“We’re not backing down” – Epixode defends Abiana over ‘Mentor’ judge backlash

Ghanaian reggae/dancehall artiste, Epixode has broken silence on the recent backlash Abiana has received from the public following her comment on a contestant at a music show audition.

Singer and songwriter, Abiana, took over the timelines of social media users after the said incident.

As a judge of the reality show, Abiana is seen in a video asking one of the contestants to leave the room after an ‘abysmal’ performance.

The video captures Abiana and Epixode in the judges’ seats.

In the meantime, Epixode has commented on the issue in an interview with Hitz FM sighted by ghanaweekend.com.

He told Doreen Avio on Daybreak Hitz that the judges did not have enough time to coach or correct over 500 contestants. He even added that people like popular ‘American Idol’ and ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ judge, Simon Cowell, is loved by people even though he goes hard on contestants.

“I think it’s one of those things where you just look and pass. People also didn’t think about the fact that we had to sit down the whole day, left the premises around 12pm, you know, and then the people who turned up for the audition were over 500, and we had to pick 35. So you can’t be soft on some of them,” he told the host Doreen Avio.

The Atia singer however said that he would have wished if TV3, the organisers of ‘Mentor’ posted videos of other parts of the audition where they passed pleasant remarks about other contestants.

“It would have been nice if the media house also posted another sweet side of it so that they can balance rather than focusing on that side. But then again, I think they know what will trigger people to pay attention to the thing,” Epixode said.

He added that there was an instance where he promised to support an old man in his 60s who also came for the audition, but the TV station did not publish that.

“But then again, it’s an audition. We all don’t like Simon Cowell on American Idol, but we love him. So for me, the sad part is I think Abiana hasn’t seen that tough side before, so it’s a new thing to her so it hit her very hard but some of us we’ve gone through it, but it’s alright, we’re not backing down. We’ll just do it,” he further noted.

After TV3 Ghana posted the video on social media, a lot of people launched an attack on the ‘Adunle’ singer, saying it was wrong to have treated the wannabe musician in that manner.

Some have made reference to an interview Abiana granted to UTV a few weeks ago, where she mentioned how strict Okraku Mantey was on her when she also auditioned for TV3’s ‘Mentor’ music reality show years ago.

In the said video, Abiana is heard talking about how that comment affected her and was also quick to add that it really challenged her to be a better singer.

“For me, that it weighed down, It didn’t go for auditions again. I had to better myself for the last audition that landed me. So sometimes, we need to listen to the critics and look at how their comments will help us, then we go and work on ourselves and come,” she said on UTV.

While a lot of people bashed her for her action, some have also said that she played a perfect role as a judge and that auditions are not meant to coach wannabe artiste or pamper them.

Abiana won the Best Female Vocal Performance award in 2021 at the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards.

In the meantime, Epixode is also preparing to release his ‘Atia Archive’ EP, which features Abiana.