What is Afropolitan Vibes?
Afropolitan Vibes is a monthly live music concert which exists as a platform for alternative music: a place where music lovers congregate to watch contemporary singer-songwriters and musicians perform mostly original works that are firmly rooted in African musical origins of Afro-beat, Afro-funk, Afro-hip-hop, Afro-pop and Highlife music. A host of talented artists gather each month to rehearse and then perform with Bantucrew on stage at Freedom Park’s Main Stage. The show is held every third Friday of each month. Show starts promptly from 8.00pm-10.30/11.00pm. Afropolitan Vibes is co-produced by Ade Bantu and Abby Ogunsanya.
Bantu
Bantu aka Brotherhood Alliance Navigating Towards Unity is a 12-piece Afro-funk-Afro-hip-hop-Afro-beat musical collective founded by NigerianGerman brothers Adé Bantu and Abiodun. The band features multiinstrumentalists and singers who perform as a collective.
Palm Wine Tradition
Palm wine is now available at all our shows. As our palm wine is always freshly tapped in Badagry in the early hours of the morning of each show, this luscious white liquid is guaranteed to be sweet and only mildly intoxicating as it is yet unfermented. Our palm wine is served the traditional way: the wine is available to buy per gourd (to share with friends/family) or in individual calabashes. Alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks are also available for purchase at the Freedom Park bar area where we encourage you all to come join us after the show for a drink, chat and photographs.
Official After Party Spread the Word
After each show, we have an after party gig at the Freedom Park bar area. Your DJ for the night will be Raymond Bola Browne aka DJraybeeBrowne of Igroove Radio. Join us at the Freedom Park bar for past, present and future dance music all in the mix. If you love Afropolitan Vibes, spread the word – Tweet about or follow us: @afropolitanvibe Join our Facebook page: facebook.com/Afropolitanvibes, and invite your friends and family next time.
Next Afropolitan Vibes show will be on November 21st 2014. See you then! Afropolitan Vibes Magazine credits: Editor: Abby Ogunsanya
Graphic Design: Graeme Arendse
Contact and advertising enquiries:
Guest artists Interviews: Rayo Adebola
Cover art photograph: Adapted from photo by Tola Odukoya
afropolitanvibes@gmail.com
Guest artists’ pictures: Courtesy of subjects
Tel: + 234-816740-1016
Ed Keazor Printing: John Bola
Show pictures: Ayoola Gbenga Adebayo
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Issue 13 // October 2014
Editor’s Notes
October sees our move to the Main Stage at Freedom Park having now outgrown the Amphitheater space that has been our base since Afropolitan Vibes began in March 2013. It is a new challenge for us, but one that we are very excited to take on because it means that we now have plenty of space for even more people to come and enjoy the shows. To celebrate the move to our new ‘home’, we are staging a ‘supersized’ edition of Afropolitan Vibes with five guest artistes instead of our usual three. The supersized edition also coincides with Felabration and as a Felabration partner, we always try and do something special with the show because Fela is a major musical influence. We trust that you will have fun at the show and that you will continue to spread the word about Afropolitan Vibes to your friends and family. We especially want to attract worthy permanent sponsors so that we can continue to make more and more improvements to Afropolitan Vibes, as we grow ever bigger.
In this issue
Lawyer and historian Ed Keazor interviews highlife maestro Etubom Rex Williams about his life and music. Rayo Adebola interviews our other four guest artistes for this month: Praiz, Gaise, Simi and Lekan Babalola who heads the Eko Brass Band. We feature some of our favourite pictures from 17th edition of Afropolitan Vibes, which was held on August 19h, 2014.
Contact us
You can email us with your thoughts at afropolitanvibes@gmail.com. We also read all comments and respond to questions on Facebook and Twitter. We have a limited number of back issues of Afropolitan Vibes magazine. If you would like a copy, please contact us via email or on +234-816740-1016.
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Afropolitan Vibes
SIMI Stealing her way into our hearts Simi’s ‘Ara Ile’ was an absolute jam some years ago. The song, one of the tracks in her first album ‘Ogaju’, released in in 2008 was my first introduction to her. She started singing, dancing and rapping with a group in church, and early on decided that music was her path.
