By Anote Ajeluorou
For those who were
on the music scene in the 1990s, Lekki Sunsplash concerts might still ring a
faint bell. Held in the sprawling beach of Lekki with coconut trees waving
their plaited leaves overhead, the ocean waves rolling and crashing on the
beach land and rumbles of music issuing from loud speakers, it was a grand
Lagos musical narrative long lost. It also had a favourite beer as sponsor, and
music on the open air felt right, with reggae still the dominant music.
All the stars of the 1990s, mostly reggae artistes,
were at their best. Name them – Majeck Fashek, Ras Kimono, Orits Williki, Blackky,
the funky mallam with a flashlight,
Zak Azzay and the many new voices coming up - they peppered the music scene
with their various reggae styles, and the eager, restless Lagos crowd found it
a wholesome outlet to unwind. Lekki Sunplash was to make way for the entrance
of the revivalist Plantashun Boiz era (the trio of 2face Idibia, Blackface and Faz)
towards the late 1990s, when reggae seemed to have run its course and was
petering out. Private radio station Raypower
100.5 FM had just hit the scene and the duo of Kenny Ogungbe and Dayo
Adeneye were extending the frontier in promoting a new, sassy Afri-pop culture
that inevitably gave birth to the current somewhat ‘unmusical’ sound dominating
the airwaves.
But that was the time when an artiste’s stagecraft
or musicmanship was the hallmark of music performance; he didn’t have to mime
to his CD playing on the turntable. Rather, the musician had the full
complement of the band he commanded; it was how music was done, and still
continues to be done among real musicians. Not the current fad (invariably
started by the Plantashun Boiz; 2faces’ fame rests on such ‘unmusical’ style)
of miming to a CD and strutting the stage with a bevy of butt-wriggling girls!
The world’s acclaimed way of making music is
being able to play an instrument; that is what Ade Bantu has come to reaffirm,
with his monthly gigs at Freedom Park (FP), the old colonial prison turned into
a showpiece of cultural engagement. Third Friday of every month is it. Last
Friday was no exception, as the Nigerian-German-born pelted his huge audience
with his redefined Afri-pop culture alongside many like-minded artistes.
Drawing heavily on Fela as inspiration and often times playing the maestro’s
music, Ade Bantu has engrafted his brand of Afi-pop music called Afropolitan Vibes into the skin of his
followers, and they are hooked like flies to palm wine, a precious liqour actually
served at the show to anyone initiated on the famous brew.
It has been a slow start for the Afro-German
who performs a unique blend of Afro-funk, -pop, -hop and highlife, but it has since
caught on like wild fire. And so at the amphitheatre located on the east side
of FP Ade Bantu set up shop some eight months ago, and from there, he’s been
urging, ‘Lagos, jump!’, and the city denizens of the night time have been
happily jumping along to the rhythms of his Afropolitan Vibes with uncommon
zest. It started with a modest a crowd, as he admitted, but now there isn’t
room enough at the amphitheatre to accommodate the over 3,000 strong young and
sassily mixed audience of Nigerians, Asians, Americans and Europeans of all
ages that throng FP every third Friday to jump with Ade Bantu.
Many other artistes share the Afropolitan
Vibes’ stage with Ade Bantu, and he makes the most of it. From Adeniji the
Heavy Wind to rap maestro, Victor tha Viper, with his raunchy raps that send
the women into rapturous ecstasy (the writer, Lola Shoneyin, couldn’t stop herself
from being seduced on stage to dance) and Seyi Shay and her unabashed, almost
vulgar ‘unmusical’ lyrics were all there, not forgetting Daddy Showkey and many
others.
Next month Ade Bantu is shifting base to the
main stage located on the west end of the prime culture and tourism place, a
spot made infamous as the execution ground of condemned prisoners. Now, the
souls that perished on that spot will also jump alongside Ade Bantu, happy now
to be serenaded, as some sort of appeasement for their restless souls cut short
too soon by colonial justice.
Oddly, no fee is as yet charged from the
thousands that throng the show every month except the N200 entry gate-taking.
But this is not sustainable for a show that has shown so much promise from
start. It isn’t just Ade Bantu; it’s the band that he performs with, and the
numerous other artistes that he attracts to the stage. Surely, they can’t be
performing for free all year round! As he moves to the larger stage next month,
perhaps there’s need to rethink strategy. Even when Lekki Sunplash had popular
lager as sponsor, it still collected fees back in the days. Afropolitan Vibes,
in concert with FP, can start small with a token entry fee on the day of the
show while FP returns to its N200 gate fee the rest of the month for those
addicted to the many allures of the Food Court. Asking show attendees to
donate, as Ade Bantu currently appeals to fans with a begging calabashes would
certainly not do. It would amount to very little at the end of the day, and he
would continue to count losses. Except perhaps sponsors of Afropolitan Vibes are
doling out enough to keep the show going.
But even as Ade Bantu is set to move
Afropolitan Vibes to the main stage next month, there’s a sense it will also
overflow in no time. Then what, or where next? Afropolitan Vibes is the only
show that commands the open air space with a great ambience, and it appears
unstoppable in its march to making its indelible print in music performance
history. Will it move to the National Stadium or Teslim Balogun Stadium in
downtown Surulere? Lagos, like all Nigerian cities, is built to choking point
without an eye for the cultural or relaxation needs of the people. There are no
large spaces earmarked to accommodate a sizeable number of people. And so, Ade
Bantu might just jam FP to the brim with an eager Lagos crowd still hungry for
good music, and go home in ruing it if he continues to offer Afropolitan Vibes
for free.
For now (next show is October 17), Freedom Park
will continue to be home to Afropolitan Vibes and good music, and music lovers
of ‘Lagos’ will continue to ‘jump’ to the commands of Ade Bantu in the freedom
of open air performance FP offers!
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