The media business is one of the most interesting paths to choose but it’s not so appealing once you find yourself there. This is mostly due to the scarcity of opportunities for people on the screens and the frustration it builds up in potential presenters. After the departments had been created, I got the chance to be in the entertainment section with a couple of presents like AB General, Mhiz Pan, and Adepa. Various departments were to draft programs that were to be aired by the station. Don’t forget we were doing it big this time hence all hands were on deck. Many producers were of course employed to assist in the whole situation.
As weeks progressed, Sankofa became quite a force churning out their news bulletin through the morning, mid-day, and evening broadcast. Shortly, an exciting morning show was created making activities on the grounds as interesting as possible for me. At this point, I shared lots of ideas with my Entertainment team, and since our show was still being drafted. I took the chance to be at each production to learn a lot from the grounds. I saw celebrities like Funny Face, and Big Akwes during my time with the production team. I also got to know that scenery was a big factor when shooting pre-recorded shows. Setups were usually at the beach, hotels, and even marketplaces in Kasoa. I was so active in the business and that led to being a front-runner on our show later in the month.
After I got the nod, that meant more responsibility. From presentations to drafting key points with the Entertainment team to ensuring edits were up to par with the Editorial team as well. It was hectic. As this happened each week a man by the name of Ike Bamfo crossed paths with me. He loved the entertainment space as well and till today practices media to the core. He joined our team and hosted the show too when I was not available. Look this dude bought clothes that I was using on TV for weeks. I had only known him for 2 weeks before our show airing. During the time our entertainment show aired he chipped in to support me. He was not only good with his work but had a heart to assist me with my craft as well. We became good friends and that set things to my current destination now.
Let us get into that. Ike was a man who was always on his phone no matter what we as a team were discussing. He often got a nickname for that which of course I cannot remember at this point. However, I was nosy enough to ask the right questions at the time and this led him to introduce me to the possibility of another venture and that was blogging. Blogging at the time was tiring but interesting however conditions at the workplace made me give it a second thought. Ike was as usually working at the back of the new team but as we became good friends, I understood why.
Ike worked for the Opera Hub at the time and due to the company’s good conditions of service he advised me to take it up and become a remote writer. I found it pretty easy because of my journalism background. I signed up to their creator’s account and began putting out stories. The company had a strict rule of rejecting stories that could not be properly verified hence flagging most of its stories. I made a couple of mistakes until I achieved perfection on the Opera platform. What I did not know was the financial benefits it would offer me later. Mind you I was still an unemployed graduate who had landed in a media firm hence I was not putting all my eggs in a basket. After a few months of relocating to Kasoa and meeting Ike, I felt my desire to practice on TV diminish simply because I was not being paid. Before you say I lacked the passion for the business, remember I had to save up and not always depend on my family for my livelihood. I was becoming a man hence when the opportunity presented itself I took it very personally.
So after spending a year and a half at Kasoa, I relocated back to Sowutuom to begin my blogging journey. I was with Opera Ghana for a year and thought it wise to go into the sale of clothing too. I was multitasking and switching from a laptop screen to providing services to clients who came around my shop. I sold T-shirts mostly but upon request threw in some shorts here and there. I set up in the shop thus it was not much of a big deal however I felt kind of proud of my move because I earlier felt empty due to the issues faced by production teams at Sankofa TV. As draining as it was, it led me to a bigger and satisfying purpose which was in the world of blogging.
I did Opera for a few months and landed another job with a reputable media house where by I joined their entertainment team. I must chip in that Ike was instrumental once again in this. I was getting paid hence the motivation to keep going was As I improved my knowledge base in writing which includes planning catchy and not oversensitized headlines, drafting articles, and even editing other people’s articles, I chanced on job employment opportunities at CelebritiesGist located in Sowutuom. Their exposure helped me to be confident in my writing thus I began exploring other categories and landed myself an “opinion” base category which my readers loved me for. The site’s reach was wide hence I could publish a story at 8 am and by noon, I saw many people debating about most of my write-ups. It was delightful to see and guess what, I was under the comment section reading every bit of it and even adding my opinion.
I visited Ike and thanked him for what he exposed me to and how impactful it has been on my perception of the world. Ike is married now by the way. A beautiful wedding ceremony I was privileged to attend to attend with my friend Teddy, from the university. Sankofa TV relocated and it’s now Tuba in Kasoa. I monitor their contents periodically too. I wish them well and my friend, Teddy, works with a data entry firm in Tema but chips into blogs from time to time. Well for me, I have a website up and running as I type this. I would want to follow all the right procedures and hit the heights a proper site should have and hopefully you as the reader will love it as well. The journey has been hectic but hey what is the joy in success if it is not tiring and draining to the receiver? I am taking each day as a challenge and will make it out certainly.