Adegoke Odukoya, better known as Adé Bantu (born 14 July 1971 in

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in the London Borou ...

, London), is a Nigerian-German musician, producer and social activist who is the front man of the 13 piece band BANTU and the creator of the monthly concert series and music Festival Afropolitan Vibes which holds in Lagos, Nigeria. Adé Bantu is also the founder of the Afro-German

musical collective Musical collective is a phrase used to describe a Musical ensemble, group of musicians in which membership is flexible and creative control is shared.Liisa Ladouceur"Collective Souls" ''This Magazine'', November/December 2004. The concept is dist ...

Brothers Keepers Brothers Keepers is a German-based transnational anti-racism project, bringing together hip hop, reggae and soul musicians, headed primarily by Afro-Germans. Their debut single, "Adriano-Letzte Warnung", was written in response to the murder o ...

. His band BANTU received the

Kora Award The KORA All Africa Music Awards are music awards given annually for musical achievement in sub-Saharan Africa. The awards were founded in 1994 by Benin born businessman, Ernest Adjovi, after a discussion in Namibia with the country's President H ...

(the Pan-African equivalent of the

Grammy The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

) for their album Fuji Satisfaction in 2005.

Early life

Adé Bantu was born in

, London. He is

biracial The term multiracial people refers to people who are mixed with two or more races and the term multi-ethnic people refers to people who are of more than one ethnicities. A variety of terms have been used both historically and presently for mul ...

, being the son of a German mother and a Nigerian father. In 1973, he relocated to

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

with his parents Barbara Odukoya and Adeleke Odukoya. After the death of his father in 1986, he moved with his mother and 3 siblings to Germany. He is the elder brother of musician Abiodun.

Career

Attracted by Germany's emerging

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

movement Adé Bantu joined the Hiphop group Exponential Enjoyment with Goldlover D (Sini Demir), Double A ( Mola Adebisi) and General GG (Götz Gottschalk) in 1989. He used the alias and stage name "Duke T". Their single "Think for a Moment/Style Introduction"(Tan Tric 12") is the 3rd German hiphop release (1989). They went on to produce the first multilingual Hiphop album in Germany titled "Chop or Quench" (1993). It featured the pioneer German hiphop crew

Advanced Chemistry Advanced Chemistry is a German hip hop group from Heidelberg in Baden-Württemberg, South Germany. Advanced Chemistry was founded in 1987 by Toni L, Linguist, Gee-One, DJ Mike MD (Mike Dippon) and MC Torch. Each member of the group holds Germa ...

. This was followed by a

Free Jazz Free jazz, or free form in the early to mid-1970s, is a style of avant-garde jazz or an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s, when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventi ...

Hiphop album in 1993 with

Peter Kowald Peter Kowald (21 April 1944 – 21 September 2002) was a German free jazz and free improvising double bassist and tubist. Career A member of the Globe Unity Orchestra, and a touring double-bass player, Kowald collaborated with many European f ...

, Sainkho Namtchylak and

Peter Brötzmann Peter Brötzmann (6 March 1941 – 22 June 2023) was a German jazz saxophonist and clarinetist regarded as a central and pioneering figure in European free jazz. Throughout his career, he released over fifty albums as a bandleader. Amongst his m ...

titled "Expo's Jazz & Joy". In 1993 he was approached by Fonk Free aka Moreno (Oliver Freyman) and DJ An-dré (André Schröter) and together they founded the band "Weep Not Child' releasing "From Hoyerswerda to Rostock" (Buback Records, 1993) and "Liberation thru Music & Lyrics" (Groove Attack, 1994). Their music clip "Je Ka Bere" was featured in the European campaign of Media Against Racism. In 1996 Ade was invited by Jan Ü Krauthaeuser to contribute to the Cologne Carnival music compilation "Humba 2". This led to the formation of the band BANTU with his brother Abiodun aka Don Abi,

Patrice Patrice is a given name meaning ''noble'' or '' patrician'', related to the names Patrick and Patricia. In English, Patrice is often a feminine first name. In French, it is used as a masculine first name. Popularity In the United States, the popul ...

and Amechi (Amechinna Okerenkwo). He officially changed his stage name to Ade (later to Adé Bantu after BANTU's 2005 album release). BANTU's debut album "Fufu" became an instant success in Nigeria earning them two radio hit singles "Nzobu" & "Fire Inna Dancehall". In 2000 after a wave of racist motivated violent attacks on foreigners which climaxed in the killing of Alberto Adriano, Adé Bantu set up the Afro-German musical collective

