Music star Akwaboah has explained his controversial picture which led many to speculate about his health and matrimonial bliss.

He told Nana Romeo on Okay FM, he was simply fatigued after travelling to play a show and hardly sleeping.

The Ensesa hitmaker said he once went to Kwahu, Eastern Region, to play a show. He left Accra “around 8:30 AM,” getting to his destination “around 12:30 PM”. He said he played an hour’s show from 3:00 PM, “and setoff back to Accra from 5 PM.

“We got to Accra around 7 PM. I didn’t sleep the entire night – I played a show after a show. I rested for only an hour, and woke up to go to church – you know I don’t joke about church attendance. My wife asked that we take a picture. I said I was tired but you know women love these things so we took one.

“When I posted this [picture] on our wedding anniversary, I was aware Ghanaians would make all sort of comments, and so I made sure madam was okay, so no one criticises her – I wasn’t even thinking about myself. All I saw was someone had zoomed into my tired face and people were speaking foolishness about it like, ‘Why, is he not happy? The madam is sucking his blood’ and blah, blah, blah.”

While the singer-songwriter showed visible disgust, he indicated what helped him to keep his composure during this period was remembering the economic privilege and comfort of playing a lucrative gig – compared to his trolls – which had affected his looks in the picture.

He said he had long urged his wife “even before we got married,” to be alert and not pay attention to criticisms and attacks which may come to them because of his being “an artiste”.

He said his wife teased him during the controversial episode, and “we laughed together, and went to eat out.

“Now she knows how it works.”

Akwaboah reflected on what was causing people to constantly attack him since he tied the knot.

“People throw rocks at things that shine,” he remarked.

Lamenting, he wondered if “this crab mentality” was unique to Ghana.

He had more to say about how to handle cyberbullying.

“What hurts the most is when someone insults you and you go and checkout their [social media] profile, their followers, and their picture – you can even tell the phone they used to take the picture. But at the end of the day, they [have the effrontery to] insult you. The truth hurts, but as I always say, humans will always be humans. So, sometimes, you allow them to do what they have to do, and you also do what you have to do,” the Highlife star said.

“Notice that the stars need darkness to shine. It hurts, however, to look at how hard you’ve worked, and in your happy moments you make a post and someone comes to criticise it. It’s painful but if you’re mentally strong like me, there’s nothing anyone can do [to move you]. When I rise in the morning, I don’t ask my critics for food. I’m self-reliant and I discharge my responsibilities towards my entire family. So, you have the right to say whatever you want. As long as it doesn’t take food off my table, you don’t matter.”

While he noted he was not pleased with any of the trolling targeting him, he said the attacks over his looks in the aforesaid picture was disturbing.

“It was proof of what the proverb says, ‘The one wearing the ornate hat is resented’,” he reasoned.