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Kofi B, whose real name is Kofi Boakye Yiadom, died at dawn on Sunday before he was scheduled to perform at a show in Cape Coast. According to his colleague musician Kofi Nti, who was also on the bill, the Mmobrowa hitmaker complained of chest pains but died when he was taken to hospital.
As Ghanaians mourn and continue to pay tribute to him, some of his colleague musicians have described him as a nice person and a legend.
According to Highlife artiste Kumi Guitar, Kofi B was one of the finest Highlife musicians whose timeless songs are always refreshing to listen to.
“I have personally met him a couple of times and shared the same stage with him and trust me he was good with live performances. Ghana has lost a fantastic musician and he cannot be replaced because he was unique,” he said.
Kumi Guitar told Graphic Showbiz he has had high blood pressure for a while but he needs to take it seriously now after hearing what happened to Kofi B.
“I have not been serious with my medication concerning my blood pressure and I need to take them from now,” he said.
Kumi Guitar also disclosed that he would be embarking on a campaign for people to get health checks regularly.
Rapper Okyeame Kwame, who has three songs with Kofi B, said he still did not believe the musician was dead.
“Kofi B was more than a brother to me. We co-wrote Akua Ataa and I got Bradez to rap on the song which became an instant hit. We both featured each other again on our albums and the chemistry was great.
“When I first heard about the news I brushed it off until I saw it on credible websites and I confirmed it. It is hard for me to believe this is true because I am already missing the fufu we ate together and the jokes we shared. He was such a good person and a nice guy to be with,” he said.
Talking about how he heard about the sad news, rapper Obrafour said he missed a call from an unknown number a few minutes after he turned his phone on Sunday morning but never bothered to call back.
He said he missed more than five calls and messages within 10 minutes and decided to find out what was happening and to his surprise, he found out Kofi B was dead.
“I didn’t want to believe it so I called Kofi Nti and he broke the news to me; In fact, I was down and in tears because we were very close.
"We did a number of songs together including my hit song Heavy. I don’t think I can ever erase him from my mind. He was a likable character and a nice person to be with. We used to pray together, he was someone to reason with because he was very deep,” he said.
Obrafour said he had already visited Kofi B's family and interacted with his children. “I feel so sad at how things are now but he is someone I hold in high esteem,” he said.
Highlife musician Kwaisey Pee described Kofi B as someone full of humour and a fantastic singer who killed it when he mounted the stage.
“I didn’t know him that well until I got close to him and I can say it was nice getting to know him. We have a lot of songs together and I am personally going to miss him," he said.
Kwaisey Pee said it was hard for him to believe the news until a family member of Kofi B called to tell him about the unfortunate death of his friend.
Highlife musician Oheneba Kissi said if it was high blood pressure that killed Kofi B then Ghanaians needed to take their health seriously.
“There are some deaths we can prevent; we must undergo regular health checks which a lot of musicians take for granted. As entertainers, we make a lot of money through the shows and the CDs we sell so nothing should prevent us from regular health checks,” he said.
Oheneba Kissi described Kofi B as a unique musician whose soothing voice was one of a kind. "I met and spoke to him a couple of times and he was a cool dude. His death is so painful considering his age. His Mmobrowa and Akua Ataa songs are part of my favourite songs,” he said.
