Im September 2024 wurde in Ghana eine österreichische Botschaft eröffnet. Ghana zählt in Sachen Musik zu den spannendsten und vielfältigsten Ländern Afrikas. Im Jänner 2025 schrieb das Außenministerium (BMEIA) in Kooperation mit mica – music austria erstmals eine Dialog-Residenz in Accra aus. Ziel war es, den musikalischen Austausch zu fördern und die Vernetzung mit ghanaischen Musikschaffenden auszubauen. „Artist in Residence“ wurde der Musiker und Produzent Andi Stecher. Er nutzte die Gelegenheit, ein vielversprechendes Projekt anzustoßen – gemeinsam mit dem ghanaischen Produzenten und Musiker C-Tea, den er während seiner Zeit in Ghana kennenlernte. Um das Projekt weiter voranzutreiben und langfristig zu gestalten, lud die Auslandskultur C-Tea für eine Dialog-Residenz nach Wien ein, sodass Andi Stecher und er intensiv an ihrem gemeinsamen Projekt arbeiten konnten. Im Interview mit Michael Ternai sprechen Andi Stecher und C-Tea über ihre erste Begegnung, ihre gemeinsamen musikalischen Visionen und darüber, was ihr Projekt so besonders macht. Beim Gespräch dabei war auch Katrin Pröll, die die organisatorische Abwicklung der Residenz übernommen hat und Einblicke in das Konzept und die Hintergründe der Dialog-Residenz gibt.
Can you tell us how your paths crossed?
Andi Stecher: The short answer is: online. I was selected for a residency program organized by the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ghana, which took place for the very first time. I was fortunate to be able to spend several weeks there. I also wanted to take the opportunity to actively connect with people on the ground and start building a network.
So before heading to Ghana, I did some research and looked for labels and places involved in the local music scene. That’s how I came across C-Tea’s work as a producer. I saw that he had already collaborated with many artists and was impressed by the high quality of his productions. I decided to send him an email and arranged to meet him in Ghana. The meeting actually took place toward the end of my residency — but we immediately clicked. We got along right away and were both really excited about working together.
And how was it for you, C-Tea, to suddenly receive an email from an Austrian artist?
C-Tea: I’ve always seen myself as an international producer — someone who takes the time to treat everyone with respect and without discrimination. I try to stay open to anyone who reaches out to me, regardless of who they are or where they come from. That’s why I make sure to respond to every email I receive. So, when I got an email from Andi, I did the same. I visited his page and saw plenty of content, but no music. In fact, I didn’t hear any of his work until we finally met in person.
So, it was quite fortunate for you, Andi, because it made it easier for you to connect.
Andi Stecher: Absolutely. Meeting someone in person is completely different from working together over a long distance. Of course, that’s possible too, but for me it’s about more than just exchanging files back and forth. I want to be creatively active — to create something together. That’s a much more intimate process. This kind of collaboration is essential to me. In that sense, the residency was a great opportunity to meet new people and expand my network.
You met, as you mentioned earlier Andi, toward the end of the residency and started working together. Was it part of the plan from the beginning that C-Tea would come to Austria for a return visit?
Andi Stecher: I’m actually not entirely sure. Since this residency took place for the first time, I think it was more of a spontaneous decision. I don’t believe it was planned from the start. What was planned, though, was that an artist from Ghana would come to Austria in return — but who that would be hadn’t been decided yet.
When the question came up about who might be suitable, I suggested C-Tea. Not just because we got along so well, but also because he had already worked with artists from Europe and is very professional. I’m really glad that Markus Wolfsteiner and the Ministry made this exchange visit possible, because the time C-Tea and I had together in Ghana was quite short. We met maybe twice. And it takes time to really get to know someone — two five-minute conversations just aren’t enough for a deeper collaboration. And as it turns out, the decision was absolutely right. The collaboration works incredibly well — and it’s a real joy.
Could you, Katrin, tell me a bit more about this residency project? Who is actually behind it? Who organizes it — the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?
Katrin Pröll: The Department for Cultural Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has only recently begun supporting musicians through residencies abroad. However, it’s quite rare for musicians from other countries to be offered a residency in Austria. That’s why this is such a special initiative.
The Department for Cultural Affairs plans to further expand this program. In any case, C-Tea’s residency is the first one of its kind in quite a long time. And initially, it wasn’t specifically intended for C-Tea — the idea was more generally to establish a dialogue format between artists from Austria and African or Caribbean countries.
Then all the people involved — Sabine Reiter from mica, of course Markus Wolfsteiner – Head of the music department at the Department for Cultural Affairs, and myself, who was in charge of the organizational details — thought it would make sense to ask Andi if he knew someone suitable for it. He was there, so he could assess who would make sense for a longer-term collaboration. And he suggested C-Tea. In addition, the Foreign Culture Conference (Auslandskulturtagung) was the perfect event for the newly founded duo’s first live performance.
As we can see now, it was the perfect decision to invite C-Tea to Austria. I don’t think you could get much more out of a residency than this.
Andi Stecher: The cultural forum that has now opened in Ghana is one of the few in Africa. I believe the Department of International Cultural Relations plans to further expand this program of visits and return visits in the future. What’s also great is that they are very open to suggestions and want to support projects in the long term, which I really respect.
Maybe going back to the music — was it immediately clear to both of you which direction you wanted to take musically, or did you first experiment to see what worked and where you could connect?
C-Tea: I think now we have a clear vision. I’m also very pragmatic when it comes to my work — to music. I have ideas, which is part of my job, and Andi has ideas too. When we first met, we immediately talked about what we could create together. And of course, the question arose of what’s possible within a producer duo.
We talked about our styles, about what interests us, and where we want to go. It quickly became clear that our individual visions were very, very similar — which was, of course, extremely helpful for the project. Even though we come from different backgrounds, we share the same vision. That’s the most beautiful thing that can happen.
So when I actually got the call from Andi asking if I wanted to come to Austria, I was shocked at first. But now that I’m here, I can feel that Andi and I can really be a powerhouse — because we’re both producers.
He has great talent in the areas of hip-hop, R&B, and electronic music. My focus is mainly on Afrobeat, and our goal is to combine these two cultures and create a new genre.
Was it easy or difficult to find a shared sound?
C-Tea: We’re still in the process of finding it, but we have plenty of ideas.
Andi, you’re someone who has worked across a wide range of genres and with people from many different cultures. What’s special about collaborating with C-Tea?
Andi Stecher: I think it’s the dedication. Working with C-Tea is different from a session with another artist or when you create something for someone else. I was in Ghana, C-Tea is now in Austria, and we share the same dedication to this project. We want to create something together.
This project has many layers — finding the sound, figuring out how it works live, and so on. It’s about trust, about moving in the same direction together. That requires openness to fully engage. And the great thing is that we learn a lot from each other.
When it comes to the music and the sound, I trust him completely. He’s a very talented producer. He trusts me as well. During our time here in Vienna, it’s all about organizing the whole project. We have big visions — and now we have time to focus on the sound.
C-Tea: I would say the vision is bigger than the passion. We are driven by passion — that’s what motivates us. Andi is very individualistic. He does what he wants and makes sure he gets what he wants. At the same time, I’m full of passion too. It’s like passion 2.0. It’s wonderful to grow together and to think only about the music.
Thank you very much for the interview.
Michael Ternai
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