Kaakie: From Ghanaian dancehall star to doctoral-level mental health practitioner — career timeline, songs and where she is now
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Kaakie has transitioned from music to advanced healthcare, now working as a board-certified psychiatric mental-health nurse practitioner in Ohio and running Kaylora Holistic Wellness & Recovery.
Her music career produced several major hits, including Toffee Pon Tongue, Ewoo, Too Much and Top Gyal Time, while she earned major recognition at the 2013 Ghana Music Awards.
Her healthcare journey has included multiple academic milestones, culminating in doctoral-level nursing education and a professional focus on mental-health care in the United States.
The musician, born Grace Kaki Awo Ocansey and now professionally known as Dr Grace Aidoo, DNP, APRN, PMHNP-BC, has introduced Kaylora Holistic Wellness & Recovery LLC, a mental-health practice in Ohio.
The development marks a new chapter for an artiste who once dominated Ghana’s dancehall scene before gradually stepping away from music to pursue healthcare and further education.
Available professional listings identify Aidoo as an Ohio-licensed psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner. Her Ohio APRN-CNP licence is listed as APRN.CNP.0040680, while her provider records associate her with Kaylora Holistic Wellness & Recovery.
Kaylora’s official website says the practice provides psychiatric care, medication management, psychotherapy, psychoeducation and other mental-health services. Its current focus includes adult psychiatry and reproductive psychiatry, with services delivered through telepsychiatry and, where clinically appropriate, in-person or in-home visits.
In announcing her practice, Kaakie emphasised an individualised approach to mental-health care.
She said;
When you come to me for your care, I want to understand more than just your symptoms. I want to understand you, your experiences, and your concerns, and what you hope to achieve through treatment
From nursing student to dancehall star
Long before she became known as Kaakie, Awo Ocansey was pursuing a career in healthcare.
She studied nursing and midwifery at the University of Ghana, while also developing an interest in music. Her first major public exposure came through the television talent competition Stars of the Future, where she finished fifth.
Her performance on the show eventually opened the door to a professional music career.
She subsequently connected with music producer JMJ, whose real name is Joshua Raphaelson, and joined Xtra Large Music. The move placed her among the prominent female voices in Ghana’s dancehall movement of the early 2010s.
The songs that made Kaakie a household name
Kaakie built her reputation with a run of energetic dancehall records that became closely associated with Ghana’s music scene.
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Among her best-known songs are:
Ewoo
Too Much
Toffee Pon Tongue
Top Gyal Time
DC Tun Up
Zuuchia
Koom Koom Cha
Radio
Designer Bumper
These tracks helped establish the sound and image that earned her the nickname “Dancehall Queen” among fans and industry observers. Her catalogue also included collaborations and songwriting contributions from artistes including Samini, Sarkodie, Stonebwoy, Edem and others.
One of her biggest early records, “Toffee Pon Tongue”, became an award-winning release and remains one of the defining songs of her music career.
2013: Kaakie’s breakthrough awards year
Kaakie’s rise reached a major milestone at the 2013 Vodafone Ghana Music Awards, where she won New Artiste of the Year and Reggae/Dancehall Song of the Year for “Toffee Pon Tongue”.
The official Ghana Music Awards winners archive confirms her victory in the Reggae/Dancehall Song of the Year category. Contemporary reports also recorded her New Artiste of the Year win.
She also won Best Female Vocalist at the 2013 BASS Awards, adding to a particularly successful period in her career.
Her success was notable because she was simultaneously building a professional life in healthcare.
The nurse who was also a music star
Kaakie did not completely abandon nursing during her rise in music.
In a 2014 interview with Graphic Showbiz, she spoke about the difficulty of managing her responsibilities as a registered general nurse alongside her music career.
She said at the time;
I don’t even know how I do it myself. I just take it a step at a time I guess. It’s not easy though, but it’s worth it
That dual career eventually became increasingly difficult to maintain.
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2017: Kaakie leaves Xtra Large Music
Kaakie formally announced her departure from Xtra Large Music in August 2017, ending a major chapter of her music career.
At the time, she made it clear that she had not joined Zylofon Music, despite speculation sparked by a social-media post from the company.
Explaining her exit from Xtra Large Music, Kaakie said her decision was largely personal and maintained that she left the label on good terms.
She said;
Most of the reasons why I left were personal and inasmuch as I’m no longer with them I still respect them. The most important thing is that we both understand each other
Years later, JMJ offered another perspective on the split, saying Kaakie was talented but did not view music as a long-term career and had limited time because she was balancing university and nursing.
2019: A return to academia
After stepping away from the music spotlight, Kaakie intensified her focus on education and healthcare.
She completed a master’s degree at Anglia Ruskin University in the United Kingdom in 2019. The qualification became another step towards the healthcare career she had begun before music made her a household name.
In 2020, she also explained in an interview with Joy FM that her interest in contributing to healthcare, particularly maternal health, had become stronger than her desire to continue pursuing music.
2025: Kaakie moves into psychiatric mental-health nursing
Kaakie’s healthcare journey later moved towards mental health.
In 2025, she announced that she had completed a nursing qualification at Walden University, specialising in Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner studies.
She shared graduation photographs and reflected on the demands of balancing education, work and family life.
She wrote;
Guess who bagged a Second Masters! I am so proud of myself, my journey, and how God has positioned me to STAY
Professional profiles now identify her as a board-certified psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner, with an Ohio APRN-CNP licence.
2026: From Kaakie to Dr Grace Aidoo
The latest chapter has taken her beyond nursing qualifications and into professional mental-health practice.
Kaakie is now using the name Dr Grace Aidoo, DNP, APRN, PMHNP-BC, and has established Kaylora Holistic Wellness & Recovery in Ohio.
The practice says it provides evidence-based psychiatric services, including psychiatric assessments, medication management, psychotherapy and mental-health support. Its services cover areas including anxiety, depression, ADHD, trauma and mood disorders.
Professional listings also show that Aidoo is actively providing telepsychiatric care in Ohio, with patients able to access her services through online appointments.
What does her DNP mean?
Kaakie’s Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) should not be confused with a medical degree such as an MD.
A DNP is a doctoral-level nursing qualification. It represents advanced education in nursing practice, rather than qualification as a medical doctor.
In Kaakie’s case, the DNP sits alongside her professional credentials as an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) and Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP-BC).
Her professional records list her as an Ohio APRN-CNP and psychiatric/mental-health nurse practitioner.
Where Kaakie is now
Kaakie’s career has therefore travelled through three very different but connected chapters: nursing, music and mental healthcare.
She first trained in healthcare, became one of Ghana’s most recognisable female dancehall artistes, left her record label and gradually returned to the profession she had started in.
Today, her public identity is increasingly tied to mental-health care rather than music, with Kaylora serving as the latest expression of that transition.
Her story is less about abandoning one career for another than about returning to an earlier ambition with considerably more education and professional experience behind her.
For the fans who remember “Ewoo”, “Too Much” and “Toffee Pon Tongue”, Kaakie’s latest chapter offers a striking reminder that the woman behind the dancehall hits had been building a second professional life in healthcare all along.
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