts surviving elements of the colonial past. Wanlov and Mensa aimed to avoid stereotyping in the film and the ways in which this was done will also be examined.

In pursuit of these aims, primary sources and secondary sources have informed this study. Extensive reference will be made to two interviews, one conducted by the author in 2012 (see appendix B) and the other a radio interview by African American radio presenter Hafiz conducted in 2010.

Both creators believe that the work wasnt conceived in a comparative spirit. Mensa stated we have done something that nobody on the planet has ever done (Mensa 2010). There was no intention to engage with other films or products of the culture industry and, because of this, Coz Ov Moni will therefore not be compared to other works.

Although Coz Ov Moni was not created to be marketed to any particular demographic, it was intended for both local and international audiences, premiering and being sold in Ghana, the USA and England. Its release was a huge success. Hailed as the most original film in over a decade to come out of West Africa, Coz Ov Moni is taking part in prestigious film festivals worldwide, including FESPACO, Cannes, Los Angeles Pan African Film Festival and Rio International Film Festival. (Picture Houses, 2010)

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CHAPTER 2 COMPOUND IDENTITY: COZ OV MONI AS GENRE

When dealing with a work as strongly concerned with authenticity and avoidance of clich and stereotype as Coz Ov Moni it is important to examine the means by which the creators have taken on this challenge. It is a work with a compound identity, so its significant antecedents will be traced here. The way in which Wanlov and Mensa chose to disseminate this product will also be considered, as this too has consequences for genre identity.

Musical Theatre What is a musical? The term is short for musical theatre, in which, conventionally, a narrative is told through singing, acting and dance. Some stage musicals combine spoken dialogue with songs while others wholly rely on singing. Coz Ov Moni is often referred to by its creators as the first Ghanaian pidgen musical, and it does indeed exploit many techniques used in stage musicals. Coz Ov Moni is music-driven right from the beginning to the end (Anoff, 2010), so there is hardly any spoken dialogue, just as in musicals such as Les Misrables.

Techniques Musicals often alternate narrative plot, which will be referred to as outer action, and psychological drama, which can be referred to as inner action. The outer and inner construct derives from critic Winton Dean and is examined further in chapter three (see p. 9). How are these actions defined in relation to Coz Ov Moni? Outer action in Coz Ov Moni refers to the main narrative or plot development. But at certain moments the audience are drawn into the private world of the characters. At these moments they might indulge in fantasy, be taken into a dream sequence or experience a moment of contemplation. This is when the work has shifted to inner action.

Narrative Halt

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In the context of Coz Ov Moni the outer action refers to the unfolding of the plot, and narrative halt to moments of interruption. When the narrative halt occurs, the chronological action stops so that a psychological response can be explored. Examples can be found in musicals such as Sweet Charity and Bombay Dreams where passages of narrative plot and narrative halt alternate.

Inner Action Inner action has three different manifestations in Coz Ov Moni: 1. Collective commentary. This arises when all members unite in song, breaking the narrative thread. It creates opportunities for internal reflection because the characters have stepped out of the narrative to explore the situation, inviting empathy from the audience or helping them to interpret the action. This tradition has roots in Greek drama and in this ancient context involves a group of players called the chorus who, on stage, assume the position of a group of dispassionate observers who have no formal role within the play. In Coz Ov Moni this psychological plane, providing the audience with privileged insights that lie outside the narrative, contributes to inner action. For example, transitions to and from narrative halts are often gradual in Coz Ov Moni, a process described further in chapter three (see pp. 10-12). At certain moments, whether it be the supporting cast typing in time in the internet caf or swaying in time with Wanlov in Mensa fighting over a girl, the screenplay shifts into this form of inner action allowing all characters to unite. Although the cast, at these times, are more than mere observers, these moments are nevertheless extrinsic to the plot and thus often contribute to empathy.

2. The dream sequence. Narrative halts can also be achieved when characters enter a dream state and reposition the audience accordingly. Examples can be found in scenes 6 and 7 and 12 of Coz Ov Moni.

3. Personal contemplation. Additionally, narrative halts in Coz Ov Moni sometimes facilitate a contemplative exchange between Wanlov and Mensa. This can be seen in scene 11 when the robbers are frozen in poses while Wanlov and Mensa are still moving, talking and reflecting on the situation with each other. These narrative halts

Sarah Hunt K0937368 provide a means of direct first-person communication with the audience.

Film Music Author Graham Wood states that once sound could be coordinated and then synchronised with film the creative possibilities of the film musical genre expanded exponentially (Wood, 2002: 214). Wanlov and Mensa take full advantage of these expressive opportunities by presenting Coz Ov Moni as a musical that has been recorded and presented in the format of film. Cinematic form helps Wanlov and Mensa achieve convincing presentation of place. It is filmed on location, providing a far more honest portrayal of Ghana than a stage set could offer. This suits Wanlov and Mensas stated aim to have no pretence and nothing contrived (Mensa 2012). The objective is to capture the daily and current spirit of Ghana as the protagonists in the film see it in their everyday lives.

What is film music? In the early 20th century when films were silent, pianos or organs would always be played as the show screened, to embody extra-musical messages or emotion. Music still accompanies film today but in a form that film scholars refer to as non-diegetic music, that is, music that does not clearly emanate from a performance or other sound generating source within the visual frame (Wood, 2002: 224).

Because Coz Ov Moni is a musical that has been released as a film, an understanding of film music is important to any critical analysis of its techniques. Film music writer Kathryn Kalinak writes, music is a coherent experience and because it is a system of expression possessing internal logic it has frequently been compared to language (Kalinak, 1992:4). Therefore, music can unify material and establish coherence, aiding the audiences interpretation of what is going on. The creation of a soundtrack for Coz Ov Moni emphasises this: Panji Anoff, the executive producer states the music helps the language, in however and whatever form it takes, to get through to the mind and that is what we are trying to do(Anoff 2010).

An example of this in Coz Ov Moni occurs at beginning of scene 4 when Wanlov and Mensa are pulling up to the cyber caf in the taxi. Only the audience can hear the song Go Browse. This is non-diegetic music as it is heard by only the films audience since the characters

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presented on screen cannot hear it: it exists outside of or beyond the fictional world of the film (Davison, 2004: 172). In this case, the non-diegetic appearance is being used as a narrative cue for the song that is about to be performed in the caf.

Diegetic music, in contrast to non-diegetic, signifies the presence of music in the narrative of a film (Beard and Gloag 2005: 54). When the characters can hear the music because they are performing or are in the club, for example, the music is diegetic.

The extent to which Wanlov and Mensa are involved with the music is discussed further in chapter three.

Musical Style The music in Coz Ov Moni presents a mixture of Wanlov and Mensas influences. The influences that emerge the strongest are highlife and hip hop, which are themselves hybrid genres.

Highlife is a musical style which originated in Ghana at the end of the 19th century and has been documented from the 1920s onwards. The style blends African and European influences. Traditional African rhythms are often combined with European harmonies and instruments. Highlife music can have lyrics about many topics but Generally the songs deal with problems of everyday: poverty, marriage problems, hatred, gossip, shame, sickness and death (Van Der Geest and Asante-Darko, 1982: 27).

