Everything You Need To Know About This Year's Lagos Jazz Series
The Lagos Jazz Series (LJS) has branded itself as a unique music festival to look forward to and the organizers are not relenting.
The Jazz Series has provided a platform for teeming aficionados of the genre from Nigeria and other parts of the world to gather as well as enjoy unique live music covering a wide genre. This has been the case for five consecutive years and the 2015 edition looks set to raise the bar even higher starting from November 26.
Legit.ng met with Oti Bazunu, founder Lagos Jazz Series, for an exclusive chat in the wake of this year’s event and he talked about the passion that drives him as well as the various plans that make this edition a standout.
For an event that has featured international stars such as Bob James & FourPlay, Hugh Masakela and Marcus Miller among others, there are plans to continue in this light and create even more positive recognition for Nigeria and the continent in the international scene.
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Mr. Bazunu said: “The theme of this year’s jazz series is We Dare To Think Different and we aren’t relenting. Interestingly, this year features world music meeting African music.”
According to him, this fusion of music from various divides serves as the sub theme for the event. Seun Kuti & The Egypt ‘80 Band, Yasiin Bey (Mos Def), Christian Scott and Pablo Escudero Flamenco Troupe among others will be performing live music and entertaining the audience.
He continued: “The music will remain traditional jazz. And then move to other genres including hip hop and more. The event intends to cover all spheres of music."
When asked why Seun Kuti has been a prominent figure in LJS series over the years, Mr. Bazunu explained that it was only logical to recognize an artiste who symbolizes the core of the Nigerian and African music.
“Seun Kuti’s band has been used often for the LJS because he does pure Afro beats which is a strong representation of our music. It will be a mess not to involve his band in the process of this music festival.
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“You see, Fela did music not only with passion but to portray his pains, to release his anger and touch on areas he wasn’t comfortable about. And so we love Afro beats. We love Fela. The people love Fela because he is one of our best exports today.
“We are using Seun Kuti and his band this year. Next year, we might decide to have Dede Mabiakwu or Femi Kuti.”
The founder who has an engineering background says jazz and music generally is his passion. He plans to take the LJS to a level where it can stand alongside international music festivals.
He basked in the fact of the event providing an opportunity to entertain the young, bohemian crowd as well as the older generation all on one big stage.
Source: Legit.ng
