Mathew Knowles to speak at To The Top seminar in Accra

Slated for the Cedi Conference Centre at the University of Ghana, the seminar forms part of precursor activities for the inaugural two-day Eat Drink Music (EDM) Festival at the Untamed Empire in Accra. 

Knowles is best known as the manager of Destiny’s Child and father of popstars Beyoncé and Solange. In 2020, Nigerian music streaming platform MePlaylist appointed Knowles president of global marketing and communications after he invested an unconfirmed amount in the service through his company Music World Entertainment.

“As the architect of the careers of many in the music world, Knowles is the perfect person to share best practices with Ghana’s creative community,” EDM Festival co-founder Paul Nuamah Donkor said. “It is an honour to invite him to open our festival and to hear him cement among creative entrepreneurs the importance of building wealth through our art. The business side is often neglected, but it’s the business side that will truly take our creatives ‘To The Top.’” 

Other confirmed speakers at the seminar include Sony Music Publishing West Africa general manager Godwin Tom (Nigeria), actress Joselyn Dumas (Ghana), Caveman Watches CEO Anthony Dzamefe (Ghana), tech entrepreneur Derrydean Dadzie and writer and publicist Richardine Bartee (US).

“To The Top seeks to empower dreams, fuel the future and be a catalyst for change by supporting entrepreneurs on their journey to success,” a statement reads. “The festival has set a target to raise GHS200 000 (about $20,000) to support scaling up the five selected entrepreneurs in 2023. A portion of the revenue generated from the festival and generous donations will help them meet their target.”

The EDM Festival, which expects an estimated daily attendance of 3 000 to 5 000 guests, will showcase a mix of traditional and contemporary music and fashion, and support independent enterprises. This year, the programme is running under the theme Scaling Up Entrepreneurial Businesses the Eat Drink Music Festival Way.