Following my third review of an album by Beautiful Nubia (i.e. his new album Fèrè) here’s the third jazz-not-jazz interview with the man who knows like no other how to combine food for thought with music for your feet. This time Segun Akinlolu aka Beautiful Nubia talks amongst other things about the re-recording of songs from his album Voice From Heaven, how he teamed up with Tunde Kelani to write the theme song Ikoko Akufo for the movie The Narrow Path and the risks of globalization for the African continent.
Q: Please tell me what the new album Fèrè means to you and where do you see the progress as musician, singer, songwriter compared to its predecessors?
Beautiful Nubia: I think Fere showcases the greater cohesion of the band (it’s has been the easiest album to record so far). Beyond this, there is really not much difference - we are still trying to reach people with uplifting messages while not losing sight of the need to be commercially attractive.
Q: Some of the songs are re-recordings from your Voice From Heaven album. Why did you re-record them? And in which way are they different from the original take?
Beautiful Nubia: The early recordings were done in a much different way and using fewer musicians. And since we normally play these songs at our shows and people love the new arrangements, we thought we should record them anew especially since some of them are suitable for ongoing events in the world.
>>>continue