Son of the legendary Nigerian musician
Fela Kuti, Femi is also a master of the energetic Afrobeat genre that made his father a superstar. The irresistable grooves of Femi, his backup dancers/singers and his 13 piece orchestra has found a diverse audience outside of his native Nigeria. Club DJs can't seem to sample enough of Femi's quasi funkyjazzdrumpop and with the average live show running over two hours--neither can the audience.
Fans of Fela will surely enjoy the music of his handsome son but Femi is no carbon copy. His voice has a
lilt quality that his father's deep sometimes sorrowful cords could never rise to. There is in Femi's voice the promise of a better day without the bitterness that invaded his father's lyrics.
Femi's first eponymous album was released in 1995 to a few rave reviews and not much attention. His current album
Shoki Shoki had garned him more attention and sold out concerts all over the US and Canada--thanks in large part to clubland DJs and urban radio. Popular
underground hip-hop group
The Roots remixed Femi's "Blackman Know Yourself." Future collaborations may include work with
Lauryn Hill and sexy neo-soul crooner, D'Angelo.
As one writer put it, "Femi and those lucky enough to work with him could give birth to the next phase of international soul music."
--quote taken from
Ink Blot magazine