Hip hop is a genre that first arose in the late 70s in America and spread worldwide during the 80s. Originally use of the term was confined to the technique of mixing breaks (the climatic instrumental section of a record in any style) but the genre has since diversified. A prominent drum rhythm is what most often stands out in hip hop. Hip hop lyrics are usually delivered in rap, a strong form of expression that finds its roots imbedded deep within ancient African culture oral tradition. (Davey D, 2012)

Dissemination

Sarah Hunt K0937368 How is Coz Ov Moni disseminated? It would be possible to talk of marketing this work. However, Wanlov and Mensa are adamant that they did not approach the project with marketing in mind. When asked to whom they were pitching Coz Ov Moni at they replied each other (Wanlov and Mensa 2012). They were not deliberately targeting a particular audience or adopting a specific marketing strategy.

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In spite of this, they did control the distribution rather than contracting the work to an outside company as would be the norm. So it would therefore be appropriate to refer to the work as being offered commercially as opposed to being marketed. Coz Ov Moni comes in the form of discs when being offered commercially: a DVD of the full work and a CD with all of the songs in the movie, vividly illustrating the transportability of the music.

Musical Function What is the function of music in Coz Ov Moni? Whether is being presented as diegetic or non-diegetic, the tempo and overall feel of each track complements the time of day and surroundings of the respective scene. It is as if the music is the rhythm of Wanlov and Mensas life. However, Anoff points out that this is a film you can play in a nightclub (Anoff 2010) so it would be wrong to think the music is confined to specific narrative context. The colourful images mixed with the lively driven beats create a perfect nightclub ambience, which is why Coz Ov Moni would work so well in different entertainment contexts. Whatever nature, it should be clear that music has varied functions in Coz Ov Moni and that the movie could not be conceived without it. Whether or not you know or have seen the film, the music itself has, potentially, an independent presence because it is well placed to be used in clubs, parties or loaded to an mp3 player.

Stage and Stage Presence Although Coz Ov Moni is a film musical, it has a presence as a staged work and Wanlov and Mensa welcome audience interaction whenever performing songs from the musical during their concerts. Composer William Duckworth, who also creates mutable works capable of being reinvented in different contexts, states that there was a clear division between active performers and passive listeners

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in the Western concert tradition before composers such as Erik Satie and later John Cage began to play with as opposed to (Duckworth 2005: 2) their audiences with techniques such as furniture music. Wanlov and Mensa are frequent stage performers; in a live context they show relaxation of authorial control when performing certain songs from Coz Ov Moni.

Why, having produced a highly integrated DVD, do the producers take the risk of fragmenting the content in live performance? Not only does it demonstrate relaxation of control but it helps to make others expressively comfortable with Wanlov and Mensas culture, influences and message.

Although the full version of Coz Ov Moni has never been performed on stage, Wanlov and Mensa perform tracks from it at events and gigs across the world. The duo allow the audience to sing along and get involved and at times even call members of the audience up on stage. For example, the song Come Home Plus Me is taken from the club scene in Coz Ov Moni in which Wanlov and Mensa fight over a girl. In the chorus they tug on her arm and ask her to choose one of them to go home with. When the duo played this song live in London, Wanlov and Mensa called a female audience member onto the stage and performed it whilst pulling her arm from side to side. The audience then started to sway with them just as the actors in the background do on the scene in the movie. So when elements of the film are performed on stage, audience interaction is allowed to redefine their content and sense.

In his role as a composer, Duckworth has created a website that allows an online audience to interact with material that professional musicians have uploaded. This is called Project Cathedral and the musicians who perform for this work are known as The Cathedral Band. Although this was a work not for live concerts but for the virtual stage of the World Wide Web (Duckworth 2005: 89) it can still be compared to Wanlov and Mensas audience involvement on stage because it not only shows a reduction of power and control but it also dissolves composer-performer-audience boundaries that in the post-modern era.

Flash Mob

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Audience interaction is progressively expanding in societies across the world. Many fans have filmed Wanlov and Mensa performing in public and have thereby disseminated moments of the work on social networking sites such as YouTube, for example. Duckworth observes that the capturing of performances on mobile phones not only shrinks the actual world to a handheld portable but also reduces the time factor involved in getting ideas and information from point A to B (Duckworth 2005: 117). Wanlov and Mensas ease with the camera aids this process. They both often state on stage that they want people to take photos and film them and even have a song dedicated to this concept which they perform at some gigs to encourage audience recording. When they perform elements of Coz Ov Moni in such a context it could be thought of as a miniature version of a mob scene a new form of social statement (Duckworth 2005: 117) in todays society when the public capture the moment, thus becoming a part of the work and its dissemination.

CHAPTER 3 COZ OV MONI: GENRE STRUCTURE AND MANIPULATION OF MESSAGE

It is valuable to consider how the genres referenced by Coz Ov Moni are brought together into a single coherent work. The experimental process through which the synthesis of cinematic practice and techniques of musical theatre is achieved shows considerable innovation. It enhances the ability to switch between the inner action and outer action. An overview of this is set out in a synoptic table (appendix C) but this chapter will analyse scene 2 in close detail as it provides the best demonstration of the process. A further table (appendix A) shows an overview of the structure in Coz Ov Moni divided into three main sections.

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Winton Dean writes, when discussing modern audiences reaction to opera, The fact that plot development was virtually confined to the recitative (the outer action) and emotional expression (the inner action) imposed further conventions that modern audiences find unsympathetic (Dean 1977: 389). Dean maintains that the unrealistic contrast between inner and outer action has created difficulties for audiences, and that this is one of the main concerns for European culture. However, musical theatre has often overcome this separation of the two actions, allowing the audience to empathise with the characters. How this is achieved is discussed further in this chapter (see Transitions in Coz Ov Moni).

When comparing opera to musicals, journalist Anthony Tommasini writes that both genres seek to combine words and music in dynamic, felicitous and, to invoke that all-purpose term, artistic ways. But in opera, music is the driving force; in musical theatre, words come first. Although one may argue this is not the case with all musicals and operas, Coz Ov Moni, considered as musical theatre, is a case in point because the words are a prominent feature throughout.

Although Coz Ov Moni is far from an opera it delivers the whole text in stylised speech just like a recitative. However, the form of stylised speech carries the unique diction of pidgen English not merely spoken in conversation but rhymed in time to the pace of each turn of events (Debrah 2010). The stylised speech adopted here by Wanlov and Mensa is rap. In interview Mensa stated that he wanted it to be true to the concept of a musical in a purest form so to speak. So the entire musical is in music (Mensa 2012, in response to being asked why the whole film was delivered in song). The previously mentioned techniques have antecedents in musical theatre, but how do the musical theatre and cinematic qualities in Coz Ov Moni successfully express inner and outer action? A deconstruction of Scene 2 will demonstrate this.

Coz Ov Moni as Musical Theatre From the start of the film the audience experience outer action as they watch Wanlov and Mensa awakening and getting washed and dressed to start the day. But as early as the opening lines of scene 2 the first shift to inner action occurs. When Wanlov and Mensa start to rap, all the characters in the background abandon their normal

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daily market activities to join the duo in a dance routine. Not only does this element give the audience a chance to reflect but it helps them interpret the narrative. It embodies qualities of commentary and draws empathy from the audience instead of constituting pure fantasy or a traditional narrative halt. The audience feel the collective spirit of the market place and identify with the mood, spirit and situation. This part of the scene is therefore inner action. Half way through scene 2 when Wanlov and Mensa look for a man who owes them money, they step back into outer action. Wanlov and Mensa catch the man and take money and valuables from him. Having obtained the money, they turn around to face the other characters and dance with them. This brings us back to inner action as the cast joyfully move as one, even including the man who has just been robbed by the duo.

