From 50 pesewas to the stage: How Ghanaian poet Nana Asaase risked it all to pursue his calling

Ghanaian poet and writer Nana Asaase has opened up about the harrowing financial reality of abandoning corporate security to pursue his artistic passion, revealing that his bank account dwindled to a mere 50 pesewas within days of resigning from a well-paying public relations role. His journey—from crisis to breakthrough—speaks to both the fragility of Ghana's creative economy and the resilience required to survive within it.

In an interview on The Career Trail programme on Joy Learning TV and Joy News, Asaase traced his path from university graduate to cultural entrepreneur. After completing his degree at the University of Ghana, he undertook his National Service at Originate, Saatchi and Saatchi, where he developed skills in documentary production, scriptwriting, and event coverage. His career actually began earlier, combining teaching with newsreading at Eagle FM in Cape Coast—a formative period shaped by his admiration for broadcast journalism standards.

His role at Global Media Alliance as a public relations professional offered stability and what he described as a decent salary. Yet this security masked a growing unease. Asaase became preoccupied with a troubling reality: Ghana's cultural and arts sector faced a generational crisis. Established creative figures were ageing, and insufficient younger talent was emerging to carry their legacy forward. The gap posed an existential threat to the industry's future.

The pivotal moment that changed everything

The turning point arrived unexpectedly. During a month when his agency's salary payments were delayed—a frustratingly common occurrence in media—Asaase received an invitation to perform at a poetry event. He accepted and prayed that none of his media contacts would cover the performance, hoping to keep his side pursuit private. After delivering his set, he was paid three times his monthly PR salary.

That single performance crystallised his conviction. If poetry could generate triple his corporate income in one evening, dedicated pursuit might genuinely transform it into a sustainable livelihood. Within weeks, he resigned.

The financial freefall began immediately. His bank account held just GH¢100 on the day he left his job. The following day, his car required expensive repairs, reducing his balance to GH¢50. "My life actually came down to 50 pesewas," he recalled, using the colloquial expression to convey complete destitution. Yet rather than reverse course, Asaase gave himself five years to make poetry work—a calculated gamble backed by faith rather than savings.

Why it matters for Ghana

Nana Asaase's experience illuminates a critical challenge facing Ghana's creative industries. The country produces talented artists, yet the economic ecosystem barely sustains them. Performance fees are often insulting—he and fellow poet Hashmullah once split GH¢10 for a National Theatre appearance, ten one-cedi notes divided between two professionals. Performers frequently absorb costs rather than profit.

His struggle also reflects Ghana's cultural infrastructure gap. Without institutional support, consistent funding mechanisms, or reliable patronage networks, emerging artists must rely on personal networks, chance recommendations, and fortune. The generational crisis he identified—where experienced creatives retire without successors ready to inherit their platforms—poses genuine risk to Ghana's cultural continuity and soft power.

Asaase's eventual breakthrough came through a fortuitous recommendation to OSJ Consult, which connected him with major corporate gigs including RLG's end-of-year event and Ecobank Transnational's 25th anniversary celebration. These opportunities transformed his trajectory, proving his five-year bet could pay off. Yet his path remains exceptional rather than typical, underlining how much Ghana's arts sector depends on individual luck rather than systemic support.

His story resonates with Ghanaians at a broader level: it validates creative ambition while exposing the economic precarity that forces talented individuals to choose between passion and survival—a choice many nations invest in resolving through arts funding and cultural policy.