News Item
World Music Star Muyiwa's Big London Spectacular
Muyiwa & Riversongz will perform a one-off, special show at the 4500 capacity Transformation Centre, London on October 28th where Muyiwa will be performing 'Eko Ile: The Concert' - a show that features a full choir, 10-piece band and immersive set design.
'Eko Ile' is Muyiwa's 2015 album release which literally translates to 'Lagos I love' – it is a love letter to both Muyiwa's home town of Lagos, Nigeria and the place where he grew up – London. The album documents the transition from Africa to Great Britain, a story which Muyiwa insists will be relatable to many others in London and a story which he wishes to share through this audio-visual spectacle.
Muyiwa is a major name in the world of African and Gospel music - his radio shows have reached over 2 million people and his TV show, 'Turning Point' has reached more than 70 million people worldwide.
“Eko Ile: The Concert,” will explore the parallels between the two cities of Lagos and London and the forces that made him the man that he is.
Muyiwa says: “Eko Ile is without a doubt the most personal and honest record that I have ever made. This is my story, warts and all. With the concert we want to take the record and bring it to life in a whole other way. We want to truly bring Lagos to London.
“With this album and show on the 28th October we want to bring the whole of Africa out. We want to see every Nigerian, Ghanaian, Kenyan, Zimbabwean out to celebrate with us. Whichever country you are from you will be able to relate to this story” says Muyiwa.
Eko Ile the 2015 album release on which the show is based, is a hybrid record of world music, Afro-beat and Gospel influences that tell the universal story of a boy’s journey to manhood and the transition from Nigeria to Great Britain. The album incorporates a wealth of music styles from across the African continent including Highlife music reminiscent of fellow countryman, Fela Kuti.
Muyiwa's take on African praise and reggae features singing in his native Nigerian tongue, Yoruba, along with a peppering of Swahili, Zulu and Pidgin English.
Over the last 15 years, Muyiwa has reached an unprecedented position within the African and Gospel Music world. He has built up a following that straddles music, TV and radio, as an artist and as a broadcaster, at home and around the globe. His audience reach is unprecedented:
This concert event coincides with Muyiwa’s return for the third year running as a judge on the new series of the hit BBC ONE show, ‘Choir Of The Year’.
It caps off a busy 2016 that has seen him give a standout performance at this year ‘Gospel Proms’ at the Royal Albert Hall, become an ambassador for the Diana Awards, film videos in Canada, the US and Africa for the global series, “Turning Point International’, and launch and present the ‘Premier Gospel Awards’.
Words SIMON REDLEY