Coz Ov Moni as a Cinematic Practice How does Coz Ov Moni combine cinematic practice with musical theatre functions with respect to inner and outer action? This is achieved through the use of diegetic and non-diegetic sound. It is apparent in Coz Ov Moni that the diegetic music coincides with inner action, which in the context of this analysis will refer to moments of narrative interruption, both personal and collective, offering privileged insights to the audience that lie beyond the plot. The non-diegetic runs parallel with outer action. Until scene 2 starts, the music is non-diegetic because no character acknowledges its presence. As soon as we reach the first point of inner action the characters start moving to the music, making it also the first diegtic appearance in the scene. As soon as the narrative resumes we are presented with outer action: the music becomes non-diegetic as Wanlov and Mensa are looking for the man who owes money. Although they are rapping to the beat, that beat is unacknowledged, causing the audience to focus more on the conversation than the music because no characters are conscious of it. This facilitates a diegetic fade, giving it a non-diegetic function, just as at the start of the movie, when we follow Wanlov and Mensa getting ready for the day. At the end of the scene when the characters unify in inner action they are all acknowledging the music again, and the narrative is interrupted once more. In summary, diegetic music in this scene serves to accompany inner action, which differs from conventional practice whereby the diegetic forms part of the narrative (Beard and Gloag 2005: 54).

Sarah Hunt K0937368 Transitions in Coz Ov Moni

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How do we successfully move from one action to the next? Through transitions. Wood states how Transitions into environments where the music is recognised by the characters, make the change of action much easier for an audience to accept than a less obviously musical environment because we expect music to be present even if we do not at first see the source (Wood, 2002: 224). The moments of ambiguity make the juxtaposition of inner and outer action acceptable to the audience by successfully blending the two. If we return to scene 2, for example, a relevant example would be when Wanlov and Mensa have confronted the man and are taking the money from him. The audience focuses on their conversation because the camera films close to their faces as they talk. But at this point it is possible to sense that a transition is forming because the characters in the background are beginning to step out of the narrative outer action and dance whilst facing Wanlov and Mensa, who are not yet dancing or acknowledging the music. We are still in the middle of this transition. When the scene reaches the moment where all of the characters dance, we have concluded a non-diegetic to diegetic transition and a shift from outer action to non-narrative, collective inner action. These transitions have different functions throughout the film and are stated on the table (appendix C).

The Narrative Halt and Self-Referencing How broad is the term narrative? In a musical the narrative is a plotline, or a sequence of events that allow the story to progress. But over the centuries different ways of treating a narrative have evolved. It can be presented in spoken dialogue by a narrator or presented through characters conversations and actions, but it can also be delivered in a song, which one could suggest is when musical theatre and opera come closest to each other. An opera recitative advances the plot while being sung to the rhythms of ordinary speech. This strongly contrasts with the aria, with its emphasis on emotion. Musicals most often deliver plotline through spoken conversation. However some deliver the story through unbroken song, and there are examples in opera of spoken narrative (for example Singspiel).

It could be said that when the narrative stops to give place to inner action, it is to draw the audience into the mindset of a character or characters. Additionally the halt is used to make references (cultural or historical) beyond the narrative or situation. Wood writes, One notion in particular permeates all aspects of the movie musical: Self

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reflexivity. This term refers to those aspects of a musical that quote or allude to their own history the history of musical theatre, the entertainment industry or the process of making musicals (Wood 2002:213).

Wanlov and Mensa do not attempt to reference musical theatre in any specific sense, but they allude to the practice of self-reflexivity in scene 7 when we observe them in their dream state. They perform a song called Tenk You in which they thank the fallen heroes and legends in all walks of life, from Mother Teresa to Michael Jackson. Pictures of these inspirational figures appear on the backdrop whilst Wanlov and Mensa pay homage. During this sequence there are occasional background shots of clouds. One could tentatively link this to the self-reflexivity in the film musical Till the Clouds Roll By, cited by Wood, when Caleb Peterson as Joe sings in the staged Show Boat excerpt while Frank Sinatra appears in a fantasy cloudscape dressed in a white tuxedo, symbolically representing Kerns spiritual and musical ascent to the pantheon of great songwriters (Wood, 2002: 218). Wanlov and Mensa are referencing several legends rather than one, but they too are using heavenly clouds within a fantasy sequence.

Therefore, when Coz Ov Moni is subjected to analysis we find that it has a compound identity as a genre, combining musical theatre with cinematic techniques revealed in both the inner and outer action. At moments of transition the audience are repositioned, which results in the more abrupt contrasts becoming more acceptable.

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CHAPTER 4 COZ OV MONIS CONTEXT IN POST-COLONIAL GHANA

Sometimes certain Africans will do things to act in a way that they feel people see Africa. Like they will go and do something like film or portray themselves sitting under a tree in the middle of nowhere or doing tribal things when this is not what they are like in reality. It might be because they are too afraid to be themselves and want to fit into the Western society. Then on the other hand you get the Africans who want to act flashy and present themselves sitting in an expensive car or owning material things. They are hiding from their true identity and trying to show off themselves in a western way. We arent afraid to just be ourselves (Wanlov 2012).

Wanlov is reflecting on expressions of cultural relativism encountered in post-colonial Ghana. These active concerns about identity are confronted in Coz Ov Moni. Scenes 6 and 7 provide the opportunity to examine aspects of Coz Ov Moni in the specific context of modern Ghana. But first it is important to take a broader view of its position as a work of art in post-colonial times.

Post-Colonialism and African Culture What is Post-Colonialism? Post-colonialism is the expression used when referencing certain attributes of countries that once were colonies. Ghana is often spoken of as The Gold Coast (its former name) because of the copious gold resources found in the area in the past. In 1867 it became known as the British Gold Coast when the British Government expanded its colony throughout Ghana. After several wars over the territory, it officially became a British colony in 1901. However, in 1957 the Gold Coast became an independent nation and this was when it was named Ghana. (A summary of Ghanas history is available at http://www.uiowa.edu/~africart/toc/countries/Ghana.html .) When Ghana achieved independence, its president Kwame Nkrumah saw this new society as one retaining much of African civilization, blended with imported, mainly Marxist ideas of a better society

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(July 1983: 122). This blending of political strategies meant that an age-old civilization still survived [and] still offered its people much that was satisfying and much that worked.They did not wish to turn their back on the West but they did warn that African needs and conditions should always be given first priority (p119 July 1983). This contrasts with the colonial era when Europeans had unceasingly assured Africans that their own culture was barbaric and dated, that it was best to emulate the European as quickly as possible to get on business of joining the modern world (July 1983: 119). Wanlovs overview of Ghanas culture strongly counters Western assumptions. We get confused by the word modern and it makes us think that something recent means its better (Wanlov 2010). However, he believes African culture is so fine tuned and its taken Western cultures several thousand years to reach what the Africans have already accomplished in our other so-called Third World. Its only recently that the Westerners are using words like organic, eco friendly and all these things. This is what weve been doing for thousands of years. In the light of such views it is not difficult to understand why post-colonial times have seen the celebration of Ghanaian culture blossom.

The post-colonial movement has encouraged artists such as Wanlov and Mensa to remain in touch with their indigenous culture (even if that culture has inevitably been hybridised by its colonial history). Is it their intention to celebrate post-colonial Ghanaian identity in Coz Ov Moni? Mensa stated that unwittingly and not intentionally, we showed how comfortable we are being ourselves in a modern-day African environment (Mensa 2012, in response to questions about shedding British culture). [It was] not our intention to portray certain images but we were just showing our Ghana, as we know it in the realist way that we understand it. (Mensa 2012)

If not an intended celebration of Ghanaian identity, Coz Ov Moni can still be regarded as a cultural statement. For example, the internet caf scene with its references to internet fraud can be regarded as a tool for problemetising the impact of globalisation rather than a symbol of globalisation because it is removed from reality, a moment of inner action with a semi-fantasy function.

