Veteran broadcaster Tommy Annan Forson has opened up about his unconventional journey to success, revealing that he never attended sixth form or university.

His journey started in Adabraka, where he was raised in a household shaped by two very different worlds.

“I grew up in Adabraka to a white lady, that’s my mom. And my father, being a Fanti, was very, very strict. He was in the British Army and later retired to set up his own business.

"Our upbringing was quite strict. I wouldn’t say tough, but it was about shaping the children he brought into this world,” he narrated.

Recalling his school days on The Career Trail show, on Joy Learning TV and JoyNews, Mr Forson said his father ensured he attended quality schools. However, that journey was cut short after his father passed away.

“My father invested in my education. When I got to secondary school, I did Form 1 to Form 5. Unfortunately, within that time, my father passed on,” he sadly recalled.  

“As expected in most families, you think you won’t have to worry about money, your home, or basic needs. But unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. Everything sort of crumbled because he didn’t leave us money,” he continued.

Without financial support, Mr Forson could not continue in the sixth form or university.

“So I haven’t been to sixth form. I haven’t been to university because there was no money. Everything you hear me do today, I learned on the job. It’s all self-learning,” he shared.

That decision changed more than just his academic path. With school no longer an option, his life began to drift away from that of his friends.

“I kind of lost all my friends because they had different paths and different places to go to,” he revealed.

Determined to complete secondary school, Mr Forson said he began working early, juggling school with work until he finally completed Form 5.

“It was tough. There were times when I would walk from Odorkor all the way to Labone because there was no money for transport. But I was determined to make sure I finished Form 5,” he recounted.

“Working became my focus. I had to make money and help put food on the table. Before I finished Form 5, I worked in a coffee factory to get some money to help the house.

"That was how I paid my fees from Form 3 to Form 5 to make sure I wouldn’t be a school dropper,” he added.

After school, Mr Forson said he continued working to survive, noting that he joined City Paint Supply as a messenger and dispatch rider.

“I used to pick letters from the post office in the mornings and distribute them to different companies. It wasn’t anything big or extraordinary, but at least it gave me some money in my pocket and helped put food on the table,” he said.

He later moved on to work with an electrical company, where he became part of a streetlight installation project in Accra.

“The pilot project was between 37 and the Trade Fair, along the Burma Camp Road. That was when the streetlights in Accra were starting. We installed all the lights along that stretch. We installed all the streetlights there. I wasn’t an electrical engineer, but I handled the vehicle that lifted people to install the lights,” he disclosed.

Despite the early struggles, Mr Forson’s persistence paid off. From factory floors, dispatch runs and streetlight installations, he went on to build a respected career in broadcasting, rising to become one of Ghana’s most recognizable radio voices.

Through years of self-learning and hands-on experience, he carved a path for himself in the media industry, proving that while he never went to university, determination and discipline helped him rise to the top of his field.