Nana Wiafe Asante Mensah aka ASEM is one of the hottest young acts in Ghana’s evolving Hiplife industry. He basically came from nowhere to take Ghana by storm. His controversial track, ‘Give Me Blow’ became the most sought after and most transferred/ bluetoothed song among Ghanaian youths when it was unofficially released. His style is enjoyed by urban youths mostly but his combination of Twi with English lyrics makes him appeal to rural Ghana as well. He is touted as one of the artists to lead the evolution of Hiplife into what has come to be known as GH Rap. This is a fair mix of crunk and other emerging forms of American hiphop with traditional Hiplife.
ASEM has a remarkable ability to put together mind boggling lyrics laced with humorous punch lines and grasping metaphors and it seems he can never go wrong. He built a strong desire to grow into master entertainer and lyricist from listening to hip-hop with his older brothers at quite a tender age. In spite of picking up the love for music at an early age, it was in St. Peter’s Senior Secondary School that he nurtured his talent. He found himself in an environment filled with people who shared in his dream to be a star in the entertainment industry. Together they formed the group Frontliners with the hope of recording an album after school. But this fell apart as they found themselves in different tertiary institutions.
ASEM enrolled into the Ghana Institute of Journalism from 2006 to 2008 for a diploma in communications studies. With the help of Richie, a singer/producer/sound engineer and C. E.O. of Lynx Entertainment, ASEM rediscovered and reinvented himself. He aims to reach beyond the shores of the African continent with his unique style of music. His inspiration comes from his admiration for artistes such as K.K. Kabobo, Reggie Rockstone, Kris Kross and Ludacris.
He recently shot a video for ‘Pigaro’ another hit song from his yet to be released album. When he is not down with his books or not out performing or not in the studio, he hangs out with pals, read a novel or watch a movie.