Consequently, although Wanlov and Mensa are not deliberately making a statement about post-colonialism, Coz Ov Moni is an assertion of creative position and belief that would never have emerged in colonial times.

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Ghanaian Cultural Activity and the Post-colonial Climate Post-colonialism is associated with hybridisation of cultures. Ghanas independence necessarily embraces elements of Western influence, since post-colonialism is contextualised by the practices of the preceding era. The cultural forces which merged in the post-colonial development of Ghana have affected the emergence of new forms of language and music. Colonial subjects seeking emancipation have themselves sought to appropriate the colonizers language in order to develop an effective anti-colonial critique. This has led to creative hybridization of languages (Beard & Gloag 2002: 84).

Wanlov states I can comfortably say that a majority of the youth in Ghana are speaking pidgin over any other language and what is more powerful than language? (Wanlov 2011). Pidgin is a language that has derived from more than one language. Ghanaian pidgin English is a form of language with English words combined with other words from many Ghanaian languages. The formation of Ghanaian pidgin English as current today took place during British colonial rule in West Africa. (Huber, 2011: 1).

Highlife, another example of a genre whose genesis lay in the colonial era, has always had a hybrid identity and still flourishes today. When Ghana was a British colony, the colonial rulers wanted to turn Ghanaians into punctual, disciplined and civilized workers for the new colonial economy and utilized music to help do this (Drewett, Cloonan 2006). They did this through hymns, music of regimental bands, classical orchestral concerts and highbrow theatre. Ironically, these imported styles were subsequently utilized by coastal Ghanaians to create their own acculturated or transcultural styles of music, dance and drama such as highlife (Drewett, Cloonan 2006). Highlife has become a blend of traditional Akan rhythms and melodies with European musical elements, such as the use of European instruments and harmony (Van Der Geest and Asante-Darko 1982: 27). Performances of highlife music are still referred to as concerts, even in the Twi language (Geest and Asante-Darko 1982: 27). Twi is one of the main languages that pidgen incorporates along with other Ghanaian languages.

Both pidgin and highlife are examples of culture that, on the one hand, is specific to the locality, and on the other, represents the hybrid nature of colonial past and post-colonial present. The same might be said of Coz of Moni; by its very affiliation with what its creators see as intrinsic to Ghanaian culture, it reflects a more

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global society than the Western stereotype of African life. By the same token it is an identity statement, and the incorporation of highlife music and rapping in pidgin reinforces this. As a product of his environment, Wanlov perhaps sees this in simpler terms. He came to believe that when you go to your true environment, nature will bend to suit you (Wanlov 2010). He feels embracing his cultural identity has been a key to his success.

Mensa echoes this sentiment, advising young Africans that knowing that you have these roots means that you are one up. You already have this gift that you can show to the world (Mensa 2010). He adds, We are rich in culture and have a defined identity. We have great music, great melodies, great dance. We know how to enjoy life, whether we have or we dont have money. We are able to appreciate little things (Mensa 2010). It is clear from such statements that the duo are proud of what their culture has to offer.

Cultural Identity

A persons culture is defined through customs, practices, languages, values and world views that define social groups such as those based on nationality, ethnicity, region or common interests (The Social Report, 2010). Identity is expressed through a set of attitudes that relate to, or are shared with, a group; identity inheres in the relationship between personal experience and public meaning (Beard & Gloag 2002: 89). The combination of the two is logically termed cultural identity. Cultural identity is important for peoples sense of self and how they relate to others. A strong cultural identity can contribute to peoples overall wellbeing (The Social report, 2010).

Wanlov and Mensa stated that they are not afraid to express who they are, nor have they felt the need to hide from their culture. Wanlov says that for a time he struggled with presenting an honest portrayal of his identity as an artist. At the start of his career he would rap in a fake American accent. He states how he soon realised that other artists to whom he listened, such as Beenie Man and Jay-Z, rap the way they talk in [their] neighbourhood. So why was I acting? I had skills of writing lyrics and rapping but I realise the way I was delivering it was an act rather than being my true self (Wanlov 2011). While one might argue that a degree of acting is inherent in any performance art, it is clear that Wanlov is speaking

Sarah Hunt K0937368 of a perceived loss of his cultural identity through his efforts to imitate artists from other backgrounds.

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Personal Identity in Coz Ov Moni How do Wanlov and Mensa project their individual identity in Coz Ov Moni? This can be discovered in scenes 6 and 7 (the middle section see appendix A) during the narrative halt. The duo wholly step out of the story and start speaking about reality (Wanlov 2012). This is where they aim to reveal how far they have come as artists and the complexities of their subject-position are presented. In scene 6 they rap about how they met at school and grew up together with the hopes of achieving their dream through music and in scene 7 they thank those across the world who have influenced them and made them who they are today. At the end of this scene they tell the audience to believe in themselves and never give up. Despite the aspirational tone it is perhaps not too fanciful to regard this as a metaphor for Ghanas achievement in shaking off its colonial past.

Identity and Post-Colonialism The duo are not offering solutions to those who have lost their culture but are raising awareness of the issue of cultural identity. Mensa is adamant that a person without culture is a person without identity (Mensa 2010). This statement is echoed during scene 6 when Wanlov questions why African judges wear white wigs. To two figures who have grown up in post-colonial Ghana, this is a sign of Africans having lost sight of their own culture. It is colonial practice that has yet to be challenged. In this scene, Wanlov also alleges that such judges give land away to America, adding the lines time to mourn, take out your white hanky (Wanlov, 2010). This statement reinforces the quote that heads this chapter, in which Wanlov puts forward the view that certain Ghanaians like to express and present themselves in a Western way. These judges represent to him a further example.

The next scene (7) demonstrates that Wanlov and Mensas outlook is not monocultural or exclusively Afro-centric. Tenk U is the song performed in scene 7 as they acknowledge figures who have

Sarah Hunt K0937368 brought people and nations together. Though proud of their Ghanaian identity, they have an international outlook.

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The weight of evidence suggests that the statements made in this middle section can be taken as genuine expressions of the artists beliefs rather than being merely intrinsic to the fictional context. Not only is their stance reiterated in interview but also these scenes are placed in the largest narrative halt in the work. At the same time it should be recognised that they speak as products of their own culture, their criticisms of the non-African aspects of contemporary West African life, as expressed in Coz Ov Moni, do not alter the fact that the work has arisen in the hybrid culture of post-Colonialism.

CHAPTER 5 COZ OV MONI AND STEREOTYPING: COMPARISONS WITH HOLLYWOOD

Personally I feel like there are two groups of filmmakers out there. The ones who are doing it to keep flooding the market with stuff just to make a quick buck and the ones who are really serious about film making. And because we [us Africans] have so many beautiful stories to tell, when it is done properly it is amazing. I am not about to mention any names of any films but I feel like theres an influx and the influx is of a lot of badly directed badly filmed bad stories that are out there right now so it is over shadowing the good material we have in there as well. So there should be some kind of quality control. I think thats one of the reasons why Coz Ov Moni is out there. To destroy these (Mensa 2010).

Sarah Hunt K0937368

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When Coz Ov Moni premiered the cast entered the theatre on a Kente carpet instead of the conventional Hollywood red carpet. Kente is a traditional Ghanaian multicoloured cloth. The choice of this material can be understood as a bold statement by Wanlov and Mensa discouraging audiences from stereotyping their work in Hollywood terms. This chapter will contrast and compare the conventions and perceptions surrounding commercial Western cinema with the ethos of Coz Ov Moni.

