Theresa Oparebea Ayoade, Co-founder and CEO of Charterhouse Productions and Convener of the National Women’s Summit and Expo, has hinted at the potential return of Ghana’s first music reality show, Stars of the Future.
The show, which launched under Charterhouse Productions, played a pivotal role in discovering talents like Irene Logan, Efya, and Kaakie. However, after its 2011 edition, the programme went dormant, leaving many aspiring artists without a platform to showcase their talents.
Speaking on Joy Prime’s Changes show, Mrs. Ayoade suggested that the show could return with a fresh focus—this time exclusively spotlighting women. She said the move aims to elevate female musicians, who she believes have not always received the same opportunities as their male counterparts in Ghana’s music industry.
“We’ve been thinking about bringing back Stars of the Future for women because we need to see more female musicians emerging. The structure of the industry may not be too kind to them, which is why we often see women struggling to break through,” she explained.
Her comments come amid ongoing discussions about the challenges female artists face in the industry, and how Charterhouse has been helping to promote women through platforms like the Telecel Ghana Music Awards.
To tackle these industry-wide gaps more effectively, Mrs. Ayoade noted that Charterhouse has launched the Charterhouse Africa Creative Foundation, a platform designed to identify and address pressing challenges in the creative sector.
She emphasized that the limited visibility of women in awards and other initiatives is not entirely the fault of Charterhouse. “The awards scheme reflects what is happening in the industry. To fix the imbalance, we need to address the broader challenges female artistes face,” she said.
Through the foundation, Charterhouse has developed initiatives to bring female creatives together, provide support, and promote them deliberately and intentionally. “We’ve been in the industry for over 25 years and have worked across nearly all sectors. We see the gaps, and the foundation allows us to partner with like-minded institutions to address them—especially the issues affecting women in the creative arts,” she added.
Mrs. Ayoade also acknowledged that while the awards scheme tries to support female artists, it can only work with the entries it receives. She stressed that the current imbalance—fewer female submissions compared to males—is a key issue that the industry must address.