Twitter: @Symplysimi Facebook: www.facebook.com/symplysimi
The best part is knowing what you want and being able to go after it, regardless of how hard it seems,” Simi says. “When I was so sure of what I wanted to do with my life, most of my age-mates still had no idea what they were going to do.” Despite coming from a family where no one had ventured into music before, Simi was determined to make it. “I didn’t have many people around me to inspire me music-wise. It was mostly God and my passion.” She’s been around for years but it was only recently – after the release of ‘Tiff’ – that her name became a household name. “It was crazy. You have all this faith in yourself but not everyone does, so I had to constantly encourage myself. It was really hard for me to continue to inspire myself but I had great friends who also helped. Also, maybe because I’m stubborn, I never like to take ‘no’ for an answer. Simi’s Sound Simi’s sound is unique. It’s hard to say she sounds like one person or the other. 4
It took me a while to find my style. I dabbled in basically all the genres but I knew I had to find something people could identify only me with,” she says. “So I did a lot of work. A while ago I started to mess around with production and engineering so I’d record myself, I’d write songs, so it kind of came together. My producer, Oscar, helped me to direct my sound too. It took years, but I’m glad.” “Before I used to write without music but now I usually have a beat sent to me or I make a progression then I write. My lyrics are usually inspired by what’s happening around me. Often it’s someone else’s experience. I like to pick from everything and include my perspective of the story.” Not a lot of alternative artists find record labels that push their work the way Simi’s is doing. “I signed to a label before so I know how it goes in a lot of places. My current label, X3m music, has been really amazing though. It’s good to know that there’s someone who has my back, who is working the strings behind me. I had met Steve Babaeko before but it came together after I started working with my producer. Everybody just clicked. She admits that she is not a quarterway near where she wants to be but everything she has been through is worth where she is now and where she is going.
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PRAIZ
brings the total package to music
Years ago in Kaduna, Northern Nigeria, Praiz worked as a music producer and sound engineer. At the time, he had neither explored his talent as a singer/songwriter, nor had he any idea he would one day be a finalist in the most prestigious music reality TV show in Nigeria.
Twitter: @praiz8 Facebook: www.facebook.com/praiz8
Fast forward a few years and Praiz is not just a star musician, he is one of the kings of R&B in Nigeria. “It was a gradual process for me,” he says about becoming a musician. “I was producing songs for people and one of those days I produced a song and said ‘let me see what it sounds like’. That was the foundation.” He was one of the artistes who made it to the finals of the 2008 MTN Project Fame West Africa, but it took some convincing for him to audition. “Before then I had gone for a few music show auditions and never made it through. So, this day, a friend of mine told me about Project Fame and because of my past experience, I was quite reluctant but my friend convinced me,” he says. “I travelled down for the auditions, from there I made it to the regionals, from there to Lagos, made it into the house and then to the finals.” He came third in that competition and, he says, it was a great platform for him. He describes his best moment in music so far, as the day he brought his mom on stage and they sang together. If that’s not the cutest thing, I don’t know what is. “Other great moments have been headlining concerts with great international artistes like Brandy.”
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Praiz is RnB There’s something very soulful about Praiz’s voice. I hear it and I just want to sink into it. But that’s not all there is to him. His talent is somewhat intimidating, as besides producing and having a great singing voice, he also writes his own songs, plays the piano and the drums. “Most times, the melody comes first, before I start writing to it,” he says of his process. “Usually, I get inspired by experiences to create music that a lot of people can relate with.” Although he is a multitalented artiste, Praiz says his definitive genre is RnB. In Nigeria, there’s a lot of pop sound “Yeah, but we still have a lot of RnB artists. Banky W, Capital Femi, Darey, they all do RnB.” Praiz doesn’t see the genre as a limitation to gaining acceptance in Nigeria. “I refuse to believe it’s hard to sell music coz it’s RnB. I believe it’s how you sell it that matters. I won’t deny that it used to be hard for people to accept the RnB genre but nowadays Nigerians are listening to and appreciating good music.” Despite that, Praiz accepts that he has faced some challenges in the Nigerian entertainment industry. “When I came into the industry, especially before I got signed, it was challenging in terms of resources to push my music and platforms on which to push it. As an upcoming artist, those were some of the challenges coz it’s one thing to have the talent and another to have the resources.”
