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Azonto's origins are uncertain, claims are the dance was birthed in Accra's Bukom under the name "Apaa" (which means work) — hence its movements would mimic everyday tasks like driving, washing, ironing, etc.
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The dance rose to global consciousness when Ghanaian footballer Asamoah Gyan used it as a celebration after his 2010 Africa Cup of Nations final-qualifying goal against Nigeria (above), as well as in a number of English Premiere League matches with Sunderland. Gyan doubles as a rapper in a couple of hiplife artist Castro's music videos.
Azonto has since morphed into a cultural phenomenon. An article in This Is Africa traced the etymology of the word, delivering a succinct re-cap of the dance music's rise:
Starting off as a slang to describe a "loose", cheap or ghetto person, Azonto soon became a popular word when rappers like Sarkodie started using it in their songs. Azonto then became a genre of music based on the rhythm that was used by these popular musicians. People needed a way to dance to dance to the "new" rhythm, so they started to borrow from Asamoah Gyan’s hugely popular moves, and from there the Azonto dance was birthed. (TIA)
-killakam