Hollywood Movies and Music Theodor Adorno (1903-1969) was a German socialist critic who believed that capitalism fed people with the products of a culture industry causing a mass deception (Savage, 2010). He believed that what is delivered to us is controlled to the extent that it encourages false needs in an audience and thus the belief that what is on screen accords with reality. He asserts that capitalists limit what we see to a single political viewpoint, so that audience members are fooled into thinking they have come to their own conclusions. According to Adornos philosophy, no choice is given. He stated the rise of mass culture and one-way communications would involve the ideological force that constructs the pacification of the proletariat blinding members of the class of their time needs and interests (Adorno, T. in Beard and Gloag 2005: 36).

According to author Annette Davison, when Adorno refers to Hollywood cinematic works he argues that the classical system of narrative causuality, spatial and temporal representation encourage[s] audiences to treat what they see as if it were real meaning they bring their perceptions of the everyday world to bear on the unfolding screen (Davison, 2004 :16).

If this theory of cinematic pseudo-reality can be believed, how is the effect achieved? Through the soundtrack, according to some commentators. Davison cites Scott Hughes point of view that along with the use of stars, todays Hollywood films are launched by expensive soundtracks which are focused more on record sales and brand strengthening than complementing a directors vision(Hughes, S. in Davison 2004: 1). But why is this so? It is because film music has the ability to offer an impression of perfection and integrity in an otherwise imperfect and unintegrated world (Kalinak, 2010: 27). This encourages audience members to conjure up perceived perfect times; their nostalgia is superimposed

Sarah Hunt K0937368 on the movie and they are thus drawn in to the mass deception that Adorno proposes.

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Kalinak (2010, 27) points out how, when a character is first presented on screen in a Hollywood film, we can automatically build an opinion of them from the non-diegetic music that is placed in the background. For example, if a bluesy saxophone is heard when a woman enters, it is highly likely the audience senses she is sexually attractive. In contrast, strings would nudge the audience towards viewing her as a family figure or an established girlfriend. These musical forms of persuasion subconsciously shape our opinions, rather than allowing us to form our own. David Beard and Kenneth Gloag concur with and amplify Adornos theory when they state that music achieves a certain aesthetic autonomy, the musical materials look to themselves (without looking outward) but it is through this process that a resemblance to the real world reveals itself and not through any process of imitating the world. (2005: 22).

The Prominence of the Music Element in Coz Ov Moni The stereotypical Hollywood film musical alternates dialogue with narrative halts in which the musical numbers appear. However, unlike their Broadway stage equivalents, they often underpin the dialogue with the kind of emotive music that Adorno rails against. Film musicals that use music as a constant element (foreground or background) are rare and usually have origins in rock opera. Examples are Tommy, Jesus Christ Superstar and Evita, all of which began as albums and evolved into stage shows and then films. It is worth noting that, although Coz Ov Moni was conceived from early on as a musical film, it too was initially thought of as a CD project.

In Coz Ov Moni the music is not placed in the background to convey a subtle hint or message. It is a foreground element throughout, an unbroken sequence of songs. The actors deliver the narrative by rapping to the rhythms of each song, allowing the audience to experience the dialogue as music. There is no discernible use of leitmotifs to identify characters or colour specific emotions or recurring psychological themes; instead, the music fits the scene as a whole.

Sarah Hunt K0937368

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The subtle tools of musical persuasion identified by Adorno usually go unnoticed and one could argue that this is because film music has tended to accept without serious challenge the status hierarchy that puts music on the bottom and treats film as above all a visual medium (Goldmark et.al, 2007: 2). If this is the case, it should also be possible to influence the audiences emotional responses in a more direct and arguably less deceptive way, by making the music as important as the visual and narrative elements. And this is what Coz Ov Moni does.

It has after all, been argued that music can avoid the pitfalls perceived by Adorno if it is presented not as a scarcely noticed background or an interpolated entertainment that sometimes delivers ideological messages while creating mood or atmosphere, but as an agent, a force, and an object engaged in ongoing negotiations with image narrative and context (Goldmark et.al, 2007:2).

Kalinak notes that Hollywood film music always carries with it traces of plentitude, wrapping film content in a kind of nostalgia and making us desire what the film offers. In the process we become less critical of a films values and value judgements (Kalinak, 2010: 27). In this context it is worth considering again the use of rap within Coz Ov Moni. Rap is a common technique in hip hop which some say originated with Gil Scott Heron, a poet who used to speak over music in the late 70s. It often delivers the lyrics with greater clarity than song, which may give audiences more opportunity to reflect on the meaning of the words. In hip hop, we could say that the music serves the text. If so, rap in Coz Ov Moni could be said to reduce the power of the music to colour the audiences perception of the words with false memory or nostalgia.

Hollywood Stereotypes in the Culture Industry The culture industry is a concept constructed by [Adorno] to describe and critique the industrial and commercial nexus that forms around the production, dissemination and reception of culture (Beard and Gloag 2005: 49). Adorno believes that human response to culture is blinded by the ideological effects of capitalism (Beard and Gloag 2005: 49). In an interview Wanlov touched on this cultural blinding in comments about what he called African peoples mastery over life and death' (Wanlov 2010). He explained that at an African funeral there is a general happiness throughout the people (Wanlov 2012) because Africans celebrate the life of a person rather than grieve

Sarah Hunt K0937368

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over their loss. He also commented, however, that The more we get Ipods and Facebook, the more we start to fear death (Wanlov 2010). Though jocular in intent, the remark makes the point that the media and supporting technologies can have a profound effect on public perceptions and attitudes. Adorno uses the term pseudo-individualizm to describe how he believes capitalists satisfy false needs of the masses. It keeps people in line making them forget that what they listen to is already listened to for them(Beard and Gloag 2005: 90).

Although Adorno is talking about music in this case, his point illustrates how stereotypes and stereotypical products, such as songs, are created and re-circulated. It may appear that we are being offered new works and content imagery and themes, but he maintains they are the same ones, just recycled. This offers comfort to audiences, while discouraging artists from genuine innovation. Culture industries with commercial interests depend on this kind of stereotyping.

Coz Ov Moni and Stereotypes How do Wanlov and Mensa avoid stereotyping in Coz Ov Moni? By keeping the films production in the hands of people who have the same vision as theirs. In Wanlovs words, Every angle is handled by an African. They are all from the same environment. He postulated: Just say we had somebody from a Western point of view come and film for us, they might want to see a few flies flying around a childs mouth as that is what they know from CNN as Africa (Wanlov 2010). Wanlov is describing how a stereotype of Africa has been created by the media pseudo-individualism at its most typical.

Globalisation has intensified and disseminated these stereotypes and Wanlov and Mensa did not wish to reinforce them through Coz Ov Moni. Wanlov felt the story was so personal and localised, so the only type of director and technical people we wanted had to have the same ideas and visuals as us (Wanlov 2012). He stressed it was not a way of stopping Westerners from being involved but of ensuring the whole project reflected its creators mindset: it wasnt a rejection of the externalwe didnt even want foreigners within Ghana and by that I mean a Ghanaian who thinks a different way to us or has some qualms about being grimy. We dont want anyone who would say dont do this and dont do that with our ideas. So it

Sarah Hunt K0937368

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would not matter where a person is from, but if they do not have the same vision they could not be a part of the movie (Wanlov 2012).