Afropolitan Vibes
ETUBOM REX WILLIAMS THE FANTABULOUS MAN
Lagos, 1976: I am not quite sure which variety programme it was on the old NTA Lagos (there was just one Lagos Channel then), but then the band playing was special. A fairly large Highlife ensemble, led by a stocky, dark-complexioned Trumpeter, at least I assume he was dark complexioned anyway –we only had a black and white TV then. The Trumpeter was special though, near tonal perfection, a strong gravelly, masculine voice and some truly sweet tunes, straddling what clearly was a Highlife base, with unapologetic flirtation with Funk, Afrobeat and even Reggae. What signed me up to the man, was his infectious, joyous charm. He genuinely seemed like a man living his dream as a performer, and clearly on top of his game professionally. The clincher for me was when he recounted -to the interviewer- his interaction with the legendary Louis Armstrong
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(Satchmo), during his tour of Nigeria in 1961. In response to the not unexpected next question “What did you think of Satchmo?” his answer was simply the stuff of legend, “Ooh It was fantabulous!!” That was it for me, if this man was going to contest in any election, I was going to vote for him. That in a nutshell, was my introduction to the greatness of Etubom Rex Williams. I “stalked” him for over 30 years, consisting by the way, only of snapping up compilations in Europe that only needed to have artistes, with even a passing similarity to his name (and deeply regretting some bad misses). Proof that there is a supreme deity in the universe emerged when I received an email from the uber-cool Ade Bantu, inviting me to Interview Afropolitan’s next guest artiste. When I was told the name of the said artiste, my first reaction was sheer disbelief. I briefly recovered
my composure though and coolly responded that I would be glad to do it -whilst simultaneously dancing around my living room. Finally my search for the “Fantabulous man” was over. Etubom Rex Williams occupies the genuine space of legend of Nigerian Highlife. His incredible professionalism, vast body of work and huge personality established him as a veritable force of the genre quite early in his career. A case quite similar to another teenage prodigy of Highlife Music, Sir Victor Uwaifo. Any accolades he earned were well deserved and based on a platform of hard graft and genuine love for his art. He, like Uwaifo, straddles the Inter-generational gap between the old Masters of Highlife such as Bobby Benson, E.C.Arinze, Inyang Henshaw, Dr Victor Olaiya and the latter generation of Eddy
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Okweddy, Orlando Owoh, Tunji Oyelana, Eric Akaeze, Osayomore Joseph et al. Whilst his fortunes sadly waned in the course of decline of the genre in the post Oil boom 1980’s, today’s generation was left with an aide memoire of the invaluable bequeath of him and his generation in the form of compilation albums, released in the course of the decade long “World Music” revolution of the late 90’s on to the late noughties. Embarrassingly Nigerians were reminded of what we had and nearly lost in these musical treasures. However we are fortunate that some of these great creators are still with us and in some cases, barely so. Etubom Rex Williams is one of such. The present generation still has the facility of a part of our incredible Musical heritage in him, still vibrant and strong, in spite of the passing years. continued on pg 11
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continued from pg 10
The story of Etubom Rex Williams, is however best expressed in his own words and the text of his interview is published below. Early life I was born in Etinan, in Akwa Ibom State in the early 1940’s. My father was a teacher and the founder of the Salvation Army in our town. I started out in Music in the 1950’s, playing in the Salvation Army Band, on the encouragement of my elder brother Nsifon William Nsemin. It was through the Salvation Army Band that I learnt the Trumpet and the proper structure of music. After primary up to Standard Six then, I went on to Teacher Training College for one year. I was afterwards employed at the Radio Station at Enugu and I was at Enugu when E.T Mensah came to perform. I was so excited, because he was playing my favourite instrument- the trumpet. Early musical career After seeing E.T.Mensah, I decided to become a professional Musician. So I resigned my job and went to Lagos. I was staying at Empire Hotel, where there was a Highlife Band playing, when I was approached to perform at a Hotel called Welfarers (Wayfarers) Hotel owned by a lady and I began to perform there
leading the Highlife Band. I soon became very popular, everyone was talking about this Rex Williams. One day Sir Victor Olaiya, came to the Hotel and asked me to join his band as the leader, this was in 1960. Victor Uwaifo was one of the musicians in the band then, while he was at St Gregory’s College. I was playing with Victor Olaiya’s band when Louis Armstrong visited Nigeria in 1961. I performed and represented Nigeria very well. In fact Satchmo congratulated me after I finished playing and told me I was going to be great. I was so happy, he was a great man. I also played with other great musicians like Eddy Okonta and E.C.Arinze. In 1966, I got a contract to play at the Kainji Dam, which was being built then. We were entertaining the staff. When the problems started, I had to flee to the East. I then started playing at Onitsha in 1967 with the Army Band. When the war got to Onitsha, I eventually moved back to Etinan my home-town. From there I moved to Calabar where I started performing with my brother Nsifon William Nsemin. After the war ended, we played at venues in Calabar like Cool Cats Inn, Dayspring Hotel and many others. We really entertained people then. We toured all over the country,
