Celebs
Charterhouse disappointed after giving Shatta Wale a chance – CEO
The CEO of Charterhouse, organisers of the Vodafone Ghana Music Award (VGMA), says she is disappointed at the dancehall/reggae artiste, Shatta Wale’s conduct.
Theresa Ayoade said she had met Shatta Wale’s personally and they had had discussions and therefore expressed surprise at his conduct on Saturday.
“We’ve always given him a chance to reinvent and represent himself to us and some of these attempts have been thrown into our faces.
“So, it got to a point that we took a stance and we stood by that stance for two years just for the peace of mind [and] to maintain our grips with regard to the event,” she told News Desk on JOYNEWS channel, Monday.
Shatta Wale was banned in 2016 from the VGMA because he maligned the board of the awards scheme. The ban was only lifted this year.
Stonebwoy and Shatta Wale clashed on stage when Stonebwoy was announced the winner of Reggae/Dancehall Artiste of the Year.
Related: A nominee breached security protocol – Charterhouse explains VGMA brawl
Theresa Ayoadey is the CEO of Charterhouse
In the ensuing confusion, Stonebwoy pulled a gun; an action he explained later in a press statement as self-defence. The two were subsequently arrested and detained.
This has left the organisers surprised.
“This year, I made a personal effort to reach out to him [Shatta Wale] and to engage a lot of these artistes on a one-and-one meeting to explain to them what we were doing. We also told them what this event meant to the industry and where we are taking it even internationally.
“I had dinner with him [Shatta Wale] and his demeanour was very different and he sounded apologetic about his past behaviours and promised to collaborate with us in all ways,” she said.
She said true to Shatta’s words, he worked with them on the Nominee’s Jam in Kumasi where he and Stonebwoy all performed with no incident recorded.
“We did the same at the Independence Square [Accra] for the VGMA Xperience where again they both performed and there was no issue, so we thought that ‘okay we are getting there’.”
Police say they are yet to charge the two dancehall artistes following their arrests on Sunday.
