Ohemaa Mercy: from Adamfo Papa to a Grand Medal and Tehillah Experience

Her second album won her the biggest award in Ghanaian music. At the 2008 Ghana Music Awards, Ohemaa Mercy’s Edin Jesus earned ten nominations, and she took home Gospel Artiste of the Year, Gospel Album of the Year and the overall Album of the Year. It was a rare moment when a gospel album was declared the best record in the country.

Adamfo Papa

Ohemaa Mercy is the stage name of Mercy Twum-Ampofo. “Ohemaa” means queen in Twi, a fitting name for a singer who became one of the leading voices in Ghanaian gospel. Her debut album, Adamfo Papa (“Good Friend”), was released in 2004. It received strong radio airplay and earned her multiple nominations at the 2006 Ghana Music Awards. She won Discovery of the Year at a gospel awards event that year.

Edin Jesus (“The Name of Jesus”), released in 2007, was her breakthrough. Reports say it sold hundreds of thousands of copies within months. Its songs filled churches, buses and homes across Ghana.

Later albums

In 2008, President John Kufuor awarded Ohemaa Mercy the Grand Medal, a national honour, recognising her contribution to Ghanaian music. She went on to release albums including Wobɛyɛ Kɛse, Prophecy, His Word and Afɔrebɔ. Her songs “Aseda”, “Wobeye Kese” and “Obeye Ama Wo” remain popular. Her song “Ote Me Mu”, featuring MOG Music, won Gospel Song of the Year at the 2023 Vodafone Ghana Music Awards, showing that her music still connects with listeners nearly two decades after her debut.

Tehillah Experience

Through Ohemaa Mercy Ministries, she organises the annual Tehillah Experience, a worship event that draws large crowds. It reflects her focus on ministry as well as performance. Ohemaa Mercy sings mainly in Twi, which helped her reach large audiences in the Akan-speaking regions and among Ghanaians abroad. Her songs speak of gratitude, perseverance and God’s faithfulness in plain, heartfelt language. Many are used in church services, especially during offerings and thanksgiving, when congregations dance to the front. Her concerts and ministry events often feel more like worship services than shows, with long periods of prayer between songs.

Female voices

She is part of a generation of Ghanaian female gospel singers, alongside artists such as Diana Hamilton, Piesie Esther and Celestine Donkor, who have shaped the sound of Ghanaian worship. Many gospel artists have a hit and fade. Ohemaa Mercy has stayed at the centre of Ghanaian gospel for two decades, and her name still lives up to its meaning.