Patience Nyarko, a gospel singer from Ghana, has added her voice to the growing chorus of people who believe gospel musicians should be compensated for their services, particularly when they play in religious institutions like churches.
There has been some debate recently over whether or not Gospel musicians should be compensated for their services rendered at churches.
For some, it’s a calling; for others, it’s a job, and they deserve the same respect and remuneration as any other artist.
Patience Nyarko said it humorously in an interview with Graphic Showbiz on Tuesday, August 9: “the days when people say you ‘God bless you’ are done, they are long gone.”
There’s a lot of work that goes into our shows, so we won’t tolerate it anymore.
Everyone else gets paid for their job, so why shouldn’t Gospel musicians? We have to pay for gas to go to the venues, uniforms for the team, etc., so it’s only reasonable that we are compensated for our performances.
I always have the person hiring me to ask to speak with my boss because I think that the way you market yourself is the way you get hired.
When asked what she expected from her coworkers, Patience Nyarko said, “He would offer a price and if you are alright with it or can afford it, we are good to go else there is no deal.”
Make excellent use of your managers; that’s why they’re there. “Let’s pitch ourselves very effectively so that we don’t wind up going home to weep after unfruitful negotiations, times are particularly harsh and one would not want to get into anything and lose.”
However, Patience Nyarko clarified that there were times when she didn’t mind playing for free at certain churches due to her rapport with the pastors.
Some pastors are our spiritual dads or close friends, and we would never dream of charging them.
If we don’t know the individuals involved or have a prior connection with them, we expect to be compensated for our time and effort.
The singer who became famous for her song “Obi Nyani Me” launched a new single at the beginning of 2018 named “Jesus In The Boat,” and she claims it is doing really well.
Since its debut earlier this year, “Jesus In The Boat” has been played on the radio often. Things have altered since then, but the band is making due.
She asked her followers to keep her in their prayers and hinted that she would release a new song before the year was through. “Let’s just see how it will go, but please remember me in your prayers,” she urged.
Over the course of her almost ten years in the business, Patience Nyarko has released a number of excellent Gospel tracks, including (but certainly not limited to) Obi Nyanime, W’fom Kwan, Anibre Mpaye, Wasore, Menwu, Oboboba, Wodaada, and others.