Still a queen of African music

Despite her long sojourn in the US, a new album just released by returnee Floxy Bee shows she is still in love with African rhythm Since the queen of Hikosso music, Floxy Bee, returned to Nigeria a few months ago from the US where she had nurtured her musical career, she has been busy trying to re-establish herself in her fatherland.
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Like every other Nigerian artiste, she knows she has to face challenges in the areas of piracy. Also, among other institutions, the Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria that she came to meet is unlike its US counterpart, which has solid schemes to support members. Besides, the lady who relished composing songs any time of the day in the God‘s own country has had to battle with epileptic power supply for which Nigeria is notorious. According to her, the situation is more critical for her because she cannot stand the sound of generators.

Despite all these challenges, however, Floxy Bee, whose face used to be a regular one at Federal Palace Hotel where she performed regularly before her sojourn abroad, has re-launched her footprints on the sound of the country‘s musical industry. First, she established a musical company in Lagos. But more important is the coming of her new album lunched in Lagos last week. The album titled Adura mi ti Gba (My prayers are answered) combines gospel, highlife and makossa and jazz, in a way that challenges the hegemony of hip hop.

”I did a song a year go in the US,” Floxy tells our correspondent in an interview. ”But I felt I needed to release Adura mi ti Gba this time so that Nigerians can have a taste of my music again. The song is Adura mi ti Gba because I need to appreciate what God has done for me. Many people have travelled and died in foreign lands.”

She adds that part of her target is also to spur spiritual, moral and socio-political renaissance in Nigerians, hence her recourse to national music than foreign stuffs.

”I am eager to re-brand Nigerian music to its right place,” she explains. ”Highlife is music. Juju is music. Apala, fuji, awurebe, shenwele etc are music. We have to stop embracing other people‘s culture to the detriment of ours. Only an ignorant person devalues its own and gives attention to others.”