. Their song "Adriano (die letzte Warnung)" (Adriano the final warning) was released in 2001. It became an anti racism anthem selling well over 220,000 copies and making it to the Top 5 of the German pop charts. An album titled "Lightkultur" was released as well as a Sisters Keepers single "Liebe und Verstand" (Love & Understanding). In 2003 Adé Bantu, his brother Abiodun and German reggae singer

Gentleman ''Gentleman'' (Old French: ''gentilz hom'', gentle + man; abbreviated ''gent.'') is a term for a chivalrous, courteous, or honorable man. Originally, ''gentleman'' was the lowest rank of the landed gentry of England, ranking below an esquire ...

recorded the single "Rudie (Hold It Down)" together with

UB40 UB40 are an English reggae band, formed in December 1978 in Birmingham, England. The band has had more than 50 singles in the UK Singles Chart and has also achieved considerable international success. They have been nominated for the Grammy ...

. In 2004 he released his group BANTU's much anticipated European debut album "BANTU". The album featured Don Abi,

Sly Dunbar Lowell Fillmore "Sly" Dunbar (born 10 May 1952, Kingston, Jamaica) is a Jamaican drummer, best known as one half of the prolific Jamaican rhythm section and reggae production duo Sly and Robbie. Biography Dunbar began playing at 15 in a ba ...

, Positive Black Soul and

Pee Froiss Pee Froiss is a hip hop group formed in Dakar, Senegal in 1993. It was originally a dance group which refocused on rap. Early on, Pee Froiss received mentorship from the Senegalese rap luminaries Positive Black Soul, which produced their first al ...

from Senegal. In 2005 Adé Bantu once again assembled Brothers Keepers for a second musical venture. Broadened by many Turkish, Italian, Swedish and German artists their album "Am I My Brothers Keeper?" went far beyond the success of its predecessor, directing rousing statements, biographical insights and critical irony at German society. With BANTU he released "Fuji Satisfaction" an eclectic mix of Fuji, hip hop,

Dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots reggae, roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2 ...

, Afrofunk and

Afrobeat Afrobeat (also known as Afrofunk) is a West African music genre, fusing influences from Nigerian (such as Yoruba) and Ghanaian (such as highlife) music, with American funk, jazz, and soul influences. With a focus on chanted vocals, complex i ...

that featured Nigerian Fuji singer Adewale Ayuba in 2005. It won critical acclaim and the

Kora Awards The KORA All Africa Music Awards are music awards given annually for musical achievement in sub-Saharan Africa. The awards were founded in 1994 by Benin born businessman, Ernest Adjovi, after a discussion in Namibia with the country's President H ...

as "Best Group West Africa" and "Best Group Africa" 2005. This amongst other things promoted his move back to Lagos, Nigeria. In 2006 he performed with Afrobeat Academy Band during the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to FIFA World Cup hosts ...

in Germany. In 2011 Adé Bantu's group BANTU released "No Man Stands Alone" an album of collaborations which was mostly recorded in Nigeria. The album featured Highlife music legend Fatai Rolling Dollar, Sound Sultan and Nigerian-German singer Nneka Adé Bantu is the creator of Afropolitan Vibes a live music concert series & annual music festival that features alternative music acts alongside Nigerian and African music legends The 13-piece BANTU collective released Agberos International in 2017. The 10-track album was produced by Aman Junaid. It features Tony Allen and Nigerian spoken word poet Wana Wana. In September 2020 BANTU released Everybody Get Agenda a long player that showcases the band's tightly knit horn section accompanied by driving rhythms and socio political lyrics that address issues of police brutality, corruption, urban alienation, xenophobia and migration. The album also features Afrobeat artist

Seun Kuti Oluseun Anikulapo Kuti (born 11 January 1983), popularly known Seun Kuti, is a Nigerian musician, singer and the youngest son of Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti. Seun leads his father's former band Egypt 80. Early life and education The youngest ...

on the song "Yeye Theory". in June 2023 BANTU released their 7th studio album What Is Your Breaking Point?The album featured a unique fusion of Afrobeat, Afrofunk and various Yourba musical influences. It also explored themes of post-colonial trauma, Africa's brain drain, gender oppression and social class discrimination.

TV and film appearances

Adé Bantu was featured in the cinema documentary, ''Yes I Am'', a documentary on Afro Germans directed by Sven Halfar. He also appeared with BANTU in an episode of the German soap ''

Lindenstraße ''Lindenstraße'' (literally "Linden Street") was a long-running German television Drama (film and television), drama series, broadcast by Das Erste. The first episode aired on 8 December 1985 and since then new episodes were broadcast weekly u ...

