He was born with the name Kwabena Boa-Amponsem, he was baptized Daniel Amponsah. On stage, he took the name “Koo Nimo”. Koo Nimo has undoubtedly established himself as Ghana’s foremost exponent of acoustic guitar highlife and folklore (palm wine music), with a gamut of more than 100 songs to his credit.
He is not only a musician but a teacher of the art, who strives to preserve Ghanaian culture through music and the telling of stories; no wonder he is one of the few African musicians whose works are studied in the West African Examinations Council syllabus for music.
By the age of 19, he was teaching brass band music, drumming and the guitar in his village, when he was not in school. It was at this time that he adopted the stage name of Koo Nimo. ‘Ko’ for Kofi and ‘Nimo’ meaning, one who takes the blame for what someone else has done. It was not until independence that he first received national acclaim through his performance of folk music at festivals and on Radio Ghana.
He organized and directed the Kumasi Adadam Agofomma Group which promoted traditional music through drumming and dancing.
The group received international recognition by performing at several international festivals like the Festival of Folk Music, the African Music Village etc. He has served as President of MUSIGA (Musicians’ Union of Ghana) and interim chairman of COSGA (Copyright Society of Ghana).
In 1990 his album Osabarima became the first work by a Ghanaian artist to be put on CD. He has won many awards including the Asanteman Award from the Asantehene; Konkoma Award; the Flag Star award from ECRAG (Entertainment Critics and Reviewers Association of Ghana); a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the Columbia University, USA; and a honorary degree of Doctor of Letters (Honoris Causa) from The University of Science and Technology, Kumasi. Among some his many songs are Yare Ye Ya’and Aburokye Abrabo.