There are scenes in Coz Ov Moni showing internet fraud, and of women leading men out of the club to a group of men who beat them up. Wanlov and Mensa address these themes as they are real concerns in modern Ghana. This shows they are not afraid to confront the audience with aspects of their culture that are less than perfect. However, they have avoided doing so in stereotypical or negative ways. They show life as it is but with a humorous twist. Some of the scenes are filmed in the poorer parts of Ghana and There are still some Ghanaians who say things like I still cant believe they walked in that neighbourhood or I cant believe they are going through those slums in the movie (Wanlov 2012). These appear to be people with a similar outlook to the Ghanaians whom Wanlov classes as foreigners to him because they have been drawn into the Hollywood lifestyle portrayed on the big screens. We could have even got somebody like Gil Green to come across who has done videos in Ghana for people like Akon but both Mensa and we agreed not to. We thought it would be too much. We just wanted to get into the hood, with the people, and do the film on a grimy level (Wanlov 2012).

Hollywood Parody in Coz Ov Moni At the end of the narrative in Coz Ov Moni, before the credits run, there is a short improvised sketch where Wanlov and Mensa present themselves as fictional actors who played their part in the movie. Wanlov acts as an American figure named Bob Ray and Mensa pretends to be a British actor named Stanley Scott.

In this mode they speak about making the movie and how hard they found it to play Africans in the movie. They reference Western movies set in Africa, such as The Last King of Scotland. They add how they pulled off an African accent better than did Forest Whitaker who plays Ugandan president Idi Amin that movie. It is common for Western productions to dumb down African accents to make them more comprehensible to non-African audiences. This reference may show Wanlov and Mensa raising this issue through a joke.

This brings to the foreground a sharp contrast between the authentic use of pidgin in Coz Ov Moni and the perceived needs of English-speaking audiences. Pidgin was originally a product of

Sarah Hunt K0937368

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colonialism, a means of facilitating communication between two cultures. Ironically, it now creates such difficulties for English speakers that it necessitates the assistance of subtitles in Coz Ov Moni. The parody at the end of Coz Ov Moni further distances English-speaking audiences from the pidgin screenplay, by suggesting that they might even struggle with English spoken in an African accent. Such ironies illustrate the extent of the absurdity surrounding stereotyping in the media industry.

Bob describes how acting as Wanlov was hard as he had to be a Shaka Zulu guy with no shoes. Wanlov is renowned for choosing never to wear shoes and he is constantly questioned about it in interviews. He is also famous for a wrap he wears but when he is being Bob, he describes himself wearing a Tarzan wrap like Mowgli in The Jungle Book clearly making fun of how certain people view Wanlovs sense of style, but also taking a swipe at ethnic stereotyping. Mensa further develops the satire by talking about suffering in his role because he had to wear shorts and ended up with many mosquito bites. The duo in role discuss how they worried about getting AIDS or malaria, diseases commonly cited in the stereotyping of African society. They then make fun of how Africans pronounce the name of the Ghanaian president John Atta-Mills by exaggerating it, and then look to the audience saying If you are watching this in Africa you may get some wild animals coming in. They claim that they pray over some African figurines which can be seen in the background, to ensure demons dont come out of them.

This scene shows that they understand the stereotypical views that circulate outside of Africa but it also allows the audience to reflect on how Coz Ov Moni resists such stereotypes. This scene clearly parodies the way in which the media and culture industries have led certain Westerners to perceive Africa, which can be linked to the concept of mass deception. The scene can make audience members of different nationalities aware of the ways in which Africa can be seen by others. Because it is shown after the narrative, the audience has already come to their own conclusions about Wanlov and Mensas depiction of Ghana. It is more powerful in such a context, because audience members may find themselves questioning the attitudes they have formed while watching the film. Thus Adornos mass deception is subverted by encouraging an analytical, if not sceptical, approach to Coz Ov Monis content.

Critical Theorist David Bordwell, who has similar views to Adorno, describes Hollywoods mass deception as a cool control of the perceivers response (Bordwell, D. in Daivson, 2004: 16). Coz Ov

Sarah Hunt K0937368

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Moni deliberately subverts any such indirect manipulation of the audience, especially in its parody ending although it would be wrong to pretend it has no agenda, especially when one considers the exclusion from the production team of anyone not on message. This allows Wanlov and Mensa to successfully achieve their aim to keep their work completely separate from other storytellers [who] sometimes try and present in a superficial way(Mensa 2012).

CHAPTER 6 CONCLUSION

Coz Ov Moni can confidently be said to have fulfilled Wanlov and Mensas objective to portray Ghana in a realistic light. The narrative avoids stereotyping, the cast are African and the language is largely pidgin which helps express Ghanaian identity immensely. Ghanas post-colonial culture is represented by the duo in a way that is both honest and inventive and has been presented in a skilful blend of musical theatre and cinematic techniques.

Research indicates that the reviews have been almost uniformly positive. One critic described the work as an ambitious production that clearly has never been attempted in Ghana and the whole of Africa (Debrah 2010). The public response has also been enthusiastic as the premieres in each territory of release sold out. Thus, proving that Coz Ov Moni is not of merely Ghanaian significance but an international success.

Appendix A

Sarah Hunt K0937368 The story of Coz Ov Moni can be divided into 3 parts, creating a symmetrical structure: Part 1 (5 scenes) -Middle Section (2 scenes)- Part 2 (5 scenes)

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The middle section refers to the 2 scenes which take place outside of the narrative plot.

PART 1 Scene 1 (Track 1. Dawn-T) Wanlov and Mensa wake up and get washed and dressed.

Scene 2 (Track 2. Coz Ov Moni) Wanlov and Mensa walk around their hood to look for some money that they are owed. They catch a man who owes them and take money and valuables off him to add up to the cost of what he owes.

Scene 3 (Track 3. Sista Good Chef) Wanlov and Mensa head to the chop bar to eat some food with some of the money they now have. They talk of how fresh the food is and how good the chef is.

Scene 4 (Track 4. Go Browse) Wanlov and Mensa enter the cyber caf to do some internet fraud in hopes of making some more money.

Scene 5 (Track 5. Beachment) Wanlov and Mensa go to the beach and Mensa tries to flirt with a lady by boasting about how much money he has. He then joins Wanlov in the sea for a swim but starts to drown. Wanlov saves Mensa and drags him to shore but they are both tired and pass out on the beach and enter a dream state.

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MIDDLE SECTION

Scene 6 (Track 6. Sometimes) This is an insight into Wanlov and Mensas dream state. In the dream whilst passing through various parts of Ghana the duo rap about growing up together and becoming successful through music. They also touch on their views about certain issues that need addressing both in Africa and in life in general. Whilst passing a TV the camera pans round to show the TV screen. On the screen is a child singing, which is the start of the next song, leading to scene 7.

Scene 7 (Track 7. Tenk U) This is the second part of Wanlov and Mensas dream state. There are clouds in the background as Wanlov and Mensa reminisce of and thank their famous influences whose pictures also appear in the background. The message in this song is to never give up and always work on pursuing your dreams.

PART 2 Scene 8 (Track 8. Play Time) This scene heads back to the story. Wanlov and Mensa pass through a playground where children are playing. They remember the games they used to play when they were children themselves and talk to the children whilst joining in various games.

Scene 9 (Track 9. La Borro) Wanlov and Mensa decide they want to go to the club but need some new clothes for it. They head to their friends houses and ask to borrow their clothes. After having no luck with this, Wanlov and Mensa steal the clothes when their friends arent looking and head to the taxi for the club.

