Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond on the Power of Authenticity in Shaping Identity

Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond is a commanding, yet fresh presence that mirrors the exuberant charm and depth of her highly acclaimed books.

Even over the phone, the soft-spoken tone of the bestselling Ghanaian-American author belies a deep-seated confidence, reminiscent of our first meeting at the studios of Citi FM at a reading event in July 2022.

Yet, she reveals a humbling vulnerability about her own journey of self-discovery, when, with a quiet reverence for the life-altering path she’s travelled, Nana admits to not having “always been this confident.”

It’s quite uncommon to find high-flying women who expose their imperfections. Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond joins a rare breed of accomplished women who embrace their vulnerabilities with unflinching honesty and even dare to celebrate them.

The air of self-love and radical acceptance Nana Ekua embodies makes it hard to fathom that her younger self was a chronic people pleaser as she recalls, “driven by a quest for external validation, often at the expense of my own needs.”

Nana Ekua’s upbringing between Ghana and the United States was marked by a constant sense of unbelonging, as if she was forever caught between two worlds that deemed her “too much” of one thing and “not enough” of the other.

This feeling of in-betweenness, she admits, spawned an identity crisis that lingered even as she built a thriving career as a successful copywriter and public relations strategist. However, she came to realise, in retrospect, that the disconnect between her true self and her values was, in fact, a product of the lack of clarity and authenticity in her self-presentation.

Nana Ekua recalls the bullying and mockery she suffered at Mfantsiman, and the misunderstandings and misjudgments she experienced at the Vassar College, were not a result of her failing to meet societal expectations of her Ghanaian or American identity, but rather a consequence of her failure to embody her genuine self.

Thus, instead of internalising a shame that wasn’t hers to bear, Nana Ekua chose to transform this sense of disconnection into a catalyst for self-discovery, embarking on a journey of growth, authenticity, and self-acceptance.

Breaking free from societal pressures and expectations yielded Nana Ekua a creative odyssey, pushing her towards a successful literary journey.

Earlier in her life, she had aspired to become a doctor, pouring her heart into the sciences from Mfantsiman to Vassar, where she graduated Cum Laude. But as she delved deeper into studies in biology and psychology, she realised her passions no longer aligned with her pursuits. “When I first entered college,” Nana Ekua shares, “I thought I was destined to be a doctor.”

But as she navigated her journey, she came to the realisation that she didn’t want to be a doctor at all. With candour, she acknowledged the disconnect and dared to redefine her path with studies in the liberal arts to study African-American history and politics.

By this decision, Nana Ekua understood the impact of authenticity and brutal honesty in unlocking one’s sense of self. But she would also learn a hard lesson: choosing honesty is liberating but also challenging. She had to confront the dissonance between her dreams and her family’s expectations of her as a doctor.

With the weight of her family’s sacrifices and expectations upon her, how could she, an African-American child born to first-generation Ghanaian immigrant parents, muster the courage to shatter the mould of their dreams?

How could she tell them that the prestigious path of medicine, once thought to be her destiny, now felt like a suffocating constraint? Yet, as she embarked on this journey of self-discovery, Nana Ekua unearthed a truth that would set her free: the dream of becoming a doctor was never truly hers, but rather a silent expectation from her family, who had invested their hopes and sacrifices in her success as a bright child.

“The older I get, the freer I find it to express my most authentic self.”

Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond

Today, Nana Ekua, 46, stands as a celebrated author of three internationally acclaimed books – ‘Powder Necklace‘, ‘Blue‘, and ‘My Parents’ Marriage‘ – a contributor to Margaret Busby’s anthology ‘New Daughters of Africa‘, and the editor behind ‘Relations‘, a collection of short stories.

With nearly two decades of experience in brand strategy as a writer, editor, speaker, and copywriter, Nana Ekua has developed a profound understanding of media’s transformative power.

Driven by a passion to explore often-overlooked cultural issues, she has captivated audiences and touched many hearts and minds through her work. Nana believes in the power of media to transport consumers into unfamiliar cultures, fostering empathy and insight into diverse traditions, beliefs, and values.

She cites her own childhood experience of having immersed herself in the “fast-paced novels I read” to spark this realisation. As she emphasises, “Culture plays a vital role in shaping identity, and a person with a strong sense of self will always thrive.”

This hard-won wisdom has emerged from her journey of self-discovery, having shed the external cultural influences of her past to now embody the freedom that comes with embracing one’s true identity.

With age, she finds herself increasingly unencumbered, able to express her authentic self with unbridled joy. As she admits, “The older I get, the freer I find it to express my most authentic self.”