Summer, summer, summertime! Indeed, summer has arrived. Yet, what is summer without cookouts, beach
hangouts, and of course, free summer concerts!
Well, one the most reputable summer concerts in New York is the Central
Park’s SummerStage. Founded in 1986, the
SummerStage music festival features international and local artists: dance,
spoken word, musicians, and more. This year’s lineup of musicians varies from
She&Him to Marley Marl.
On June 23rd AfroMuzik had the pleasure of watching musician Sinkane
as the opening act to the legendary Femi Kuti and his outstanding band The Positive Force. DJ King Britt introduced the show and
played in between the two performers. Regardless of the summer heat, DJ King
Britt had the crowd mingling and dancing to a mixture of funk and AfroBeat. Ahmed Gallab – a.k.a Sinkane – performed a
great mixture of global indie-rock-pop, with a blend of 70s funk and jazz.
Sinkane had the crowd electrified and tuned into the afro-futuristic
performance which mostly featured songs from his latest album Mars.
Don’t
call it a come back! Femi Kuti and the Positive Force are no strangers
to SummerStage, but this performance was a remarkable one. As soon as the
Afrobeat began to play, the band marked their entrance one by one as the crowd
also inched their way closer to the stage. Alongside the band were three dancers/back-up
singers dressed in traditional colorful outfits. The audience began clapping in one rhythm
waiting for Femi to start the show. As he walked on stage, waving to the crowd,
Femi faced the band directing them on what key to hit; they hit perfection.
Femi faced the crowd singing “Do something for Africa” from his iconic father Fela Kuti. He then progressed with a number of songs from his new album No place for my Dream. The energy he drew made the crowd sweat and dance away. Throughout his performance, Femi reminded us how multitalented he is by playing the trumpet, saxophone, and keyboard. At one point as he was playing the keyboard, Femi introduced the crowd to a young singer named Maimouna Youssef. She sung so beautifully, reminding us about the social issues we face and the change we must take. When she gracefully walked off the stage, Femi continued to energize the crowd with the song “ No Job No Work No Money” off his latest album, and the crowd chanted with him. Femi was very friendly with the audience and often reached out to fans, and that is when he greeted rapper/actor Common.
As Femi was getting ready to leave the stage, his band and dancers continued to entertain the audience. “Can I get an encore? Do you want more?" Ha!
Yes, Femi returned on stage this time doing a rendition of Fela
Kuti’s “Wata Get No Enemy”, where
rapper Common joined him on stage with a little freestyle.
At 50 years
old, Femi reminds us what the gift of music is all about. When you come from a
musical family, it is not easy making a name for yourself. There will always be
comparison, and when you are the son of legendary Fela Kuti, the expectations can be demanding. Yet, for almost
twenty years, Femi has managed to show the world that his music speaks for
itself. There is no denial that Femi
performs some of his father’s classics and the influence there is apparent, but
with hits like “Bang Bang Bang” and continuous sold out concerts; Femi Kuti simply
remains true to AfroBeat/Jazz. It was a great experience seeing three time
Grammy Award nominee Femi Kuti and The Positive Force who are currently touring
in the U.S and Canada, promoting the new album. A special thank you goes out to John Seroff at Greenhouse Publicity, Central Park’s Summerstage, and to the contributors at OkayAfrica.