Scene 10 (Track 10. Three Misters/Track 11. Come Home Plus Me) Wanlov and Mensa finally enter the club after having some trouble getting in at the beginning of the scene. They order drinks then run away without paying to leave their friend to pay for it. Whilst hiding

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from the friend and admiring the DJs work, they notice a female walking towards them which leads to perform Come Home Plus Me where they argue over the female on the dance floor. She then tells the two she will take them both home so they leave with her.

Scene 11 (Track 12. Mr. Kwashay) Wanlov and Mensa and the female start walking home but some robbers jump out of the darkness with weapons. The female carries on walking leaving them behind to get beaten up and the duo pass out into a dreamlike state once again.

Scene 12 (Track 13. Desert Dessert) In the dream Wanlov and Mensa are lying on a bed and various women with masks are dancing around them. The scene keeps switching between the dream and the hospital which is where they have ended up in the story. In the dream, they begin to notice that there are other people standing around them without masks. They then realise that these are all people who they met during their day. They suddenly wake up in hospital and dance with the nurses to the rest of the song. This is followed by a screen shot saying THE END.

Outro/Parody Wanlov and Mensa pretend to be British and American actors in the movie and mock them when talking about making the film.

Credits (Track 14. Broken Lngwjz[sic]) Shots from the making of the movie are shown whilst the credits play.

Sarah Hunt K0937368 Appendix B

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How did you come up with the title Coz Ov Moni? Mensa: Well we were playing with the idea of money and because there is a title of a song in the movie that is Coz Ov Moni we felt it would fit. Then Wanlov came up with the spelling of it. Wanlov: Yes because the beat that Mensa produced for the Coz Ov Moni song, stood out to me most out of all of them. The scenes and songs and everything that happens in the story is because of money. From us saying that somebody owed us money to the food we ate because we got money. We went to the browse caf to get more money and on the beach scene Mensa is trying to get Macho Rappers girl by telling her that he has more money than him. Going to the club and the people robbing us was all because of money too. So it was the most connecting title out of the rest of the songs. If it was called Go Browse or Good Chef it wouldnt have worked.

If you were to define the style of music in Coz Ov Moni what would you say it was? Wanlov: Afrobeats. Mensa: Hell no! [Both laugh] Wanlov: Coz Ov Moni as music to me is rap.

So not even a mixture of styles or fusion of genres? Mensa: Its all our influences, afrobeat, highlife. Wanlov: And hip hop and reggaeton. But really, mainly highlife and hip hop.

When writing Coz Ov Moni, who were you pitching it at? Both: Each other Mensa: Thats how it is with everything we have done. Wanlov: When we create, we do things our way. Because people out there get excited by bullshit, like, whatever excites them and those things dont excite us. So we wanted to do something to excite each other. Our audience was two people which was us.

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Did you find that after it has been released that more people are on the same wavelength as you now? Mensa: Yes! A lot of people have told us they like it because it was very honest. We were just doing it for ourselves so there was no pretence or nothing contrived. We werent like Lets do it this way so that people like it. Wanlov: Because even if we went by what we think people like in Ghana, which is flashy things, sitting in a Benz etc, we would not be doing the movie we wanted. Mensa: Yes, if we were doing that then it would be called [puts on American accent] Because of dollars! Wanlov: [joining in American accent] Because of the dollars yo! There are still some Ghanaians who say things like I still cant believe they walked in that neighbourhood or I cant believe they are going through those slums in the movie. But that is not who the movie is for. It is just done for ourselves. And you Sarah!

What are the most important themes and messages and how have you presented them in the film? Wanlov: We point out many different sentiments but for me personally, it was after the beach scene when Mensa says You are my best friend and then we pass out into the dream state and it goes into the track Sometimes and I start to say Sometime ago me den Mensa dey Adisco/Rocking black and white wit dreams of rockin discos/den we know say one day we go dey make History/Beating on tables, the styles were free. That scene and that sentiment to me is the strongest because you come out of the film and we start talking to the audience explaining how this was a dream to us and now its happened. In the film we have passed out and gone into a dream sequence but in the dream, were speaking about the reality of things saying that we used to dream of doing such a thing and now we are.

You said in your radio interview with Hafiz that everybody involved in Coz Ov Moni was African because you wanted to avoid the wrong Western point of view being portrayed of Africa. Was there any particular film or work that you were going against? Wanlov: Off the top of my head I cant think of any, although there are things but I would have to do research to find the titles. With

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me, the story was so personal and localised so the only type of director and technical people we wanted, had to have the same ideas and visuals as us. So it was not that we wanted to keep out foreigners. We didnt even want foreigners within Ghana and by that I mean a Ghanaian who thinks a different way to us or has some qualms about being grimy. We dont want anyone who would say Dont do this and dont do that with our ideas. In a way, we knew exactly what we wanted, making the directors work easy. And what was also easy for us is that the director we chose also felt where we were coming from. Another thing is that I think we wanted to just prove to ourselves that we could still do all of this stuff in-house and on our own. The only foreign person on the scene was taking pictures and theyve sat on all the pictures. Theyve stamped them! But really, it wasnt a rejection of the external but you know. We could have even got somebody like Gil Green to come across who has done videos in Ghana for people like Akon but both Mensa and I agreed not to. We thought it would be too much. We just wanted to get into the hood with the people and do the film on a grimy level.

Were there any messages you wanted to portray presenting Ghana as an independent country after shedding British culture? Or is post-colonialism not an issue you were focusing on? Mensa: We didnt make a conscious effort with this issue as this is not what the story is about. However, everything that we put out there was done in a way that a lot of recent films from Ghana or even Nigeria and other parts of Africa had not done. There was no superficiality. With regards to what you said about shedding off British culture, I think unwittingly and not intentionally we showed how comfortable we are being ourselves in a modern day African environment. Being able to sync both the present technology with two kids living on a corner somewhere eating at the chop bar, you know, walking bare foot, going to the beach, doing what we do! But then going to the internet caf to do a mugu [mugu means fool or idiot who is easily led on- the type of person who is easy to con]! Do you see what I am saying? It just shows the balance in a realist way, which I think that sometimes most of these other films or other storytellers sometimes try and present in a superficial way.

Wanlov: Sometimes certain Africans will do things to act in a way that they feel people see Africa. Like they will go and do something like film or portray themselves sitting under a tree in the middle of nowhere or doing tribal things when this is not what they are like in reality. It might be because they are too afraid to be themselves and want to fit into the Western society. Then on the other hand you get the Africans who want to act flashy and present themselves

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sitting in an expensive car or owning material things. They are hiding from their true identity and trying to show off themselves in a western way. We arent afraid to just be ourselves.

Mensa: There was this thing that we saw on TV where they said What comes to mind when you see Africa?

Wanlov: [Laughing] Oh yea! And people were saying When you live tribally!

Mensa: Yea! And flies on the lips of the kids. That definitely is not the situation! That is not what we are about. So to the best of my understanding for your question, all I am going to say is that it was not our intention to portray certain images but we were just showing our Ghana, as we know it in the realist way that we understand it.

Why is there no spoken dialogue in Coz Ov Moni? The whole story is delivered in song. Mensa: We wanted it to be true to the concept of a musical in a purest form so to speak. So the entire musical is in music.

Did you create Coz Ov Moni with the idea of it being the first Ghanaian pidgin musical? Wanlov: It wasnt until after we had finished making it that we realised nobody has done this before so that is when we decided it was.

