Joe Jacquest Reconnects with His Ghanaian Roots After Discovering His Father’s Hidden Past

Music artist Joe Jacquest Oteng never imagined that digging into his dad’s life would lead him straight to Ghana. What began as curiosity turned into a profound journey of identity, heritage, and reconciliation — one that reshapes his story and invites all of us to reflect on the ties that bind us to the place we come from.

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The Hidden Life of His Father

For years, Joe believed he knew his father, Peter Oteng: a proud Ghanaian-British man who left Ghana, built a life in the UK, and raised Joe with traditional values and an unspoken expectation of success. But after his father passed away, Joe stumbled upon unexpected documents — an old Ghanaian passport and clues of another family he never knew about. 

He discovered the existence of a hidden wife, a second family back in Ghana, and a trail of secrets his father carried. “He dreamt for me what he dreamt for himself,” Joe says. “And though I loved him, I felt anger when I realised how much was kept from me.” 

The Trip Back Home

Joe’s search took him to Ghana in 2023, where he visited his father’s hometown of Nsuta Kyebi near Kumasi. What awaited him wasn’t just relatives — it was hundreds of extended family members, a traditional welcome ceremony, and the realization that he was walking into a story written before he was born. 

At the ceremony, under Ghanaian flags and amidst dancing drummers, Joe says he felt both deeply honoured and heavy with purpose. “I was kind of representing my father. He left and I was going back for him,” he reflected.

Healing Through Discovery

Through his YouTube series Hidden Roots (Season 2), Joe opens his journey for the world to see — the pain, the awkwardness, the hope, and ultimately the reconciliation. He explains that African-heritage communities often respond differently: where UK friends called it “betrayal,” many Ghanaians said, “It’s common. We’ve heard this story.” 

In Ghana, Joe immersed himself in culture, met cousins he never knew, and acknowledged the father he had thought he knew. He admits: “I felt angry… but now I feel understanding.” 

Why This Matters for Africa

For I Love Africa readers, Joe’s story is more than a personal odyssey—it taps into a larger theme of diaspora, return, and heritage. Many African families experience hidden migrations, untold lives, and fractured identity. Joe’s openness models what it looks like to face those fractures, not hide from them.

His journey underscores the importance of identity beyond borders and the power of reconnection. In a continent where migration, legacy, and return intersect daily, his story resonates: the home you were born into, the home you discover later, and the home you choose.