…Femi and Seun Kuti to perform live at ceremony
Twenty years after his demise in August 1997, costumes of
the late Afrobeat maestro, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, are set to take a fitting place
among other world music greats on the renowned Hardrock Cafe Music Me
Memorabilia Collection.
On Thursday, May 25, the singer’s famous children, Yeni,
Femi and Seun Kuti, will hand over costumes worn by Fela, including pieces of
clothing and shoes to representatives of Hard Rock International in Lagos.
A two-part ceremony begins by 3pm at the Hardrock Café Lagos
with an induction ceremony to be witnessed by late Fela’s friends,
entertainment bigwigs and corporate Nigeria.
The ceremony will climax by 7pm when Femi Kuti with his Positive Force
band and Seun Kuti with his Egypt 80 band hit the stage for a pulsating
power-packed night of Afrobeat music.
One of the major highlights of the induction will be the
release of a new song dedicated to the late Afrobeat maestro by two-time Grammy
Award-winning artiste, Lekan Babalola. The song entitled ‘Mr. Lakaye’ (Tribute
to Ogun) is produced by Will Angelero (New York/UK based Producer) and
co-produced by Lekan Babalola. In addition, sensational artist, Fola David will
do a live speed-painting of Fela on stage.
Also to be donated are original evergreen album covers whose
designer, veteran artist, Lemi Gharioku will also be in attendance. Lemi is
known for listening to and digesting Fela’s music, then expressing his reaction
in Fela’s album cover design. Lemi
designed over 26 Fela album covers.
The Hard Rock Café induction is being put together by Temple
Management Company (TMC) after brokering a similar donation last year by juju
maestro King Sunny Ade (KSA) as well as staging the Sunny On Sunday concert.
“The Hard Rock Induction event again reinforces the
influence that the great Fela Anikulapo-Kuti still commands twenty years
later,” TMC’s Head of Entertainment, Mark Redguard said.
“We at TMC are delighted to be identified with another
historic occasion that further develops and memorializes the Nigerian Music
industry worldwide.”
Fela’s music journey began in 1958 when his parents sent him
to London to study Medicine but he opted for Trinity College School of Music.
Fela formed his first band, Koola Lobitos, in 1961 providing the fodder for a
movement that morphed into Afrobeat, a combination of elements of traditional
High Life, Rock, Funk and Jazz.
Fela’s music became the voice of the hopeless and a constant
thorn in the flesh of successive military governments. Some of his popular
albums include Open & Close (1971), Gentleman (1973), Confusion (1975),
Expensive Shit (1975),Zombie (1976) ending with Confusion Break Bones (1990).
Other legends whose souvenirs are on the Hard Rock
Memorabilia Collection include King Sunny Ade, Quincy Jones, James Brown, Jimi
Hendrix, Michael Jackson, Prince, and Bob Marley among others.
THE NATION
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