'' (Episode 710). Adé Bantu appeared in Harry Belafonte's documentary film ''

Sing Your Song ''Sing Your Song'' is a 2011 American documentary film about singer, actor, and civil rights activist Harry Belafonte. The film recounts his life and legacy, not only as a great entertainer, but as an important activist in the Civil Rights Movem ...

''. In 2012, Adé Bantu joined the panel of judges of ''

Project Fame West Africa ''Project Fame'', also known as ''Project Fame West Africa'' or ''MTN Project Fame West Africa'' (for sponsorship purposes), is a music talent TV reality show filmed in Lagos and aired in the West African subcontinent. It is a regional version of ...

'', a music TV reality show. He worked on the show till 2015

Politics and activism

Adé Bantu is politically active both in Nigeria and Germany. He was the founder of the now defunct Brothers Keepers e.V., an NGO in Germany affiliated with the Brothers Keepers musical project that visited schools, lobbied for changes in

asylum Asylum may refer to: Types of asylum * Asylum (antiquity), places of refuge in ancient Greece and Rome * Benevolent asylum, a 19th-century Australian institution for housing the destitute * Cities of Refuge, places of refuge in ancient Judea * ...

and anti-discrimination laws and helped victims of racist motivated attacks. He was involved in the Anti

Shell Shell may refer to: Architecture and design * Shell (structure), a thin structure ** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses Science Biology * Seashell, a hard outer layer of a marine ani ...

campaign in Germany and co-initiated the

Ken Saro-Wiwa Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa (10 October 1941 – 10 November 1995) was a Nigerians, Nigerian writer, teacher, television producer, and social rights activist. Saro-Wiwa was a member of the Ogoni people, an ethnic minority in Nigeria whose homeland ...

week in 1997. Adé Bantu is an activist, lecturer and public speaker who addresses racism against people of colour, AfroGermans and Africans in Germany as well as social issues in Nigeria. He was invited by German

Minister for Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral re ...

Frank-Walter Steinmeier Frank-Walter Steinmeier (; born 5 January 1956) is a German politician who has served as President of Germany since 2017. He was previously Minister for Foreign Affairs (Germany), federal minister for foreign affairs from 2005 to 2009 and again f ...

on his first official visit to Africa in August 2007. He participated in the Partnership for Africa Forum hosted by

President of Germany The president of Germany, officially titled the Federal President of the Federal Republic of Germany (),The official title within Germany is ', with ' being added in international correspondence; the official English title is President of the F ...

Horst Köhler Horst Köhler (; 22 February 1943 – 1 February 2025) was a German politician who served as President of Germany from 2004 to 2010. As the candidate of the two Christian Democratic sister parties, the Christian Democratic Union of Germany, CDU ...

in November 2007. Adé Bantu and his band BANTU have partaken in intercultural exchange programmes with the

Goethe-Institut The Goethe-Institut (; GI, ''Goethe Institute'') is a Nonprofit organization, nonprofit German culture, cultural organization operational worldwide with more than 150 cultural centres, promoting the study of the German language abroad and en ...

and the German

Federal Foreign Office The Federal Foreign Office (, ; abbreviated AA) is the Foreign minister, foreign ministry of the Federal Republic of Germany, a federal agency (Germany), federal agency responsible for both the country's foreign policy and its relationship with ...

giving concerts and workshops in Ghana, Uganda, Tanzania and Nigeria. Adé Bantu was at the forefront of the debate against the use of the

N-word In the English language, ''nigger'' is a racial slur directed at black people. Starting in the 1990s, references to ''nigger'' have been increasingly replaced by the euphemistic contraction , notably in cases where ''nigger'' is Use–menti ...

in Germany. He initiated a petition (with Brothers Keepers) against German Rapper

B-Tight Robert Edward Davis (born 28 December 1979), better known by his stage name B-Tight, is an American-born German rapper. Early life Davis was born in Palm Springs, California, to a German mother and an African American father, but grew up in B ...

's album "Neger, Neger" (Nigger, Nigger) in 2007. He is the co-founder and creative director of BornTroWay, a community arts project targeted at disadvantaged youths in major African cities. The project was launched in Ajegunle, Lagos in 2011.

Radio

Adé Bantu was a radio host at

Deutsche Welle (; "German Wave"), commonly shortened to DW (), is a German state-funded television network, state-owned international broadcaster funded by the Federal Government of Germany. The service is available in 32 languages. DW's satellite tele ...

