Charles Kwadwo Fosu (1964 to 2025), known professionally as Daddy Lumba, was a Ghanaian born German singer, songwriter, and producer who became a central figure in modern highlife music. He started out in Germany during the late 1980s as half of the Lumba Brothers alongside Nana Acheampong. Their 1989 album Yee Ye Aka Akwantuom became a major hit back home and helped popularize "Burger Highlife," a style defined by its blend of traditional rhythms and electronic synths. After the duo split, Fosu launched his own label, Lumba Productions, and released dozens of solo albums over the next few decades. His music, mostly sung in Twi, covered everything from love and family to poverty, politics, and faith, while his distinct style and charisma fundamentally shaped the direction of Ghanaian pop music.
His long career brought him seven Ghana Music Awards, an EMY Africa Legend award in 2018, and a National Honours Grand Medal in 2024. Beyond his own hits, he used his platform to launch the careers of younger artists like Ofori Amponsah and Borax, and his music later served as a major blueprint for stars like Sarkodie and King Promise. In early 2025, his song "Mpempem Do Me" even gained international attention when King Charles III added it to an exclusive Commonwealth Day playlist. Fosu passed away suddenly in Accra on July 26, 2025, cut short just as he was planning a North American tour and tracking a final collaborative album. Despite a brief, last minute legal dispute among his relatives over the arrangements, his final funeral rites took place that December in Kumasi.