Adam "The Professor" Solomon (born 1 January 1963 in

Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital status in 1907. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town is ...

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

) is a

Juno Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

-winning composer, guitar maestro, and singer. Solomon began performing at an early age, playing the kivoti (

flute The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...

) and the kayamba (

shaker Shaker or Shakers may refer to: Religious groups * Shakers, a historically significant Christian sect * Indian Shakers, a smaller Christian denomination Objects and instruments * Shaker (musical instrument), an indirect struck idiophone * Cock ...

) at village celebrations and festivals. He established his career playing lead guitar and singing on recordings and videos with some of Kenya's most popular bands and musicians, including

Joseph Kamaru Joseph Kamaru (1939 – 3 October 2018) was a Kenyan Benga and gospel musician and political activist. He was an icon, a hero, and a leading Kikuyu musician, who has sold about half a million records. He was notable for his politically motivate ...

, Bana Citoyen, Super Kalles,

Super Mazembe Orchestra Super Mazembe was a Kenyan soukous band. Originally formed in Zaire in 1967 under the name Super Vox, the group, led by Longwa Didos Mutonkole, moved to Nairobi in 1974 and changed their name. Their biggest hit was "Shauri Yako", a cov ...

Les Wanyika Les Wanyika is a prominent band with Tanzanian and Kenyan members based in Nairobi, Kenya. It was formed in 1978 when drummer Rashid Juma, guitarist Omar Shabani, bassist Tommy Malanga, saxophonist Sijali Salum Zuwa, and Phoney Mkwanyule left the ...

, Popo Lipo of Lessa Lessan, Professor Mb. Naaman with the Nine Stars Band,

Kanda Bongo Man Bongo Kanda (born 1 January 1955), better known by his stage name Kanda Bongo Man, is a Congolese soukous musician and singer. His career debuted in 1973 when he became the singer for the Belle Mambo band, developing a sound influenced by Tabu Le ...

Fadhili Williams Fadhili William Mdawida (November 11, 1938 – February 11, 2001), often referred to simply as Fadhili William, was a Kenyan recording artist and composer who is most famous as the first person to record Adam Salim's song " Malaika" which he rec ...

, Juma Toto, and the Mombasa Roots Band. Adam's touring credits include workshops and performances with Congolese superstar

Papa Wemba Jules Shungu Wembadio Pene Kikumba (14 June 1949 – 24 April 2016), known professionally as Papa Wemba (), was a Congolese singer and musician who played Congolese rumba, soukous, and ndombolo. Dubbed the "King of Rumba Rock", he was one of ...

and

Ismael Lo Ismael may refer to: People * Ismael Khalid (born 2000), American live-streamer known as Johnny Somali * Ismael Balkhi, political activist from Afghanistan * Ismael Blanco (born 1983), Argentine professional footballer * Ismael Prego, Spanish Yo ...

from Senegal.

Discography

Solomon was a co-founder (with Tarig Abubakar) of Canada's great pan-African band, the Afronubians, with whom he toured western Canada in 1993. He collaborated with them for two CD releases, "''Tour To Africa''" (1994) and "''The Great Africans''" (1995). ''"Afronubians Live"'' was released posthumously in 2005. Solomon collaborated on Show Do Man's release "''Trouble Trouble''" (1994), also on "''Tae Kwarro''" album in the year 2000 by Achilla Orru. Based in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Canada, Solomon then formed his own band, Tikisa, in 1995, and has continued to perform and tour with them. He has released the following albums: ''"Safari"'' (1996), ''"Rocket Express II: African Renaissance Blues"'' (2003), and ''"Mti wa Maisha (Tree of Life)" (''2006). In 2007, Solomon released ''"Roots Rhythms (Magoma Asili)"'', an homage to the traditional rhythms and the

Griot A griot (; ; Manding languages, Manding: or (in N'Ko script, N'Ko: , or in French spelling); also spelt Djali; or / ; ) is a West African historian, storyteller, praise singer, poet, and/or musician. Griots are masters of communicatin ...

s of the Mijikenda (Nine Tribes) people of coastal Kenya. The "''Safari''" album led to a double win at the TAMA (Toronto African Music Awards) for Best Release and Best New Performers in 1997.

Collaboration with African Guitar Summit

In conjunction with the

Canadian Broadcasting Company The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is the Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a Crown corporation that serves as the national public broadcaster, with its English-language and F ...

