All that has happened is owners of streaming services have brainwashed Ghanaian musicians into believing that recording huge numbers on their platforms translates into huge sums of money, which isn’t the reality.

In a recent interview with Graphic Showbiz, Socrate, however, countered the perception, arguing that the notion had pushed musicians to abandon the sale of CDs, which was a gold mine to enrich them. (Read Ghana Tourism Authority launches 2024 Tourism report, highlights sector's progress and challenges)

“The perception that streaming platforms increase musicians’ reach or make them global is a voodoo analysis. They told musicians that being on such platforms is going to bring the world to their feet.

“But I want to ask, ‘Do you stream Indian songs?’ he said. There are musicians in India who also put their songs online, but how many Ghanaians stream Indian songs? So, where from the idea that if you put your song online, you will have a wider reach? 

“Which wider reach? It is not true. It is the already-made market that is still serving consumers. Ghanaians don’t even stream Congolese or Togolese songs,” he said.

He clarified that his stance was not to abandon online streaming but to tap into the residual market for physical music formats.

Socrate argued that the lack of CD production by musicians had led consumers to believe that the era of physical music formats was over. However, he is convinced that there is still a market for CDs, particularly among those with higher economic value who own CD players.

He also explains that while the youth might be more inclined towards streaming, there are still millions of CD players in homes, and he believes musicians are missing out on potential revenue by not producing CDs.

“It's not about abandoning what we're doing today and going back to CDs, but rather tapping into all available markets. Do you know that there is a CD market in the Northern Region, and the musicians there are cashing out big there. Musicians have left the sale of CDs to these pirates, and they are enriching themselves. Can you imagine a musician like Stonebwoy branding some of his boys to sell his CDs on the streets?

“A CD sells for GH ₵30, but do you know that our musicians don’t even make that amount with over 1000 streams of their songs on the online platforms? And I quote Shatta Wale on this, he said, ‘As for the streaming di333, it’s not bringing anything because in Ghana, majority of Ghanaians use Android and with Android, people don’t pay to stream music, it is only Apple that pays good money but the rest of the platforms is free’,” Safo said.

Safo believes musicians have been misled into abandoning physical CD sales for online streaming, which has ultimately collapsed the CD market and left distributors exploring other business ventures such as the sale of mobile phones. 

The ongoing debate has sparked diverse opinions from industry players, with some supporting Socrate’s views. 

In a recent interview, Wan-O revealed that he was earning up to GH₵30,000 monthly from selling CDs of his own music at the Accra Mall, emphasising the importance of strategy and planning in physical sales.

"I can make about GH₵20,000 to GH₵30,000 from my CD sales in a month. I've sold over one million CDs since I started selling at the Mall 10 years ago," Wan-O said.