Ko-Jo Cue, one of the nation's acclaimed rappers, has noted he has no interest in fame, and this may be the cause of his stunted stardom and success.

“I don’t really like fame,” he told Prince Benjamin (PB) on Accra 100.5 FM’s Entertainment Capital.

“Pen & Paper [album, with Shaker] is the most commercial thing I have ever done, up to this point,” he underlined.

When the tape was released, “we went everywhere, we had multiple VGMA nominations, we won 4Stye Music awards, but after all that, I didn’t get any fulfillment from it like when I release these introspective songs and people tell me I was reflecting their life events”.

He said suicidal people had testified about receiving salvific relief via his music, and after personal conversations upon their request via social media.

Ko-Jo Cue emphasised “such things are abundantly precious to me more than” acclaim and accolade.

Getting to the bottom of his aversion to fame, he said, “I’m sure it’s maturity because I’ve not always been like this”.

Additionally, he regretted that there  were “a few times” when due to “my name and responsibilities that came with it, I lost control over some things unlike previously, and I dislike that”.

The Kumasi-based musician remembered an incident in “class three” which convinced him “power and those things were not for me”.

He was the class prefect, charged with keeping order and quiet in the absence of his teacher. He said when he once penned down names of those who were disturbing the class, they promised him toffees “and I crossed out their names, after they pleaded” only for them to teem up and report him to the teacher.

“That day, I was the only one beaten by the teacher, and I was stripped of the title, too,” he amusingly narrated.

“With great power comes great responsibility, and there are some responsibilities that I do not desire because you may stumble and do something and it may destroy your relationship with some people,” the rapper underlined his point.

Marketing 

For the wide success of his music, Ko-Jo Cue noted he had quality material, conceding, however, he had slacked in terms of marketing.

Alluding to the competitiveness of music, he said it was “business” and “we are all good at it but what matters is what you put in”.

He confessed it was not as though he was ignored after great marketing campaigns for his music.

“There are many things that perhaps because of money, time, or something else, I couldn’t do,” he explained.

"You rightly said I usually do interviews when I am about to drop a project. Compare that to someone who is always engaging the media. Of the two, who do you think the public will remember the more?"

Cue took full responsibility for his current reach, insisting, however, he had the right content for the market.

"If someone’s not heard my music before, it is my fault. I always say this. It is an issue with my marketing. I also know if ten people hear my music, and the message is familiar with them, at least eight of them will love the music. So, I am the one who has not worked to a level where everyone will hear my music. That may be owing to financial constraints. What I have is what I am using, and it can only do so much, as a lonely bird," he said.

Money 

Ko-Jo Cue considered using fame to improve funding for his music. While he recognised that fame could lead to money, he asserted that “one does not [necessarily] need fame to make money.

“Fame may help, but it is not the sole path to wealth.”

“We all know [Apple founder] Steve Jobs, but even though you cannot mention Apple’s top 100 workers, they all have money,” he illustrated.

“So the popularity and applauds is not that important to me,” he stressed.

Personal Responsibility 

He emphasised his superstardom had been elusive despite his respected musicianship and star power significantly because of his own choices, “and that’s why I disengage when I am asked whether the industry has been fair to me”.

He identified there had been “many” opportunities to grow his momentum from “events” that had taken place in his career but he had not.

He said he could have used social media and his gift of humour and entertainment, for instance, to achieve increased and rapid fame but “I don’t want the responsibility that comes with all that.

“I don’t want to add to my responsibilities, things that will not bring me joy and fulfillment. The fame brings me no joy.”

He said he would like to go about publicly without anyone addressing him as a music star.

Fear 

Ko-Jo Cue said he was taken aback when people he grew up with started calling him “Ko-Jo Cue and not Junior”.

“I want to be human. If not, they blow up your mistakes, for instance. And one other thing that frightened me was, those behind me, like my family, who have no interest in fame, are affected by my fame and lose their privacy,” he bemoaned.

The author of the critically-acclaimed For My Brothers said he meant to protect himself and his family, and “it’s held me back a lot - that’s the truth”.

“I would experience levels of success where I’d see if I’d only add another three or four, it’d be extremely successful but the fear sets in and I relax a bit,” he added.

Depression 

Ko-Jo Cue underlined he experienced moments of depression, too, which impacted his career. 

“Some two things that happened to me back-to-back, and it was really tough, but these are not events I would want to share, at least not at this time. I had a personal tragedy, real life issues that were very serious, and for that I needed time to calm down and [get] my thoughts [under control] before I resumed work,” he explained.

He said though he was engaged in some work in the background during this trying period, he could not bring himself to making music.

The rap star's second album, KANI: A Bantama Story, is anticipated for release in November 2025, having been ready in July. So far, he has released two singles from the 17-track tape: Onipa Hia Mmoa featuring Ayisi, and Tontonte featuring Arathejay and Ofori Amponsah.