Whelanslive in assoc. with ESTRELLA GALICIA presents
PLANET RHYTHM WEEKENDER 2024
featuring
ELIKYA (FRI)
YANKARI (SAT)
Whelan’s Main Venue • Fri 5th & Sat 6th July 2024
FRI 5th JULY
ELIKYA
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Based in Ireland, Elikya over the last twenty years have acted as Congolese Music’s Ambassadors to the nation. This 9 piece rumba / dance / bass heavy outfit brings together all the elements of Congolese music.
Entrancing guitar melodies, hip-commanding basslines and melodic, relentless percussion topped off with the melodic sweetness that singing in Congo’s main language “Lingala” brings.
With a penchant for precision, performance and theatrics, Elikya take the over 70 years of modern Congolese music history and its incredibly unique take on what makes a spectacle (think full band choreography/a highly stylized wardrobe and the musical expertise of classic big band orchestras) and combine it with hypnotizing low end magic.
Elikya have earned their place for 20 years as flag bearers of Modern Congolese Rumba and Ndombolo, leaving people in a frenzy up and down the country.
SAT 6th JULY
YANKARI
Formed from the ashes of the Dublin Afrobeat Ensemble in 2015, Yankari set out early on to advance the Afrobeat genre pioneered by Fela Kuti and integrate a sort of Pan-Nigerian musical philosophy. Blending Yoruba, Igbo, and other Nigerian ethnic musics and rhythms, Yankari creates a musical delegation representing the ingenuity and creativity of Nigeria’s rich cultural heritage.
Led by Segun Akano, a multi-instrumentalist and Nigerian cultural propagator, Yankari blends adages in Segun’s native Yoruba language with precise Afrobeat and jazz-tinged horn lines on top of an interlocking five-piece rhythm section. A chorus of vocals and the rumble of organ round out this sound, with Segun and vocalist Jen Tully leading the charge. Fresh from appearances on RTE’s Tommy Tiernan Show, Radio 1 Arena program, All Together Now, and Tradfest, Yankari are currently preparing for the release of their debut nine-song album with artwork from the original king of Afrobeat Covers and one of Nigeria’s most famed visual artists, Baba Lemi Ghariokwu.
It’s the almost militaristic steadiness of bass, drums, and guitars that creates the foundation for Yankari’s live show: a
showcase of precision, passion, and power.
Each show achieving the overall mission of the group. To bring people together so we may celebrate each other and spend as much time as possible in between the speakers!
TICKETS
€12-€15 available online from Whelan’s – 50c per ticket service charge applies.
Strictly over 18′s, I.D. may be required