A CONVERSATION WITH 99PHACES: LOVE, PASSION AND RHYTHM.
By Manuel Tomodjie.
In the vibrant heart of Ghana’s music scene, where Afrobeats, Highlife, and Hip-hop converge, a dynamic collective is making waves with their eclectic sound and unapologetic creativity. 99Phaces, a group of passionate artists including Cozy, Anabel, Gambini, Mēl, Moffy, Auggie, KiKi, Tikki, Zara, KQ, Masash
has emerged as a bold voice in Accra’s evolving musical landscape. Known for their genre-blending approach and collaborative spirit, they’ve captured the attention of fans and critics alike with projects like SWMAT and their recent love-themed single “Melody.” This article dives into the essence of 99Phaces, drawing from an exclusive interview to uncover their journey, influences, and vision for reshaping Ghanaian music.
Eastern Child: What inspired the formation of 99Phaces, and how did you all come together as a collective?
Ans: Cozy & Anabel
ANABEL ROSE: 99PHACES was first formed with Moffy, Cozy, Freddie Gambini, Insane Auggie and JaspaTheCurator through the shared experience of making music together . The chemistry of working together was strong but also the idea of having a shared goal of making an impact with music. Being an independent artist in Accra is not an easy experience so the collective was created as a way to have an immediate supper system and community in our music journey . We’ve slowly been building this collective with the later additions of Mēl, Anabel Rose, Kiki Celine, Tikki Waja, KQ The Artist
COZYPOLS: 99PHACES started out with Freddie calling myself a Moffy to a studio session after almost a year of talking about working together. We then worked on 4 of 8 songs which ended up being the S.W.M.A.T project which we put out later in 2023. From there we kept hanging out together, meeting friends of friends then we pieced it all together during a recording session hosted by Naadu Lokko which had other members present and after talking about our ambitions and what not we figured it would be much easier for us on this journey if we put our ideas and resources together to make our dreams work.
2. Your music blends Afrobeats, Alte, and Hip-hop—what challenges or advantages come with fusing these genres?
Ans: Freddie & Anabel & Mel
MĒL: Fusing genres has been a great way for me to learn those genres. To combine them, you have to understand what makes them. A lot of the time, I find myself listening to afrobeat to understand how we got here with afrobeats. The same goes for alte and hip hop. The great thing about this is that it makes room to create new ideas or possibilities through their fusion.
ANABEL ROSE: I’ve learned to lean on everyone’s individual strengths when it comes to fusing genres. For example Freddie Gambini is great at coming up with melodies that ride perfectly on an afrobeats track, Tikki is our resident rapper and master of flow so it’s very interesting learning from everyone’s different styles
FREDDIE: With advantages it opens you to a wide range of audience who listen to music for different tastes and preferences. So you always have the chance to attract someone new to your music.
3. Your latest single, “Melody,” has a love-themed vibe. What was the inspiration behind it, and how did the collaboration with Kiki Celine come about?
Ans: Moffy, Freddie & Celine
FREDDIE: The inspiration behind Melody is the endless wondering of being with someone who makes your life the peaceful place you could imagine they are all you could think about. Out numerous recording sessions, birthed this beautiful record as Kiki had to tap into that love back, I also had a story I’d love to put out. So I just jumped right in after I heard the chorus cus that has been the catchy part of the song for me.
Kiki: I had to tap into a certain phase in my life. There was a certain point in my life where I wanted to be someone’s inspiration. I wanted to be the one he ran to when he was down. Melody basically talks about the need to be someone’s source of happiness or joy and the meaningful part of their life.
MOFFY: I remember being at work when the song was sent to me and listening to it I just knew I had to pen something real on there and being the last person to lay his verse, I will say I had the most time to reflect on Kiki and Freddie’s verses really well which led to me expressing a part of me I’ve been meaning to tell a love interest I was with at the time on the song just in case she will hear it and understand me.
4. How do you balance individual creativity with the group’s collective vision when making music?
Ans: Tikki, Auggie & Cozy
AUGGIE: As a producer of the collective the trick is to understand the genre each individual makes. For example if the collective is making a song that has Anabel Rose and Freddie Gambini on it, I listen to playlists with the type of songs they make for inspiration and then I’ll try to experiment with both genres and make something out of it which also goes for every individual within the collective.
COZYPOLS: One thing I love about the different members of 99PHACES is our unique styles of creativity. When creating for the collective, it’s actually quite seamless because with music there’s no one way to approach a song so collaborators on a song just have to focus on bringing their unique style onto the song in a way that isn’t destructive and with years of working together, i can confidently say every member is a genius in their own right so there’s always magic being made. Much as we’re entertainers/musicians we’re actually fans of music first so we know what we’d love to hear on songs if we wanted them on rotation.
TIKKI: As an individual artist and a collective member, I find keeping a creative balance quite easy as the vision of the collective and mine are quite aligned, as we look further to expand the soundscapes we all love. There is also more awareness of my music environment due to the unique take each member has on their craft, opening me up to influences I might have not encountered if I was a solo artist. It’s really just one big experiment when the team is in the Studio
5.Your EP “So We Made a Tape” was praised for its unconventional sound. What was the most experimental thing you tried while creating it?
Ans: Freddie & Auggie
FREDDIE: I’d say on the song kiddie time, that was very not usual. Listening to the beat all I could remember was when we were in church messing with the band. And I picked up the flow with that same mood/feeling and just slid on it. And the fun fact is I kept that beat for over a year.
