TONY® AWARD WINNING SENSATION FELA! MAKES HISTORIC ARRIVAL IN LAGOS, NIGERIA APRIL 20-29, 2011

The hit Broadway musical about the life and music of Nigerian performer and political activist Fela Anikulapo-Kuti is scheduled to be performed in his home town of Lagos, Nigeria making it the first Broadway show to be performed in Sub-Saharan Africa.

FELA!, the landmark Broadway musical, which won three Tony Awards (Broadway’s highest honor) including Best Choreography (Bill T. Jones), is coming to Lagos from April 20^th to 25^th.  It will be performed at the prestigious Eko Hotel’s New Expo Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria. This critically lauded musical will star its original Broadway cast with Sahr Ngaujah reprising his Tony-nominated role of Fela Kuti with music provided by the internationally renowned Antibalas as well as other members of the New York City Afro-beat community. 

Concurrently with the Broadway production, FELA! opened and triumphed at London’s Royal National Theater for a three-month sold-out run.  That production was nominated for three Olivier Awards, London theatre’s highest honor, including Best Musical, Best Actor (Sahr Ngaujah) and Best Choreography (Bill T. Jones). This Nigerian engagement will be the first since the closing of the Broadway and London productions and the NTLive performance which was broadcast to in 370 cinemas worldwide.

The aim of FELA! in Lagos is to unite and connect Africans in spirit and unity, to serve as a catalyst for cultural revival in Nigeria, and to celebrate Fela Kuti, for the contribution he has made to Nigeria and the world. FELA! depicts the true story of the legendary Nigerian musician Fela Kuti, whose soulful Afro beat rhythms ignited the spirit of empowerment and cultural awareness in a generation.  It is a tale of courage, passion and love featuring Kuti’s captivating music and the visionary direction and choreography of Tony Award winner, Bill T. Jones. FELA! in Lagos is being produced by a Nigerian production company, Broken Shackles in conjunction with Lagos State Government.

Upon its Broadway opening Ben Brantley of The New York Times wrote, “There should be dancing in the streets.  The hot (and seriously cool) energy that comes from the musical gospel preached by the title character of Fela! feels as if it could stretch easily to the borders of Manhattan and then across a river or two.  There has never been anything on Broadway like this production."  The New York Post’s Elisabeth Vincentelli cheered, “There’s enough energy to short circuit Con Ed.”  David Cote of Time Out New York, in giving it 5 stars (out of 5) raved, “Fela! is more than a musical; it’s an ecstatic phenomenon."  And Jennifer Farrar from the Associated Press exclaimed, “An exuberant celebration!”

The English critics were equally effusive after the London premiere of FELA! One critic, Baz Bamigboye of The Daily Mail, summed up the critical sentiment with his review saying FELA! is a “groundbreaking show that shook Broadway and London’s Royal National Theatre to the rafters. Getting Brits to get on their feet and ‘get loose’ as Bill T. Jones puts it, was a rare feat.  FELA! pulled it off by sheer exuberance and theatrical showmanship. At the same time, FELA! explored the soul of an artist and the darkness of a government that tried to block what Fela’s beam exposed.”   

In addition to rave reviews from critics, FELA! has also won numerous awards and received standing ovations from such personalities as Mick Jagger, Madonna, Bruce Springsteen, Spike Lee, Ben Okri, Janet Jackson, Denzel Washington, Professor Wole Soyinka, Robert De Niro, and Hugh Jackman.  First lady Michelle Obama, former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and President Obama’s Head of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano are but three of the dignitaries who have embraced this show.    

Bill T. Jones, director and choreographer of FELA!, was recently honored with the prestigious Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts award along with Sir Paul McCartney and Oprah Winfrey. The Kennedy Center Honors are awarded annually for exemplary lifetime achievement in the performing arts. FELA! also won two Astaire Awards for its cast and choreography.

FELA! on Broadway was conceived by Bill T. Jones, Jim Lewis and Stephen Hendel. Its producers include the entertainment legends Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter and Will & Jada Pinkett Smith. 

A spokeswoman for Broken Shackles suggests that “with a series of media partners and sponsorships, FELA! in Lagos will be the most talked about show in Nigeria for years to come. We have created sponsorship, branding and advertising opportunities for those who wish to be a part of this historic theatrical event.”

