Review: Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 – 2012 Heineken TransAtlantic Festival

With a heady mix of afrobeat, Latin grooves, electronica, and jazz, the 2012 Heineken TransAtlantic Festival, presented by the Rhythm Foundation, celebrated 10 years of bringing the best of world music to Miami. The two-night event began in fine form, with the fiery Seun Kuti and Egypt 80 as headliners on April 13 at the North Shore Bandshell on Miami Beach.

Seun (pronounced shay-oon) Kuti and Egypt 80, from Nigeria, play a brand of afrobeat reminiscent of the days of his father, Fela Kuti. Fela, the genre’s legend, rose to fame during the 1960s and ’70s. Afrobeat melds traditional Yoruba rhythms with funk, jazz, and sociopolitical lyrics. The TransAtlantic performance left no doubt that the younger Kuti is deftly following in his father’s footsteps.

Everywhere, the struggle is the same. … Our government tells us the same bullshit, but in a different way.

The group is a musical force. Its size alone – 14 musicians and singers – would command full attention on the bandshell’s small stage. But with lush horns, soulful guitars, and pulsating rhythms, they proved that it’s not just quantity, but quality, that sets them apart.

Seun Kuti and Egypt 80 played standouts from their 2011 album, From Africa with Fury: Rise, including the brisk “African Soldiers” and the defiant and reflective “Rise.” The set also included a tribute to “the king,” Kuti’s father, with renditions of “Kalakuta Song” and “Zombie.” For Fela fans who never had the chance to see him live, they found the next best thing in his youngest son.

Kuti rules the stage with a boundless energy and confidence. He delivers his lines, in a Nigerian pidgin English, with the same urgency of his message, whether talking about corrupt African governments, the exploitation of African lands, or the need for African autonomy.

Make you help me ask them brother / Why we no get the food to chop / Make you help me ask them sister / Why we no get no house to stay / Salute my brothers when they die / Die for the future of Africa / Salute my brothers when they fight / Fight for the future of Africa / Unless we start to think of tomorrow / Fight for the future / Fight for tomorrow

In between songs, Kuti schooled the audience on the struggle between governments and their people. “The Good Leaf,” an ode to pot, was a crowd favorite. “The government says uranium is good, but marijuana is bad?” Kuti asked the audience, bewildered. During the song’s bridge, he then asked them to “plant and make it grow.”

The spirited set ended with “Mosquito Song,” which saw the band dancing conga-line style on stage. Afterward, they had a short meet-and-greet with fans who stayed behind.

This was Kuti’s second visit to Miami. The first came last July in a show also sponsored by the Rhythm Foundation. The performances didn’t differ too much, but when you have Seun Kuti and Egypt 80 giving 100 percent each time, there’s really no reason to complain.

Seun Kuti and Egypt 80 are currently wrapping up their 30-city U.S. tour.