It is always amazing to watch live performance from a musical artiste, but then it turns out that during performances by various Nigerian artistes, they seem to take hold of microphones and mime to their own music with the help of disc jockeys while playing their tracks. This certain way of performance usually applies to Nigerian artistes of this modern era.
One may be forced to assume and conclude that either they do not possess the raw talent they portray for a live performance unlike Nigerian veteran musicians like Ebenezer Obey, Fela Anikulapo – Kuti, Sunny Ade, and Sir Shina Peters among others who all bask in live band performances. Nowadays Nigerian musicians lack live band artistic aesthetics except a handful of them like 2face idibia, Sound Sultan, and Darey Art Alade.
In the not so distant past, Nigerian music was largely characterised by live bands and instrumentalists like Fela Anikulapo – Kuti, Sunny Ade. They thrilled their fans with the ability to perfectly execute live performances.
Music legend, Sir Shina Peters, advices that we must revive live bands being that a lot of people have tried to kill it.
Live performance from artistes in ways helps them to connect and relate better with their audience, thereby bringing out the beauty of live band. A few artistes like 2 face idibia and Sound Sultan have always insisted on performance via the use of live bands.
At last year’s Pepsi Rhythm Unplugged that featured many Nigerian musicians and American super star, Tremaine Aldon Neverson, popularly known as Trey Songz, one could not help but notice a big gulf between the performances of all the Nigerian musicians that performed and the performance of Trey Songz.
Talented Nigerian artistes like Olamide, Wizkid and Davido were there but at the end most of the crowd were moved by Trey Songz because of his sensational live band performance which revealed the difference between his outstanding art and performance and that of our Nigerian artistes.
On the other hand, Nigerian musicians cannot perform with live bands, it is too expensive for them, and it may not necessarily be because of lack of talent though it is part of it, but for me, I think the major problem is equipment needed for live performances.
The problem is that some of these recent artistes have the ability to excellently execute live performances. For instance, Yemi Alade at the MTV MAMA 2015 excited the crowd with a live band performance of her songs “Kissing”, “Johnny”, “Taking over me”, all delivering a sensational performance.
Nigerians have now settled for performances where musicians are running around with microphones miming the DJ’s soundtracks, so critics have come to the conclusion that development in technology has made these artists lazy and uncreative.
Some nightclubs have successfully achieved live bands and karaoke nights which is a whole different switch off from what is usually done. Such places like Crescendo Longue, Lagos State popular tourist attraction sites and relaxation spots like the New African Shrine, are places set for people to watch and enjoy live afro beat performance from Femi Kuti and alongside witness great achievements. The art and cultural heritage of the famous legend Fela Anikulapo- Kuti and his music all lively performed in these places.
So, there is great need to reawaken live bands all across Nigeria to create synergies from music performances. Nigerian artistes therefore are urged “not to pick up the knife and murder our abilities but to give us joy through live performances”, because this might be all we have.
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