One of the most catchy songs on TikTok right now is Angel Maxine’s Wo Fie featuring Wanlov the Kubolor & Sister Deborah. It started appearing on my FYP (for you page) in late May, as people began their pre-game stretch in dealing with the wave of corporate rainbow washing with a temporarily adjusted logo or Pride-themed products, despite most of these same companies bankrolling politicians that write anti-LGBTQ+ bills. Like many TikTok hits, this was going viral because it became a meme. While some of the TikToks sharing it still showed a bit of the music video (very rare), it was still a meme.
Upon a second look at the song, you realize that amidst all the memes, you’ve missed its defiant and brave nature. Created by Ghana’s first openly transgender music artist Angel Maxine, Wo Fie (a.k.a. Your Home) exists in a country where “unnatural carnal knowledge” (gay sex) could net you three years in prison. According to Reuters, prosecutions are rare, but blackmail and harm still occur. Often cut out of the TikTok video is the clear and direct introduction speech before the song even begins. Angel looks at a mirror while the text reads,
Ghana is colonially homophobic. LGBTQIA+ are persecuted. Denied basic rights. Safe spaces raided. Jailed unconstitutionally. Used as a distraction from state corruption. Now Shana wants to make LGBTQIA+ advocacy illegal. You may soon by arrested for watching/sharing this video. Love your neighbor, for you are also one.
In addition to the lyrics in English, the chorus is another language, which is hard to pin down because Ghana is a multilingual former British colony. The French influence is high also because of its neighbors. In what is likely in Akan, the chorus reads:
Effeminate men, some are in your family
Lesbians, some are in your family
Anal sex, takes place in your family
Yes you, some is in your family
Anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment increases across the world
Maxine, Kubolor, and Deborah released the song back in July 2021, months after Accra (Ghana’s capital) closed down its LGBT resource center. Within a few weeks of the center’s opening, it was raided by the police and then pressured to close. A few months later, a proposed Ghanaian anti-LGBT bill lengthened penalties and criminal offenses. These included any process of gender affirmation (from surgery to dress), association with LGBTQ+ organizations, promotion of queer knowledge, and more. There is even a clause to allow for extradition in case people fled to other places.
Maxine first gained internet traction through a Vice News interview about this bill. Many public figures around the world, like Idris Elba and Naomi Campbell, have pleaded with President Nana Akufo-Addo to work with LGBTQ+ Ghanians and keep it one of the best places for human rights in West Africa.
(featured image: screencap)
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