Yaabafunk, keeping the spirit of Fela alive
Yaabafunk have a clear vision – to spread highlife music from their basis in Brixton to the farther reaches of London and beyond. The ten piece band was formed in May 2006: ‘Most of us were drummers in previous bands – Funk, Senegalese and Samba which we incorporate into our sound, but we all love highlife music and this is what’s brought us together.’ As the new pioneers of such a niche sound, they’ve created a flavour that encompasses the traditional elements of 70s highlife while borrowing basics from ska and dub. This modern take on Ghanian music has given Yaabafunk great following, with fans hailing from the UK, Germany or Jamaica: ‘ It’s always more satisfying when we reach out to the ordinary Ghanaian who expects familiarity from the highlife sound, but to be appreciated with the sound we make and what we’re doing is very pleasing’ says Tobias of Yaabafunk.
Fela Kuti, the human rights activist and creator of afrobeat once said in an interview ‘…there were hardly any recordings of African music; you heard that in the street – especially highlife’. Richmond Kessie, Yaabafunk’s frontman, tells me how all members of the band strive to embody the spirit of Fela: ‘That’s what we try to do, bring people together, into the sound to make a community’. This also reflects on the list of high profile artists who have worked with the band: highlife legends such as Nana Tsiboe and Rex Marty from the 60s band Tempo. Bilal, Ali Farka Toure, Outkast and Meshell Ndegeocello are other musicians that Yaabafunk would like to work with in the future.
I had the chance to meet and talk with the band right before their 14 December ’07 gig at the back of the Grosvenor pub in Stockwell, London. The show was a raucous affair, drawing people out of their seats almost immediately as Helen and Richmond, the vocalists, belted out the first few bars of Nyash! E Go Bite You, the title of their new E.P. It was live music in all its unabashed brilliance, with the audience dancing and drinking with each other, displaying a community spirit rarely seen in concerts. The songs Me Nye Me Dofu and the rousing Dman Foa (Let’s celebrate) had people singing along merrily like a highlife party anthem. It didn’t end there. After a rowdy encore, the party simply moved into the pub to relish in the spirit of afrobeat that had surely manifested itself that evening.
Yaabafunk’s debut album No sleep till Accra (working title) is currently simmering in the studio, awaiting an explosive release
Visit www.myspace.com/yaabafunk for a sample of songs from the Nyash! E Go Bite You! E.P.
