King Sunny Ade

King Sunny Ade could be considered the Bruce Springsteen of Nigerian juju music: a superstar playing feverish, multi-hour concerts with a large band and holding enraptured audiences in his sway with his voice and guitar. Born Sunday Adeniyi Adegeye to royalty in Oshogbo, Nigeria, in 1946, he began recording in 1967, and he had already become a hero in Nigeria by the time Island Records released Juju Music in 1982 and made him an international star. Ade added instruments like pedal steel and synthesisers to juju’s blend of Afrobeat, funk, reggae and pop, rendering it even more sinuous and atmospheric. With his second Island release, 1983’s Synchro System, he became the first Nigerian ever nominated for a Grammy. Over the years, his influence grew exponentially and made him an icon around the world, inspiring not only countrymen like Lagbaja and Omoba De Jumbo Beats but also African artists from the wider worldbeat sphere, such as Youssou N’Dour and Papa Wemba.