Appendix C

Scene

Non-Diegetic (Outer Action)

Function of Outer Action

Transition

Diegetic (I Action)

Sarah Hunt K0937368 Scene 1 Wanlov and Mensa wake and get dressed The narrative unfolds as they talk about what they plan to do with their day The Narrative continues until Wanlov and Mensa enter the scene

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Scene 2

Characters are in the market place doing their duties

Once Wanlov and Mensa enter the scene other characters gradually join them in a dance routine They take the money from the man and the other characters gradually form a dance routine behind them

Wanlov and Mensa have unified with characters are dancing

Scene 2

Wanlov and Mensa discuss how they need money and they are going to find the man who owes them some

This reveals to us that everything Wanlov and Mensa are doing is because of money, reminding us of the film title Development to the plot as we see they have traveled to a new place

Wanlov and Mensa turn face the res the cast and in the danc

Scene 3

The taxi pulls up to the chop bar while a track instrumental plays quietly in the background

As Mensa and Wanlov walk towards the chop bar the volume of the music increases

When Wanl Mensa reac chop bar th dance to th music and t waitresses with the mu

Scene Scene 3

Non-Diegetic (Outer Action) Wanlov and Mensa talk in the internet caf and discuss how they are about to perform internet fraud

Function of Outer Action The narrative is unfolding

Transition Some of the cast move to the music throughout the scene

Diegetic (I Action)

Eventually, the cast typ time with W and Mensa rhythm, cre routine

Sarah Hunt K0937368 Scene 4 Wanlov and Mensa go to the beach to swim The Narrative continues

38 Other characters gradually surround Wanlov and Mensa in the sea and they all dive down when Mensa does

Mensa drow slow motion Wanlov sav and the cas surround th whilst movi the music a duo enter a state

Scenes 6 and 7

Wanlov and Mensa are i dream like and discuss and inspirat

Scene 8

Children play in the park

Positions us back in the main narrative plot

Wanlov and Mensa enter the scene and join in with the childrens games

Wanlov and Mensa turn at the came dance

Scene Scene 9

Non-Diegetic (Outer Action)

Function of Outer Action

Transition

Diegetic (I Action)

Wanlov and The narrative Mensa steal some unfolds peoples clothes and head to the club Wanlov and Mensa enter club The Narrative continues as they arrive to their new destination Other characters are all dancing to the music in the club and gradually Wanlov and Mensa move with them

Scene 10 and 11

Wanlov and Mensa join characters collective sp they fight o girl and the characters with them a pull her arm

Sarah Hunt K0937368 Scene 11 Wanlov and Mensa leave the club to go home with the girl Plot development

39 Robbers appear to beat Wanlov and Mensa but freeze in position

While the ro are frozen, Wanlov and Mensa mov slowly to th music and r on what is happening them

Scene 12

Clips are shown of Wanlov and Mensa unconcious in the hospital

The narrative allows us to see where Wanlov and Mensa have ended up

The work switches from scenes of a dream like state to scenes of the narrative

Eventually w reach Wanl Mensa waki in the hospi they dance the nurses

Bibliography
Beard, D. & Gloag, K. (2005) Musicology The Key Concepts Abingdon: Routledge. Davison, A. (2004) Hollywood Theory Non-Hollywood Practice. Aldershot: Ashgate. Drewett, M. & Cloonan, M. (2006) Popular Music and Censorship in Africa. Aldershot: Ashgate

Sarah Hunt K0937368 Duckworth, W. (2005) Virtual Music. How the Web Got Wired for Sound Adbington: Routledge. Everett, W. & Laird P. (2002) The Cambridge Companion to the Musical. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

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Goldmark, D., Kramer,D. Leppert,R (2007) Beyond the Soundtrack. Representing Music in Cinema. California: University Of California Press. Kalinak, K. (2010) Film Music: A Very Short Introduction. USA: Oxford University Press. Kalinak, K. (1992) Settling the Score. Music and the Classical Hollywood Film. Wisconsin: Wisconsin University Press. Wood, G (2002) Distant Cousin or Fraternal Twin? Analytical Approaches to the Film Musical in Everett, W. & Laird P. The Cambridge Companion to the Musical. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 212-230.

Bibliography 2
Debrah, A (2010) Wanlov and M3nsa bare it all Coz Ov Moni http://www.ameyawdebrah.com/wanlov-and-m3nsa-bare-it-all-cozov-moni/ (accessed 4 June 2011)

Sarah Hunt K0937368 Debrah, A (2010) Who Are The FOKN Bois? Available at: http://www.museke.com/node/1166 (accessed 1 December 2011)

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Davey D (2012) Definition of Hip Hop Available at: http://www.daveyd.com/whatisbam.html (accessed 7 March 2012) Dean, W (1977) Music and Letters. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 389-402. [Online] Available at: http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/733986? uid=3738032&uid=2129&uid=2&uid=70&uid=4&sid=4769880501 3877 (accessed 24 March 2012) Gil Scott Heron Offical (2012) Available ad: http://gilscottheron.net/ (accessed 2 March 2012) Huber, Magnus (2011) Ghanaian Pidgin English. Available at:http://lingweb.eva.mpg.de/apics/images/0/00/SurveyGhana.pdf (Accessed 18 March 2012) July, R. (1983) Toward Cultural Independence in Africa: Some Illustrations from Nigeria and Ghana in African Studies Review. African Studies Associaton. pp. 119-131. [Online] Available at: http://www.jstor.org/stable/524165 (Accessed 24 March 2012) Panji Anoff Interview, April 2010 Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUZEvunimGM (accessed 22 November 2011) Picture Houses (2010) Coz Ov Moni: Official UK Premiere Available at:http://www.picturehouses.co.uk/cinema/Ritzy_Picturehouse/film/C oz_Ov_Moni_Official_Uk_Premiere/ (accessed 20 December 2011) Pidgins and Creoles (1997) Introduction Available at: http://logos.uoregon.edu/explore/socioling/pidgin.html (accessed 14 November 2011) Roy, C (1998) Ghana Information Available at: http://www.uiowa.edu/~africart/toc/countries/Ghana.html (accessed 1 May 2012) Savage, C (2010) The Culture Industry. Available at: http://www8.georgetown.edu/centers/cndls/applications/postertool/i ndex.cfm?fuseaction=poster.display&posterID=3826 (accessed 21 July 2011) The Social Report (2010) The Social Report Available at: http://socialreport.msd.govt.nz/cultural-identity/ (accessed 1 April 2012) Tommasini, A (2011) Opera? Musical? Please Respect the Difference The New York Times, 7 July [Online] Available at: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/10/theater/musical-or-opera-the-

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fine-line-that-divides-them.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all (accessed 2 February 2012) Van der Geest, S. & Asante-Darko, N. The Political Meaning Of Highlife Songs in Ghana in African Studies Review. African Studies Associaton.pp. 27-35. Available at: http://www.jstor.org/stable/523990 (accessed 4 March 2012) Wanlov the Kubolor, Interview with This is Africa, October 2011. Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxkxhmdIdI&list=PL9CA55935B2999255&index=2&feature=plpp_vid eo (accessed 4 March 2012) Wanlov the Kubolor & Mensa Ansah, Interview with Hafiz 2010 Available at: http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/9010899 Wanlov the Kubolor & Mensa Ansah, Interview with the Author 10 February 2010 Wanlov the Kubolor & Mensa Ansah (2010) Coz Ov Moni [CD] Ghana: Pidgen Music, Luu Vision Wanlov the Kubolor & Mensa Ansah (2010) Coz Ov Moni [DVD] Ghana: Pidgen Music, Luu Vision

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