Ekow Alabi Savage sits at his drum kit in Berlin, decades of musical DNA flowing through his hands.
The 67-year-old Ghanaian master percussionist has spent nearly half a century crafting rhythms that refuse to be confined by geography or genre.
His latest venture, Ekowmania & The Rhythmers, represents something both ancient and urgently modern – a musical collective that treats tradition as a living, breathing organism rather than a museum piece.
The story begins in Cape Coast, where five-year-old Ekow first touched drumsticks. By fourteen, he’d founded ANABO, later known as Roots Anabo, pioneering what they called “sunlife music” – a fusion that would later take them to Jamaica’s Sunsplash Festival and into the legendary Tuff Gong studios.
But life had other plans. Berlin in the late seventies became his canvas, and he’s been painting sonic portraits there ever since.
What makes Ekowmania & The Rhythmers particularly compelling isn’t just Savage’s impressive resume – though collaborations with Ziggy Marley, Fela Kuti, and Manu Dibango certainly add weight to his musical passport.
It’s the way he’s assembled a band that functions like a cultural embassy. Gbemu Kwame Sometimer anchors the low end with bass lines that seem to communicate directly with ancestral spirits, while Frank Karikari – son of highlife legend Ralph Karikari – carries forward a guitar tradition that predates his birth yet feels absolutely contemporary.
Their approach to highlife music sidesteps nostalgia entirely. Instead of treating Ghana’s signature sound as a relic to be preserved, they treat it as a conversation partner.
Soukous rhythms from Central Africa slide into the mix alongside salsa percussion patterns, creating musical moments that feel both geographically scattered and emotionally unified.
This isn’t fusion for fusion’s sake – it’s the natural result of African musicians living and creating in a globalized context.
The band’s upcoming summer 2025 recordings promise to capture this cultural cross-pollination.
Based on available tracks like “Kwame Nkrumah” and “Good Morning Africa,” expect music that honours Ghana’s first president while addressing contemporary African realities.
“Ananse” references the spider-trickster figure from Akan folklore, suggesting these musicians understand their role as storytellers and cultural bridges.
Savage’s 2024 album “Dr. Afrodub” – a collaboration with Finnish producer Jimi Tenor – offers clues about where Ekowmania & The Rhythmers might be heading.
That project demonstrated his willingness to let African rhythms swim in electronic waters, creating hybrid sounds that feel both ancient and futuristic.
The upcoming Rhythmers material will likely push these boundaries further, especially given the ensemble’s reputation for live performances that turn venues into temporary cultural crossroads.
There’s something profoundly contemporary about musicians who refuse to be limited by single cultural identities. Savage and his Rhythmers colleagues represent a generation of African artists who’ve lived through colonialism, independence, globalization, and digital revolution – and somehow managed to keep their musical cores intact while constantly evolving.
The multilingual approach – songs in Fante, Creole, and English – reflects this cosmopolitan perspective. Language becomes another instrument, another way to build bridges between cultures.
When Savage sings in Fante, he’s not just communicating with Ghanaian listeners; he’s introducing non-African audiences to the rhythmic possibilities of his mother tongue.
What strikes me most about Ekowmania & The Rhythmers is their refusal to choose between tradition and innovation. They’ve created a musical space where palm wine guitar techniques can coexist with contemporary production methods, where ancient percussion patterns can support modern lyrical concerns.
This isn’t about preserving culture in amber – it’s about keeping culture alive by allowing it to breathe, grow, and interact with other musical traditions.
The fact that new recordings are planned for summer 2025 suggests these musicians aren’t slowing down.
At an age when many artists might be content to rest on their considerable laurels, Savage continues pushing forward, creating music that honours the past while refusing to be imprisoned by it.
Ekowmania & The Rhythmers offer something increasingly rare in contemporary music: genuine cultural synthesis that feels both natural and necessary.
They’re not just making music; they’re demonstrating how tradition and innovation can dance together, creating something more powerful than either could achieve alone.