. He hosted "Good Morning Africa" from 1997 to 2000. He co-directed Nigerian-German hip hop/soul singer Nneka's video "Africans".

Awards

Adé Bantu was awarded the Nordrhein Westphalia Cultural Prize in 1997 for the hip hop musical "Coloured Children" a piece he wrote and co-directed with Anita Berger. With Brothers Keepers he was awarded the

1LIVE 1LIVE is a radio station operated by the Westdeutscher Rundfunk public broadcasting corporation in Germany. It broadcasts a CHR format specialised in popular music. Aimed at the 14–39 age demographic, the average age of its listeners is 34. ...

Krone Radio Award for "Adriano (die Letzte Warnung)" in the category ''"Best Single of the year 2001".

Discography

With Exponential Enjoyment

*1989 Style Introduction-12 inch (Tantric/VeraBra Rec) *1993 Chop or Quench (Deep 6 Rec) *1993 Expo's Jazz & Joy (VeraBra Records)

With Weep Not Child

*1993 From Hoyerswerda To Rostock (Buback Records) *1994 Liberation Thru Music & Lyrics (Groove Attack Records) *1998 Goal ( 12" Chlodwig/BMG)

With BANTU

*1999

Fufu Fufu (or fufuo, foofoo, foufou ) is a pounded meal found in West African cuisine. It is a Twi word that originates from the Akans in Ghana. The word has been expanded to include several variations of the pounded meal found in other African c ...

(Kennis Music Nigeria) *2004 BANTU (Nitty Gritty Music/ Rough Trade) *2005 Fuji Satisfaction (Piranha Rec) *2008 BANTU (X3M Music, Nigeria) *2011 No Man Stands Alone (Pako Records) *2017 Agberos International (Soledad Productions) *2020 Everybody Get Agenda (Soledad Productions) *2023 What Is Your Breaking Point? (Soledad Productions)

With Brothers Keepers

*2001 Adriano-Single(WEA Rec) *2001 Lightkultur (WEA Rec) *2005 Bereit- Single(Sony) *2005 Am I My Brothers Keeper?"(Sony)

Collaborations

*1990 "Kickin The Facts" (from LSD album "Watchout for the 3rd Rail") *1994 "Keep in Line & Sunshine" (from Di Iries self-titled album) *1995 "Late Night" (from Reiner Witzel's "Passage to the ear") *1995 "Illusion" (from Kastrierte Philosophen album "Soldier") *1996 "Polyglot Poets" (from Advanced Chemistry's self-titled album) *1997 "The Message" (from Two Step Forward project) *1997 "Colonial Mentality" (from Schäl Sick Brass Band album "Majnoun") *1999 "Tschupun"(from Schäl Sick Brass Band album "Tschupun") *2000 "Maza Meze" (from Schäl Sick Brass Band album "Maza Meze") *2002 "Rubber Dub" (from Schäl Sick Brass Band album "Kesh Mesh") *2003 "Rudie (Hold It Down)" (UB40 single featuring Gentleman & Don Abi) *2006 "Odolayé" (from "Lagos Stori Plenti" sampler featuring Dede, Mode9 & Azadus)

Cinema

Halfer Sven, ''Yes I Am'' Brothers Keepers documentary on DVD, Arthouse 2007

References

Sources

English Sources: *https://web.archive.org/web/20080219063151/http://www.jamati.com/online/?p=953 *http://www.bbc.co.uk/newtalent/music/showcase_african.shtml *https://web.archive.org/web/20110718031957/http://atlanticreview.org/archives/592-Black-History-Month-in-Germany.html *http://blog.derbraunemob.info/stoppt-den-weisen-n-wumbaba/stop-the-white-n-wumbaba/ Publications in German: *Loh Hannes & Güngör Murat (2002). Fear of A Kanak Planet. Hannibal Verlag, Austria *Verlan Sascha & Loh Hannes (2000). 20 Jahre Hiphop in Deutschland. Hannibal Verlag, Austria *Kreide-Damani Ingrid (1996). 101 Nationen einer Stadt. Dumont Verlag, Germany *Schergel Frank (2002). Ohne Musik ist quasi alles lau.Verlag Kiepenheuer & Witsch, Germany

External links

Bantu official website

Official Website for Brothers Keepers
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bantu, Ade German people of Yoruba descent Musicians from the London Borough of Brent People from Wembley Nigerian emigrants to Germany Nigerian musicians Nigerian people of German descent Yoruba musicians German rappers 1971 births Living people English emigrants to Germany British emigrants to Nigeria 20th-century Nigerian male singers 21st-century Nigerian male singers 20th-century German musicians