Veteran afrobeat musician Femi Kuti and his band marched into the El Rey Theater last Friday and performed an inspiring set of African grooves. Femi, the son of the late legendary musician and activist Fela Anikulapo-Kuti carries on his fathers mission of performing politically-charged dance anthems to the masses.
Femi Kuti and his band, The Positive Force, started the night off with their classic opener “Truth Don Die.” The song proved to be a perfect way to begin a show, as it starts with an instrumental jam and makes way to Femi singing and playing keys. As always, Femi has a couple dancers hypnotizing the crowd with their non-stop booty shaking, and I must say, the dancers are quite impressive.
Femi Kuti knows how to keep the audience engaged at all times, whether it be from his amazing leads on saxophone, trumpet, keyboards, or with his powerful lyrics. In between a couple songs, Femi took the time to give short speeches about violence and awareness of many different topics around the world. But he kept the talking short overall and got right back to the show, so it never seemed too preachy.
The band went thru many staples like “Beng Beng Beng” and “Dem Bobo.” They also played a lot of newer tracks, which I’m sure will be on his upcoming album No Place For My Dream which is due out later this year.
Femi Kuti and The Positive Force are truly a fun and inspiring show to see live and I can’t wait to hear his new album. BAM!
The Positive Force dancers look cool – great snaps