For sponsorship, advertising opportunities, please email sponsorship@felainlagos.com

For more information on FELA! please visit http://www.felainlagos.com

For all press and public relations matters please email pr@felainlagos.com

 For more information on ticketing and group sales please email tickets@felainlagos.com

Oleku: was the video worth the wait?

You may recall that a few weeks ago this video was leaked online and later taken down on the request of chocolate city. As at the time of this post i must have seen this music video about 4 times to form an objective opinion. 

The video which was directed by mex of Pixel Chaos makes me wonder if this director would ever settle for more live shots. In my honest opinion i think the music video was more about graphic effects and transitions than story telling. Granted Oleku is simply a feel good song but this video kind of dampens the hype of this hit track. 

This video in my final opinion does not do the song enough justice at least not as much as the safe video did Safe by M.I justice. but then again its just my opinion...

53rd Grammy Awards: what went down

It was a colorful affair at the 53rd annual grammy awards last night. In anticipation of the awards i personally had to sleep through the day just to stay awake for this one. First stop was E! tv where the coverage of the red carpet was unparalled form the expensive ice, to the fabulous designs, and wierd hair dos it seemed like there would be no end to all the glamour.

The enigmatic lady gaga obviously dominated the red carpet with out even walking on it as she was carried in encased in a a semi transparent egg. The event was pretty exciting as it featured performances from Usher, Justin Beiber, Ceelo Green, Bruno Mars, B.o.B, Mick Jagger, Gwyneth Paltrow amonst others.

The highest point of the event for me was performances from Usher, Justin Beiber and Jaden Smith together and the performances by Bruno, B.O.B and Monae. I also loved Ceelo Greens performance save for his costume. In all it was an awesome experience. See below for a list of winners.

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Winners

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1.       Album of the year – Arcade Fire, The Suburbs

2.       Record of the year – Lady Antebellum, Need You Now

3.       Song of the year – Need You Now (Lady Antebellum, performers)

4.       Best new artist – Esperanza Spalding

5.       Best female pop vocal performance – Lady Gaga, Bad Romance

6.       Best male pop vocal performance – Bruno Mars, Just the Way You Are

7.       Best pop vocal album – Lady Gaga, The Fame Monster

8.       Best traditional pop vocal album – Michael Buble, Crazy Love

9.       Best electronic/dance album – La Roux, La Roux

10.   Best solo rock vocal performance – Paul McCartney, Helter Skelter

11.   Best hard rock performance – Them Crooked Vultures, New Fang

12.   Best metal performance – Iron Maiden, El Dorado

13.   Best rock song – Angry World (Neil Young)

14.   Best rock album – Muse, The Resistance

15.   Best alternative music album – The Black Keys, Brothers

16.   Best female R&B vocal performance – Fantasia, Bittersweet

17.   Best male R&B vocal performance – Usher, There Goes My Baby

18.   Best urban/alternative performance – Cee Lo Green, F*** You

19.   Best R&B song – Shine (John Legend and the Roots)

20.   Best contemporary R&B album – Usher, Raymond v. Raymond

21.   Best rap solo performance – Eminem, Not Afraid

22.   Best rap song – Empire State of Mind (Jay–Z and Alicia Keys, performers)

23.   Best rap album– Eminem, Recovery

24.   Best female country vocal performance – Miranda Lambert, The House That Built Me

25.   Best male country vocal performance – Keith Urban, Til Summer Comes Around

26.   Best country song – Need You Now (Lady Antebellum, performers)

27.   Best country album– Lady Antebellum, Need You Now

28.   Best contemporary jazz album – The Stanley Clarke Band, The Stanley Clarke Band

29.   Best Americana album – Mavis Staples, You Are Not Alone

30.   Best contemporary blues album – Buddy Guy, Living Proof

31.   Best contemporary folk album – Ray LaMontagne and the Prairie Dogs, God Willin' & the Creek Don't Rise

32.   Best classical album: Verdi: Requiem (Ildar Abdrazakov, Olga Borodina, Barbara Frittoli & Mario Zeffiri; Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Chicago Symphony Chorus)

