A Tribute to Tony "Firefly" Alabi former host of Africa O-Ye!
Where: Someday Lounge 125 NW 5th Ave Portland, OR
When: Friday July 8th @ 9PM
Come celebrate the life of Firefly whom we lost earlier this year. He was the host of Africa O-Ye for the past 14 years. This evening will be a tribute to all the great music that Firefly introduced to his fans over the years. There will be KBOO DJs spinning records between sets by two great local bands.
We are happy that Jujuba, Portland's favorite Afro-Beat band, and The Excellent Gentlemen, smooth R & Bfrom some of Portland's finest, have joined the bill. To hear their music click on the links below.
Firefly, also known as Tony Alabi, came to the US from Nigeria where his parents were from ethnic groups with significantly different cultures. His father is Yoruba and his mother Ibo. He spent much of his childhood in the predominantly Muslim Northern Nigeria, where his parents lived and worked, and vacationed with his maternal grandfather, a tribal Chief in the Christian/Animist Eastern Nigeria. As a teenager, Firefly attended school in Christian/Muslim Yorubaland in Western Nigeria. Perhaps this diverse background predestined Firefly to create the bridge between KBOO listeners and the wealth of African musical styles.
The nickname “Firefly” originates from a childhood experience where soon after an uncle's death, Tony saw a shooting star and imagined it as a farewell from his deceased relative. Since that experience, Tony was drawn to the firefly for its non-aggressive creature, and its ability to generate its own light.