Ghanaian rapper and multi-generic musician, Mohammed Ismail Sherif, has endorsed his identity as “Kwaku Frimpong” and not just Black Sherif or Blacko as an identity that needed to be approved by himself and his fans as well.
In an interview on Spotify Urban Africa, Blacko revealed that he did not like the name Frimpong because he got bullied in his high school days on account of him being a Muslim yet having a name like that. “I used to get bullied for that; so, I did not like the Frimpong at that time, I was known as Sherif Frimpong Ismail.”
The ’45’ hitmaker mentioned that Frimpong was his father’s name which in effect is also his name and he has always felt like there were some “dues” he needed to pay by pushing the name Frimpong to be embraced by the masses. “I got out of high school and realized that Frimpong was my identity, therefore, I have some dues to pay and that is mentioning that name.”
He accounted for this fact as the reason he mentioned the name “Kwaku Frimpong” or introduced Frimpong in a couple of his debut songs as he rose to global stardom.
“When the whole world began to chant Kwaku Frimpong, I realized I had finally paid the dues,” the 20-year-old songwriter affirmed with a sense of accomplishment and accountability.
Any time you hear “Kwaku Nie!!” or “Kwaku Frimpong”, know that Blacko is making up for all those times he used to hide his identity as the Muslim boy called Kwaku Frimpong.