AUGGIE: For me, Kiddie Time was the most experimental thing we did when creating “So We Made a Tape”. From a production point of view, It’s not your typical trap type beat because it has influences from Arabian culture and western culture, which makes it very experimental.
6. As a Ghanaian collective, how do you see yourselves contributing to the evolution of the country’s music scene?
Ans: Anabel, Tikki, Celine
ANABEL ROSE: I want us to be best known for our bravery and boldness to try new sounds, sounds that were not necessarily in the mainstream and were overlooked as a result. The impact we hope to make it to inspire future artists to take that risk because you never know just how much of a fulfilling experience it is to choose a music journey authentic to yourself
KiKi: I believe that impacting the country’s music scene requires creativity. We have seen how music was back in the days. From genres like highlife which I believe was the lead genre back in the days down to the various genres we have now, the technological revolution has made it possible for other genres like alternative sounds to be seen. By experimenting new sounds and genres, and also mixing up some styles in unanticipated ways can go a long way. These sounds have been lying dormant since the old times. As our old time artists are growing and leaving the scene, the new generation of artists are taking over. We are the ones who have revived or brought back so many genres in the country back to life.
TIKKI:I think we have a good shot at expanding the soundscape of Ghana’s music and showing what could be possible if we just give it a chance. As cultures evolve, so does the music and we want to contribute to that growth. This is not to sideline what the past has to offer rather to honor it by moving forward.
7. Who are some of your biggest musical influences, both locally and internationally?
Ans: Anabel, Freddie & Auggie
AUGGIE: Locally I would say Guilty beats, this is because his production stands out to me, the way he creates his percussion and his melody choices just hits different. Internationally I would say J Dilla (May his soul rest in peace), Oh gosh Leotus, Curtis king and telz. These producers have unique production styles, and learning from them made me who I am right now
ANABEL ROSE: I tap into the emotion of Adele and Rachel Chinouriri, whenever I write and perform. It helps a lot when I connect with the music I make. In terms of sound fusion Amaarae and my inspirations WILLOW
FREDDIE GAMBINI: No. 1 on the list is Burna Boy. Love that man’s artistry and he’s one of the main influences in my Afro fusion bag cus he was spazzing, album after album creating sounds I envisioned myself onto. Then there’s J Cole, Llona, and I’d say Runtown.
8. Being one of the budding collectives in Africa, what advice would you give to young creatives looking to form their own collective?
Ans: Cozy, Mel & Moffy
COZYPOLS: In everything you do, remember you’re from different backgrounds and what would make sense to you would not be the same for another so always be patient and try your very best to communicate as clearly as possible. If something is unclear, make sure to address it so the entire team is on the same page as often as possible.
Conflicts are bound to arise but try to be mature and work out these conflicts. It’ll take a while to adjust to working with a team in a capacity such as ours but as long as you’re all in it for the long haul and respect each other you should be fine.
MĒL: Patience should be your best friend. You should always remember you’re working with different people, from different backgrounds. Everyone works differently. Be patient and kind to each other, remember your common goal, remember that it takes time to achieve things. Remember you can be an unstoppable force together.
MOFFY: This might sound cliche but creatives need to understand that it’s a JOURNEY and because of that you can never do it alone.Sometimes you will think you can do it all alone but trust me it take a community, family, friends to make the dream come to life and that doesn’t mean there won’t be ups and downs but if you learn to trust and forgive each other each step of the way, everything will fall in place.
What’s the most memorable moment you’ve had as a group so far, whether in the studio or with fans ?
Ans: Celine, Tikki, Cozy
KiKi: For me, I would say memories are made every single time we link up. Whether in the studio, at an event or when performing together at shows. But I’d say the most memorable one is when we performed at Ria Boss’ open mic in 2023 and manifestivities 2024. We dedicated our time and energy to them and it yielded good results
COZYPOLS: live performances can be so draining until it’s time to get on stage. From little to no rehearsal chances or showing up to a performance and being giving 2 or 3 mics after clearly stating what you need to deliver a great performance but once we figure out a way past whatever hurdles and get into the first song, its always magical seeing everyone enjoying the performance and working together to give the fans the best experience of 99 PHACES. My absolute favourite of our live performances would be Ria Boss Open Mic: 99 PHACES edition and Mosaic Live by GCR.
TIKKI: In recent times, I would say I made great memories performing at Manifestivities 2024. This was my first time performing with the collective on such a big stage and we were perfect. We put a lot of time and effort into our performance, seeing our intentions come into fruition was really an enjoyable feeling and knowing I contributed to that as a team player was the icing on the cake. I think we really made something special at that moment.
10. What’s next for 99 Phaces? Any upcoming projects or dream collaborations you can hint at?
Auggie, Anabel & Freddie
ANABEL ROSE: This year is our year. We have so many exciting releases for you, so just know we aren’t going to let you rest from seeing our faces.
FREDDIE: You should definitely expect something from the collective since we’re in the 99szn. We take it easy single after single and who knows maybe you guys get to have another tape if you know what I mean.
AUGGIE: Oh yes! You should definitely expect more mind boggling projects from us. Can’t wait for you all to hear what we are cooking up!
99Phaces is more than a music group; they’re a movement, redefining what it means to create as a collective in Ghana’s competitive industry. Their commitment to authenticity, collaboration, and pushing creative boundaries sets them apart as torchbearers for the next generation of artists. As they continue to blend diverse sounds and tell stories that resonate, 99Phaces is poised to leave an indelible mark not just in Ghana, but on the global stage. With their infectious energy and unwavering passion, the world is only beginning to hear the many voices of 99Phaces.