Sola Akingbola is the biggest artist you didn’t know you already love. As the percussionist and long-term member of grammy award winning band Jamiroquai and composer for the CBS hit sitcom Bob Hearts Abishola, Sola’s music has been in households the world over, even if his name hasn’t been on everyone’s lips.
That is about to change, with the release of the new album ‘How Should I’ with Sola Akingbola & The Eegun Rhapsodies, on 27/09/ 2024. The project presents a beautiful sonic interpretation of the ever-evolving interaction between cultures. Drawing from Sola’s love of the Greek classics and the poetry and music of the Yorubas from Southwestern Nigeria, the result is an expression of the renaissance of Yoruba culture, from a UK perspective, on the world stage.
The title track ‘How Should I’, was originally written for the Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2016 production of Hamlet and sees Sola joined by Olivier-winning actor Sheila Atim (The Woman King, Barry Jenkin’s The Underground Railroad, Donmar Warehouse’s all-female Shakespeare Trilogy). Atim lends her tender vocals to this cinematic piece, with its quietly impressive laid-back groove and jazz-lounge style.
The album features eleven tracks that showcase Sola’s versatility as a composer and performer.
From the tour de force single Touch My Soul and the upbeat percussion driven ‘Olukumi’ (whose energetic music video was filmed at the iconic Abbey Road Studios), to the contemplative ‘My Brother’s Keeper’, each song tells a story of cultural identity and musical exploration.
How Should I is Sola’s most personal work to date. Born in Yorubaland in Southwestern Nigeria, Sola spent his life moving around London while deeply assimilating the culture of his family and the funky eclectic influences of the UK.
“This album is a bridge between my Nigerian heritage and my British upbringing’ say Akingbola. It’s a celebration of cultural fusion and the power of music to transcend boundaries”
Sola Akingbola recently received the best Film and TV Score BMI Award for the second year running, for his work on Bob Hearts Abishola which attracted over 5m viewers for its most recent season five. In between his work with Jamiroquai, Sola has also been writing scores for theatre, including, the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre’s production of Othello in 2023.
It would have been difficult for the young boy from Portobello Road to imagine that music would take him around the world, performing at some of the biggest festivals, alongside the likes of Stevie Wonder, The Rolling Stones and the late David Bowie. Now with his second studio album How Should I, Sola takes centre stage.
In an ever-changing world of ideas, he delves into the fluidity of identity through sound. Sola invites audiences to join him, by listening to How Should I upon its release across all platforms on 27/09/2024.
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Apple MusicPhoto credit: Henry J Kamara