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Ibadan, Lagos, Enugu, we even toured Cameroun. We were invited by the East Central Government to play when General Gowon came to Enugu (in 1971). I settled in Calabar and have been playing since then, at concerts and other engagements. I enjoy my music and still perform at engagements. His legacy I have released many albums, like Juliana, Kudara Ererimbot and many others. My music has a message for people to try and do good and avoid evil. My music is about love, peace and happiness. My personal favourite out of my songs include “Satan ke mbiet owo”and “ Let us be happy2. I thank God my music is popular abroad and has been released again in albums. I am grateful to God for that. My message to our people is to be happy. I am a happy man and that is what I play in my music. I look forward to watching Etubom Rex Williams perform in Lagos on the Afropolitan Vibes stage, where I have no doubt he will have the same impact on others as he did on me that first time I saw him on TV.
Afropolitan Vibes
GAISE Gospel music with a twist Twitter: @Gaisebaba Facebook: www.facebook.com/gaisebaba
I first met the man Gaise years ago in my undergraduate days in UNILAG. I would meet his music some years later. Gaise’s music is Afro-Fusion, a fusion of the African sound with other sounds. I believe music is what I’m meant to be doing, so I started to do music professionally in 2010 even though I’d been writing songs years before then. When I finished studying Economics in OAU and finished my Youth Service, I got signed to a record label. I use Yoruba, my mother tongue, a lot – I’m most comfortable singing in my mother tongue, it’s ingrained in my system. When I was in school, I was just playing small gigs. Then when I was serving, I decided to do something professional and put it out there. I took a loan of about 50 grand from my sister and I recorded a song, then I took it to the radio stations and that was when I realised I’d only done a 3rd of the work as promotion was more capital intensive. I was contemplating getting a job when I got signed to a label. I think that made it easier.
I started out rapping in English but when I was trying to work with Knighthouse Record Label years ago I’d had a couple of meetings with Rogba and so I played a couple of songs for him but he said he didn’t like them. Then I played a song where I used Yoruba and English and he said, ‘I think this is your style. I think you should focus on this’. That was the first time I’d heard an industry head tell me that. He said I should go write two songs in that style so I wrote the songs and he liked it. Around that time, I got a call from my record label and they wanted to hear my songs so I did the English thing again and the guy was just nodding. Then I did the song Rogba asked me to write. I sang like 4 bars Yoruba, 4 bars English. Every time I switched to Yoruba his mouth was open. It was at that point I thought, maybe really I should focus on this style. It often seems like it’s easier for those with solid beats but not a lot of content to make it in the Nigerian music industry, compared to people who make
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art that has heart. Gaise, who falls in the latter category, admits that it can be frustrating. I determined not to give up. I choose instead to be encouraged by the breakout acts that have solid content in their music. The obvious example would be Asa. Nosa is also a good example for what some of us are trying to do. Sometimes as well, I encourage myself in the Lord. I’m a Christian and that is the genesis of what I’m doing. I want to make an impact with my music. I want there to be positive change. I want to sing and people will have fun. I’m not one of the Christian musicians who say they only minister they don’t entertain. I so entertain. I can’t sing and you won’t be entertained. You must be entertained. The difference is that there will be positive content in the entertainment. Gaise is currently working on his sophomore album, and is compiling video clips of the making of the new album.
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Five years ago, Lekan Babalola formed the Eko Brass Band to revive an element of the musical heritage of the people of Lagos Island. Chatting with him is interesting. He describes a Lagos I’ve only read in books.
agidigbo, there’s hip-hop, blues, gospel... it is a concoction of the multi-ethnicity of Nigeria because everybody is in Lagos. It’s not just music; it’s like a cultural informative academy whereby renaissance is being taught through the arts.
consortium of Nigerian musicians who are ready to develop themselves as artists through the use of our cultural languages. Even when I’m not there, they are musicians and the instruments they play are their weapons.
