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Multi-award-winning Ghanaian rapper Michael Owusu Addo, popularly known as Sarkodie, has expressed strong support for President John Dramani Mahama’s recent call for African nations to take control of their natural resources.
The renowned rapper and head of the Sarkcess Music label took to his official X (formerly Twitter) account to post a video of President Mahama delivering a compelling speech during the Executive Leadership Retreat Programme (ELRP) held in Ada, Greater Accra Region, on Thursday, 24 April 2025.
In his address, the president appealed to African leaders to harness the continent’s rich natural resources for sustainable development. He warned against allowing foreign powers to exploit these assets for their own benefit, as occurred during the colonial era.
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The time has come for Africa to unashamedly take advantage of the natural resource endowment God has given us. In the colonial era, we had colonial masters. We had no say, and so they mined the gold and took it away. They developed the palm plantations and took the palm oil away. They took the diamonds and everything away.
Sarkodie, who was once a fierce critic of Mahama during his presidency, welcomed the message with enthusiasm. In a caption accompanying his post, he quoted the popular phrase:
The revolution will be televised.
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His reaction signals a notable endorsement of the former president’s stance on African sovereignty and resource management.
The rapper’s post follows his recent praise for Burkina Faso’s military leader, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, who has won the admiration of many young Africans for his bold developmental initiatives and anti-imperialist rhetoric. Traoré has often been compared to the late Thomas Sankara, the iconic Pan-African revolutionary who led Burkina Faso from 1983 to 1987.
Sarkodie has long been vocal about the need for African leaders to unite and use local resources to uplift their nations instead of depending on foreign aid. He amplified this message in his 2020 political rap collaboration “Brown Paper Bag” with fellow Ghanaian rapper M.anifest, where both artists criticised neocolonial influence and urged economic independence.
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Despite this, Sarkodie was accused of political bias in the lead-up to the 2020 elections after releasing “Happy Day” with Kuami Eugene—a track widely interpreted as an endorsement of then-President Akufo-Addo and the New Patriotic Party (NPP).