Femi Leye and the Soul Behind His Guitar MUSIC

Femi Leye and the Soul Behind His Guitar MUSIC

Yinka Olatunbosun
If you have ever been to Lagos International Jazz Festival or AMVCA or a private party where Femi Leye bedazzles with his guitar, then you’d understand how much of a dynamite he is on stage. He may not have mainstream popularity like the pop stars, but within the live music circles, he commands attention.

The multi-instrumentalist and actor hails from Ado-Ekiti in Ekiti State although he was born and raised in Lagos. At about the age of three or four, he began to show some interest in music.

“I was born in Celestial Church of Christ, which is known as a heavy percussive church, so that sparked my interest in music and I started with the three-faced drum known as ‘Agbamole’ before moving on to other instruments,” he says.

His musical skills had been honed to the extent that he has gained some mastery of piano, keyboard, bass and percussion instruments such as Conga, Omele, Cord, Shekere and more. But guitar remains his preferred instrument.
When he was about 15 years old, he stumbled on George Benson’s music and that made a great impact on his music taste.

“The tonality of his guitar playing drew me really close to the instrument and I knew that was what I wanted to do,” he reminisces. “Even though jazz music is complex, it was a great foundation for me. Any musical situation I find myself, it is automatically simplified because I started with the hardest genre of music.”

Leye had wanted to be a doctor but his passion for music became more overwhelming over time. Thankfully, he has very supportive parents who backed up his dream to be a musician.
“They bought me my first and second guitars,” he continues. “They paid for lessons, allowed me travel and work with different bands. My parents are my superheroes and I love them dearly.”

It is hard to keep Leye boxed into a music genre. His music style varies: it is essentially a fusion of a lot of genres right now from Soul to RnB, Funk, traditional Yoruba music, Lo fi, Afrobeats and Afropop. For him, creativity is a life wire. Other influences in his music include the Grammy-nominated juju maestro, King Sunny Ade whom he described as his ‘first guitar hero.’ His father also had a rich collection of African music that includes legends such as Ebenezer Obey, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, Victor Uwaifo, Orlando Owoh and Victor Olaiya. But that wouldn’t stop him from listening to western music.

“Right now, I listen to John Mayer, Bruno Mars, Tom Misch, a lot of Lo fi artistes.”
Leye has two studio albums “EKAABO” and “FEMI LEYE THE ALBUM” released in 2015 and 2019. He also released an EP in 2019 called “THE HIGHLIFE EP.” At the beginning of 2021, he released “PENDULUM” which is a combination of Lo fi, Jazz, Afrobeat and Hip-hop. Right now, he is preparing to release PENDULUM VOL 2.
His marriage to Iniabasi Leye who is an artist, art therapist and broadcaster has been blessed with two children.

Though the COVID-19 pandemic affected live music culture across the globe, Leye has promised a massive return when concerts resume. “I have been rehearsing with my band and we can’t wait to hit different stages all around the world,” he says.
Leye has worked with A-list artists such as Akon, Don Jazzy, Angelique Kidjo, Adekunle Gold, Burna Boy and Salif Keita.

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