Nana Ama McBrown has weighed in on what she believes should change around red carpet appearances at the Telecel Ghana Music Awards, making it clear that her presence is not something organisers should assume comes for free.
Speaking on the Onua Show Time, the actress argued that attending high-profile red carpet events carries real financial demands, especially for public figures who are not part of the nominations list or performance lineup.
In her view, simply extending an invitation without any support places an unfair burden on celebrities who would have to fund their own styling, outfits, and overall preparation just to show up.
“TGMA can’t invite me to a red carpet while I don’t have a song. They’re aware it’s expensive to show up,” she said.
McBrown also reflected on earlier editions of the awards, noting that organisers once boosted participation by supplying fabric to invited guests to create custom designs for the event.
She said that gesture not only eased costs but also raised the stakes on the red carpet, turning it into a more vibrant and competitive showcase of fashion.
“I remember some time ago, they used to add cloth to their invitation. I even sewed the cloth and was crowned best dressed on the red carpet. There was a cash prize on it, so I won the dollars,” she recounted.
According to her, that approach naturally pushed celebrities to invest more effort into their appearance, since the red carpet became more of a fashion contest than a casual walk-in.
“That made the red carpet very competitive and nice because you wouldn’t just go there; you had to show up all glamorous,” McBrown said.
She emphasised that her comments were coming from the standpoint of guests who are not nominated or performing, but still attend mainly to support and add colour to the event.
For such personalities, she suggested, the decision to attend is optional, which is why organisers should consider incentives if they want strong attendance.
“I’m talking from those who don’t have songs and those who won’t get any nominations’ point of view. We just show up for the entertainment and all the same, we can decide to entertain ourselves in our homes, but we still go there,” she noted.
McBrown closed by reinforcing her position bluntly, saying attendance should come with compensation in her case.
“I was invited, but I didn’t reply to the message. They have to pay me to show up.”
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