33.   Best Female R&B Vocal Performance- Fantasia, Back To Me

34.   Best R&B Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocals- Sade, "Soldier of Love"

35.   Best R&B Album- John Legend & the Roots, Wake Up!

36.   Best Gospel Performance- Bebe and Cece Winans

37.   Best Gospel Song- “Its what i do” Kirk Whalum and Lalah Hathaway

38.   Best Dance Recording- “Only girl in the world” Rihanna

39.   Best Traditional Gospel Album- Patti Griffin

40.   Best Contemporary R&B Gospel album- Bebe and Cece Winans

Final destination2

This has to rank as my favorite horor(*well i think semi horor) movie of all time. I always had the impression that if you wanted a good story line in a movie, horors movies where the last place to turn. I dare say that the director of this movie has got a very twisted mind and a keen attention to details.

From the visually disturbing scenes, to the creative patterns by which each of the major casts where haunted by death,it is apparent that this is an amazing movie to watch.

The movie directed by David R. Ellis, stars Ali Larter and A.J Cook who both play individuals who cheated death by having premonitions through which they were able to save lives except that the survivors begin to die in mysterious ways after the said premonitions, which prompts them to stick together for survival

The downside to this movie for me was: after such an intense script I would have expected a more dramatic end. In conclusion this movie gets 7 G-stamps from me out of 10.

HCODE tops lists of artistes to watch out for in 2011(*with free download links)

Friday, 4^th February, 2011

Indeed this prolific artiste and super producer is in a class of his own when it comes to making quality music. At just 24 years of age he has produced spectacular African artistes which include Vector, Tuface, saucekid, funbi, zara, taio amongst others, HCODE has also been involved in hybrid sampling productions of projects by American producer ‘the dream’-fancy which has received rave reviews.

As far as I can tell ‘blackberry Pins’ are supposed to be personal right? Apparently not for some celebrities,  imagine what happens when an artiste decides to compose a song with his real Blackberry pin. We have heard lots of songs about blackberries, but this particular track: 210DBFF1 by this prolific artiste HCODE trumps them all as this track is bound to grow on you quickly. Asides from the fact that its his real pin, the 210DBFF1 song is a feel good, woman pleasing track that is already heating up mobile devices and online blogs. Exactly five hours after release via BB broadcast and online HCODE has received over 748 blackberry messenger add requests, if you are still in doubt I’ll advice you judge for yourself: http://bit.ly/gcSptU .

As further proof of his diversity as an artist, HCODE also teamed up with soul singer TAIO (the real Nigerian born) to produce the track REMEMBER. This track is indeed a classic R&B song that reviews the past and present of most celebrities. We would recall that some months ago HCODE released his first official single IWO NI a hybrid afro-techno track which featured VECTOR. Finally in an attempt to reach to his U.K fans HCODE released the single ‘ONE CLUB TO ANOTHER’ a feel good club banger which is a fusion of core hip hop and garage style of rap.

There is no doubt that HCODE is bound to catch the eye of award committees across Africa, the U.K and the US this year. 

 alternative download links:
REMEMBER - HCODE ft TAIO
http://bit.ly/gg6FAr

210DBFF1 - HCODE
http://bit.ly/gcSptU

ONE CLUB TO ANOTHER - HCODE
http://bit.ly/hojQxu

IWO NI - HCODE ft Vector
http://bit.ly/hnz5Jf
 

for Bookings & Media enquiries contact:

gossim daniels (swagcraft^® media)
holla@swagcraft.com
+234 706 2929 222

website: www.playhcode.com
twitter: @gozzim @iamhcode

2011: my first post

my long hiatus has been more about brain storming and hibernation to a certain extent. I must confess that alot has happened to me and around me in the last 33 days of 2011. For starters my life changing decision to wrestle my creative descretion from self imposed captivity is worthy of mention.

The beginning of every year is generally believed to be dull, but it sure has not stopped governments from being (ala tunisia) toppled, or on going street protests in Egypt, Yemen,  and Jordan. It has also not stopped great award shows like the Golden Globes, Oscars & grammys soon to happen and The Furture Awards back home.

This year for me is definately a life changing one. The absence of my boring weekly routine is yet to be missed by me plus i got the rare oppurtunity to see The Tourist, despicable me, The Town amongst others.

At this point before i come off as a 'blabber' i would like to welcome you all to the fabulous 2011, and RIP to the people that have lost their lives in the Tunisian and Egyptian protests.