Sola Akingbola Percussion Singer Songwriter Jamiroquai Percussionist

Solá's Autobiography.

Solá Akingbolá
.
Percussion
.
Singer - Songwriter

This is where I confess that I started playing percussion by accident but then again what is an accident? It was by design that percussion found me perhaps. My first touch was a pair of small clay bongo type drums that a friend bought back for me from Morocco and I messed about with those until they were accidentally broken.

After that the same friend bought me a set of brand new fiberglass LP congas Potato model as a challenge to take up percussion seriously rather than talk percussion incessantly. Some serious years of wood-shedding with George Duke on the Boogie Box (album Brazilian Love Affair a must for any serious drummer/percussionist) and some chance meetings at Ronnie Scott's with Alex Acuna and Irakere from Cuba lay the foundations for the beginning of a lifetime obsession/struggle.

Gasper Lawal was brave enough to give me my first gig on cowbell and backing vocals and through him I was re-introduced to the beats that I had known and loved as a child growing up in a Yoruba (West African) family living in East London. These distinctive grooves are the bedrock of my personal percussive and compositional quest and were first given a funk potential by the inimitable Fela Anikulapo Kuti of Lagos Nigeria. My mission is to continue this creative synthesis and exploration of Yoruba rhythms with Western harmonic concepts whether they be jazz, funk, rock or classically inspired.

Just a few of my favourite albums/influences:

Miles Davis Kind of Blue

George Duke Brazilian Love Affair

Donny Hathaway Extensions of a Man

Stevie Wonder Everything he ever wrote

Mahalia Jackson Her voice

Arethra Franklin Everything

Chaka Khan I'm every Woman

Dee Dee Bridgewater Just Family

Fela Kuti Everything

Gasper Lawal Abiosunni

Oumou Sangare Ko sira

Lokua Kanza Wapio

Erykah Badu Baduizm

Bizet Carmen

Those of you who caught my statement about exploring Yoruba rhythms with western harmonies, will hear, (I hope!) the early stages of this exploration on the new album Routes to Roots.
I feel like I have come full circle.

Saturday night July 1984, the night that changed my life.

7 African musicians laying down a groove, pure percussion, not a guitar, bass or piano in sight!!
I was a young dancing Djing 'FUNKY AFKANZ' (at least that's how we thought of ourselves back then!) looking for a way to re-define what it meant to be African, whilst growing up in the UK.
Trying so hard not to re-enforce the typical stereotypes of Africans in Britain. All you FUNKY AFKANZ out there, you know what I mean!

I'm still trying to re-define it with the help of a whole new generation of FUNKY AFKANZ who are standing on the shoulders of giants.

Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, The Odus of Ifa, Yusuf Olatunji, Haruna Isola, Amos Tutuola, Abibus Oluwa, Beethoven, Schubert, Miles Davis, Deep Purple, Miriam Makeba, Micheal Franks, Joni Mitchell, Earth, Wind and Fire, The Barkays, Parliament, The Dazz Band, LA Boppers, Mandrill, Side Effect, George Power, Greg Edwards, Robbie Vincent. I could talk until tomorrow!!

The completion of Routes to Roots has inspired new questions in me about identity.
The future looks interesting and exciting.

Come people we've got things to do!

Bring on 2008!!!

Peace

Sola

Solá's Sponsors

Solá has been sponsored by LP percussion since 1991. Check out their web site at www.lpmusic.com

Sabian provide all of Sola's cymbals. Check out their web site at www.sabian.com

Solá uses Vic Firth Sticks. (Arbiter Group)

Duallist Drum Pedals

Aquarian Drum Heads

Gibraltar Rack Systems

Sola's Mailing List

Copyright Š 2002 - Solá Akingbolá solasco@mac.com