Femi Kuti Live at Prospect Park

Photos by William Farrington

Text by Hortense Fuller

  
   

 
   
Femi Kuti is certainly no newcomer to the New York music scene, yet with each subsequent concert, his performances pack more energy and the New York crowd appears visually more excited.  Kuti's recent stop over at Brooklyn's Prospect Park, part of the annual African music celebrations of the Park's summer concert series, was a highlight of the outdoor African music performances that we had witnessed this past year.  We had picked an opportune part of the park to view the show by... to the front and right of the stage we were surrounded by a crowd of what must have been some of Femi's most ardent fans, men and women who not only knew every verse but seemed more intent on singing them than even the highly energetic Femi himself!  The crowd became one singing mass that danced increasingly throughout the night.   
   

 
   
Femi Kuti showcased many of the hits from his most recent release, "Fight to Win," which addresses such important issues as AIDS, the existence of Africa's dictators and the importance of being your true self.  The sound is slightly more drum and bass focused than in the past, and the songs jump from the disc and clearly speak the voice of Femi Kuti.  Similar to the issues that Ziggy Marley has dealt with in the shadow of his legendary father Bob Marley, Femi Kuti has had to work doubly hard to prove that this music is his voice, not his fathers and that his music is equally worth listening to.  On this release more than ever, we sense that Femi Kuti has found his voice, and his sound, and this is altogether satisfying for fans such as us. 

   

 
   
Sure, elements of Fela's trademark Afrobeat are there, and during the obligatory Fela medley of each show, it almost sounds... if you close your eyes... like Fela, but during the rest of the set, you find yourself with your eyes open, not needing to wish for Fela, but rather spellbound by the remarkable musician in front of you and his tight Afrobeat band.  
   

 
   
At AfricaSounds.com, we have been following Femi since his first solo outing released internationally on Flame Tree records out of the UK, and later on his early stateside release.  It is our opinion that every album he has created has been an important release.  It's also nice that Femi will still play some of those early numbers during his live performances even though those early albums were met with less acclaim.  The lack of press was not due to quality, but rather because journalists negatively placed Femi in Fela's massive shadow and in part because Afrobeat just was not as popular a decade back as it is now.  
   

 
   
Today, with Afrobeat in the relative limelight and with a Red Hot and Fela major label tribute release, local homegrown groups such as Antibalas can kick the music into high gear locally and find a crowd.  It is time finally for the masses in the U.S. to embrace the Prince of Afrobeat, Femi Kuti.  
   

 
   
Femi appears here to stay, here to educate and most importantly here to entertain while challenging our minds.   
   

 
   
To Femi, the music is a vehicle to stretch us, to motivate us, to push us to change this world in which we live.  This world can be a better place according to Femi Kuti.