Music

FUJI: A OPERA Exhibition Hits London this Summer

Fuji music legends

For starters, mark your calendar from August 18 to 28 this year. The Africa Centre in London will present FUJI: A Opera, a multi-dimensional exhibition which tells the story of the fuji music genre – one of the most important in Nigeria’s cultural history.

FUJI: A Opera will showcase some never-seen-before archive footage and artefacts, explore the belligerent past of fuji music, highlight its founding footprints while celebrating its rich subculture from the early 1960s to this present day.

The story will be told through a series of fascinating archival footage of previous performances, audio installations and incredible memorabilia across the 60-year history of fuji music. Trailing the history of fuji, it carefully transports the viewer through the origins in the Yoruba-Muslim communities of Nigeria’s South-West and the vision of pioneer Ayinde Barrister, who christened his sound “fuji” after seeing an airport ad for the famous Japanese mountain.

The exhibition begins with a soundscape homage to Ajiwere, folk music for Islamic worshippers at Ramadan and the roots of fuji music on Lagos Island. On show will be rare instruments from Nigeria that have been played since the beginning of fuji music over 50 years ago. These have been donated by some iconic fuji artists, including music pioneer Late Alhaji Sikiru Ayinde Barrister otherwise known as Alhaji Agba and King Wasiu Ayinde Marshall, who is largely credited with taking the genre to its highest heights from the early 1980s to the present day.

Bobo Omotayo

The infectious energy of fuji music will be experienced through a listening gallery of archive recordings, a photography wall of album covers and live performances, and a collection of fashion pieces worn by fuji artists across its history.

Expectedly, the founder of FUJI: A Opera, Bobo Omotayo expresses his excitement for this premiere exhibition.

Now feels like the perfect time to celebrate the phenomenal influence of fuji music, how it began and its lasting impact. Without fuji there would be no Afrobeats. Artists such as King Wasiu Ayinde Marshall have given so much to music – it’s time we celebrate their legacy. With London’s huge Nigerian community and close links with Lagos, I’m proud to be bringing FUJI: A Opera to the Africa Centre this summer.”

 

The exhibition was first staged in 2020 in Nigeria, marking the longest showcase of the fuji subculture in modern times. FUJI: A Opera will make its international premiere in the UK at the Africa Centre, which has been the home of African heritage and culture since it first opened its doors in 1964.

The Africa Centre is a UK registered charity that celebrates the diversity of Africa and its diaspora. It promotes social cohesion, education, thought leadership, and innovation in art, culture, and entrepreneurship. The Centre first opened its doors to the public in 1964 and has a rich and vibrant history of bringing Africa’s cultural diversity to the fore and promoting greater awareness about political and socio-economic developments affecting the continent and its diaspora.

With an original remit to foster non-governmental relations between newly independent Africa and Britain, The Africa Centre’s mission today is to educate, connect, and advocate for Africa and its global diaspora, creating a home away from home for Africans in the UK and a warm and welcoming space for anyone with an interest in Africa.

The Africa Centre opened its new headquarters in Southwark, London in June 2022. The new HQ is a beautifully transformed former 1960s office block that now serves a new hub for contemporary African culture and heritage in London.

 

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