Ghanaian gospel artiste, Andy Nii Aklashie, popularly known as OJ Blaq, has opened up on how he got into smoking at a tender age.

Speaking to Joy Entertainment’s Kwame Dadzie, the former Lynx Entertainment artiste said he started smoking cigarette when he was only eleven (11) years old.

“I was in the boarding house [at Achimota School] and sometimes you would see the security [what we used to call the watchmen] smoking around, sometimes seated in their jackets smoking, and I was talking to one of my friends and I was like ‘chale, see the way there people dey smoke,’ you know. He was like ‘you, you go fit smoke?’ And that is how it started,” OJ recounted.

They later befriended the security men, and started smoking together with them.

The ‘Chalewote’ hitmaker added that when he was thirteen years old, he upgraded to marijuana and at point in his life, even tried cocaine.

The ‘Biggie Boy Lover’, as he is affectionately called, has recounted how alcohol, marijuana and other vices may have contributed to the double kidney failure he suffered in 2016.

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OJ Blaq gained recognition in 2009 with ‘Chale Wote’, a song which features Captain Planet and former label mate, Asem.

He was signed onto Lynx Entertainment, and also got featured in popular TV series, Sun City. He switched from secular music to gospel after he ‘miraculously’ got healed of the ailment.

In August 2022, he released his maiden gospel album titled ‘Show Dem.’