(CBC), Solomon continues to perform with a diverse group of pan-African musicians, including Madagascar Slim and Donne Roberts (

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

), Pa Joe, Theo yaw Boakye and Kofi Ackah(

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

), Alpha Yaya Diallo and Naby Camara (

Guinea Guinea, officially the Republic of Guinea, is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Guinea-Bissau to the northwest, Senegal to the north, Mali to the northeast, Côte d'Ivoire to the southeast, and Sier ...

) and Mighty Popo (

Burundi Burundi, officially the Republic of Burundi, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is located in the Great Rift Valley at the junction between the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa, with a population of over 14 million peop ...

Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...

). This collaboration culminated in the release of the ''"African Guitar Summit''" CD in 2004. This led to a Juno award for World Music Album of the Year in 2005. The same year, Solomon and his African Guitar Summit colleagues performed at the Live 8 Concert at Park Place in Barrie as part of the

ONE Campaign ONE Campaign (styled as ONE) is an international, non-partisan, non-profit organization advocating for the investments needed to create economic opportunities and healthier lives in Africa. The campaigning organization uses data, grassroots ac ...

spearheaded by

Bob Geldof Robert Frederick Zenon Geldof (; born 5 October 1951) is an Irish singer-songwriter and political activist. He rose to prominence in the late 1970s as the lead singer of the Irish rock band the Boomtown Rats, who achieved popularity as part ...

. The "''African Guitar Summit II''" CD was released and subsequently resulted in a 2007 Juno nomination in the same categor

Performances

Solomon has also done several live recordings with the CBC, and has toured extensively across Canada, performing at music festivals as varied as Afrofest and the Toronto Street Festival, Whistler Festival,

Winnipeg Folk Festival The Winnipeg Folk Festival is a nonprofit charitable organization with an annual summer folk music festival held in Birds Hill Provincial Park, near Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The festival features a variety of artists and music from around t ...

Montreal Jazz Festival The Festival international de Jazz de Montréal is an annual jazz festival held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Montreal Jazz Fest holds the 2004 Guinness World Record as the world's largest jazz festival. Every year it features roughly 3,000 ar ...

Salmon Arm Roots and Blues Festival The Salmon Arm Roots and Blues Festival is a 3 day summer music festival. It has four - six stages and features an international roster of artists as well as a strong contingent of Canadian talent. The event takes place at the Salmon Arm Fair Gr ...

, the University of Toronto's Music of All Latitudes series, and the Blues Summit for the Toronto Blues Society. Recently, Solomon and his group, Tikisa, performed at the Detroit Institute of Arts for their 44th annual Bal Africain, in the presence of Nene Sakite II (King of Manya Krobe, Ghan

Solomon has done work for the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...

, and participated in documentaries including "''The Immigrants''" (produced by Jack Orlando), and the award-winning ''"Jambo Kenya"'' and ''"Move Your World"'' (produced by Lalita Krishna & InSync Video).

Contributions

Contributing to fundraisers and benefits, specifically related to the plight of HIV/AIDS orphans in Africa, the building of schools and the provision of clean water, is a priority of Solomon's. A short list of those performances includes: ''"For the Children of Africa"'' (Rotary Club of Toronto), ''"Music for AIDS in Africa"'' for Africville, ''"Hearts for Smarts"'' for the Canada Mathare Education Trust, and the United Kenyans of Chicago's ''"Give Hope to the Children"'' benefit. Solomon sings in six languages, including

Swahili Swahili may refer to: * Swahili language, a Bantu language officially used in Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda and widely spoken in the African Great Lakes. * Swahili people, an ethnic group in East Africa. * Swahili culture, the culture of the Swahili p ...

, English, and Arabic. "The Professor", as he is known in musical circles, is highly respected as a lead guitarist and vocalist. He has become a valuable contributor to cultural education through music and storytelling in schools, libraries and workshops. In addition, he is experienced as a bass and rhythm guitar player, and is facile on the keyboard as well as percussion instruments. Solomon is a current member of the Toronto Musician's Association, OCFF, CARAS and SOCAN.

External links

Artist's website
* *

(Archived 2009-10-24) {{DEFAULTSORT:Solomon, Adam 1963 births Living people Kenyan musicians Juno Award for Global Music Album of the Year winners Canadian world music musicians Kenyan emigrants to Canada