I was born in Island Maternity Hospital in Lagos. Growing up, the culture in Lagos Island included the Salvation Army, and the musical influence came with the people from Cross River State. You know, Lagos is not a Yoruba land completely. ‘Eko’ means ‘a farm’ in Benin. And the Awori people who settled in Lagos, where Idumota is, Ifa told them that when they get to the river bank they should put down a plate they were carrying with them. He told them that wherever that plate sank is where they should settle.
Lekan Babalola is a filmmaker who studied at Central Saint Martin’s School of Art in England. He, however, did his music apprenticeship under his father at the latter’s Aladura church. He’s been performing since the 80’s and has worked on 2 Grammy winning albums and played around the world. Life, family and work have Lekan out of Nigeria for the most part but that does not affect his work with the Eko Brass Band.
Electronic media helps us to share our ideas. It’s been beautiful, and even Professor Wole Soyinka has endorsed the Eko Brass Band. We’ve performed twice at the Black Heritage Festival, Felabration, Bayelsa International jazz Festival, Lagos International Jazz Festival, and we keep growing.
So when I was growing up, Lagos music was rich. Don’t forget that part of these Africans were people who had been in captivity. The Yoruba culture survived in the new world because of Ifa. The reason I formed the Eko Brass Band is to bring a renaissance of the Lagos Island cultural sensibility – I’m talking about the lifestyle of Lagos, the music, the language. The lifestyle of Lagos is encoded and embedded in the Lagos sound, which is called ‘Faaji’. Faaji is a mixture of everything; there’s jazz in it, there’s highlife, there’s
One of the reasons I set up Eko Brass Band is to develop my artistic relationship with the land where I was born. I’m a producer and I’m currently working on our EP. I want to bring everything I’ve experienced over the world here while learning from young musicians here. There are great young musicians coming out of Nigeria; they have a lot of talent.
We’re currently recording our debut EP which will be our calling card. So, even if I’m not with the band members, I’m promoting the band because I’m promoting the renaissance of my culture. Eko Brass Band is the gateway into Lagos culture. If you want to know about Lagos Island – I’m not talking about Yaba or Ikoyi, I’m talking about Lagos Island – we are the gateway. We are the sound tapestry that forms the ambience of Lagos.
Eko Brass Band is a consortium of likeminded people who are ready to elevate Nigeria’s name in good light. It starts with an individual, and then you take it to the community and then to a big forum. So, Eko Brass Band is a
Lekan
Twitter: @ekobrass Facebook: www.facebook.com/lekan.babalola
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We are a template of what a panAfrican ensemble can be. What we use is drums, pots and brass, and those are the first instruments. When Africans kill their cows, they use the horns as a communication tool. The drums and horns too were communication tools. We’re using what’s basic, really, and at the same time we don’t want to bother ourselves with electricity. We want to give the audience a good time when they come to listen to us, and NEPA is not an issue. It’s been great. Everywhere we perform, it’s been wonderful. We’ve shared the stage with Femi Kuti before. Audience loved us at Felabration. We have maybe 30 or 40 thousand fans in Lagos
Island. Everywhere we play there it’s always rad. We’re from Campos, which is our base there. The nickname of the band is ‘The Royal Sound of Lagos’, which means awa ni Asoju oba – we want to be the spokesperson of the royalty of Lagos. Scrolling through the videos on Lekan Babalola’s YouTube page, there is a lot of content about Fela. His admiration for the man and his music is evident. Oh man! He was one of the greatest composers that I have ever seen at work. I played jazz with him. I didn’t play in his band but I played jazz with him with Tunde Kuboye and Frances Kuboye. He liked blues a lot. I would come
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into Nigeria and play jazz with him, and in England we’d go to jazz clubs. He was one hell of an arranger and composer. He and Tony Allen did a fantastic collaboration but I went to hang out with him for politics because I was a member of the Young African Pioneers. I was part of his politics students. He was an instrument of introducing the Afro-transatlantic sensibilities. He introduced that political analysis to me, which I’m very grateful for. Today, what we’re doing with Eko brass Band is our contribution in our own little way. My dream is that when I’m gone, Eko Brass Band will continue.
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SEPTEMBER 2014 Edition
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