Landmark Village
Landmark Village
Temitope Fagunwa & The Aluta Band
Aluta Band
My focus is rooted in the struggle for a
socialist African continent, and the world as a whole
Temitope Maberu Fagunwa
Band Leader Aluta Band
“.I took it upon myself to learn what God is saying in all this religion. You know. But what God is saying in all these religions, the basic fundamental, is love.”
Lekan Babalola - 26 June 2018
Lekan Babalola
Click below to listen to Lekan and his Sacred funk Quartet
Twice Grammy award winning Nigerian percussionist, Lekan Babalola, is well known for his innovative musical style, using his native Yoruba tongue infused with traditional music, Afrobeat and funky dance overtones.
Lekan started his career playing in the Yoruba Christian Church owned by his father. As custodians of Yoruba tradition his family taught him first hand Yoruba art and culture and this has influenced all his work .He also received a cultural and political apprenticeship from the late Fela Kuti
In 1980 he came to Britain and as his skills as a master percussionist grew was invited to join Gasper Lawal in 1982. He continued his career in New York as part of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and returned to the UK where he performed with the likes of Ernest Ranglin, Branford Marsalis, and recently African Jazz All Stars, Roy Ayers, The Kate Luxmoore Group, David Byrne, Joshua Redman, Damon Albarn, Tony Allen, The KLLB Band, Axelle Red, Pinse Saul, Queen Salawa Abeni and Jean Toussaint.
He continued his career in New York as part of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and returned to the UK where he performed with the likes of Ernest Ranglin, Branford Marsalis, and recently African Jazz All Stars, Roy Ayers, The Kate Luxmoore Group, David Byrne, Joshua Redman, Damon Albarn, Tony Allen, The KLLB Band, Axelle Red, Pinse Saul, Queen Salawa Abeni and Jean Toussaint. “For me, music is about crossing boundaries and finding commonality globally. I love combining ancient and contemporary and my work with The Afrobeat Messengers has given me another opportunity to take traditional vibes and give them a contemporary twist,” says Babalola.
“Yoruba culture weaves its way through our modern lives through music and rhythm, and this gives me the chance to tell its story making it relevant to everyone today.”
Awarded his first Grammy in 2006 for performances on the late Ali Farka Toure’s album ‘In the Heart of the Moon’, he was awarded a second at the 49th Grammy awards in 2009 for his work as Associate Producer on the American jazz diva Cassandra Wilson’s album ‘Loverly’. World press has given him rave reviews for his percussive ‘wizardry’and infectious grooves.
Lekan now devotes himself to his solo, contemporary and traditional projects with regular appearances at concert venues around the world and has his own album released on the Mr. Bongo label entitled “Songs of Icons”.
Lekan studied film making at Central St Martin’s College of Art and Design, continuing his studies at Northern School of Film & Television, Leeds. In 1992 Spike Lee invited Lekan to be one of his assistant on the making of Malcolm X and he also spent six months on the post production of the film. This experience exposed him to a new expression of African Diaspora art and culture.
In 1995 Lekan Babalola founded the Ifa-Yoruba Contemporary Arts Trust, a UK based registered charity trust committed to fostering the development of Yoruba arts and culture.
As Artistic Director of Ifa-Yoruba he has commissioned and Curated a series of visual arts works, including “16 Pieces ” – an exhibition of contemporary Yoruba paintings by artists throughout the African Diaspora and “Erindinlogun” – a collection of 28 batik drawings by Nigerian based artist Taiwo Adediran.
In the last few years Olalekan has undertaken education work as part of his artistic programme and has an on-going relationships both in the UK, USA, Europe, Caribbean and Africa as a percussionist,, art Curator tutor, band leader / composer and producer.
DJ Dola
Website: www.djdola.com
Phone : 001 301 346 1199
Is an ardent music lover, vinyl collector, and passionate social dancer, DJ Dola was born in the UK, by Nigerian Yoruba parents. His love for music and dancing is from a very young age, listening to his dad’s record/vinyl collection, and he began collecting records/vinyl during the disco era of the 1970’s. His taste in music spans across most genres, which include traditional Yoruba, classical, contemporary Jazz, modern Jazz, country, rap, Hip Hop, RnB, African, Cuban Music Salsa, Latin Jazz, Guaguanco, Kizomba, Zouk etc.
Dola is a dancing DJ, and began djing at local parties and clubs in the 1970’s in Nigeria and in the 80s and 90s in London England. In 1998 he started a salsa school/social at Corts Wine Bar, Chancery Lane in London UK with Robert Charlemange, and moved to the Washington DC area in Jan 1999.
DJ Dola is co-owner of Baltimore Salsa Bachata Congress www.baltimorecongress.com. The premiere Latin dance event in Maryland, the first Congress of the year on the east coast of the USA, and hosted at the prestigious Baltimore Hilton, downtown. The the next one is from April 9-12, 2020
DJ Dola is also a co-founder of the hard core Salsa Underground DC vinyl Social www.salsaundergroundc.com hosted on the 1st and 3rd Sunday of every month at the Capital Ballroom in Bethesda, the only regular vinyl social in the region since 2013 playing salsa dura, salsa vieja, guaguanco, latin Jazz, cha cha cha and boogaloo and timba. He’s also a co-founder of Salsa Cubana Collaboration, and Turntablism Vinyl Experience, a vinyl social that brings together vinyl DJs from out of town.
Dola has traveled extensively globally working as a SAP software consultant, and djing in various countries and events in London UK, Bern, Geneva and Montreaux in Switzerland. Holland Netherlands, Salsa Nights Awards & Tunnel Night Club in Moscow Russia, Kiev Ukraine, NY, Salsa Glam 2009 New Year’s Eve Party Montreal, Canada. He was a regular DJ at Mr. Mambo’s Social in Washington DC, and in 2010 he was invited as one of the few DJs on the All Star Salsa Cruise in Barcelona.
Other events include Baila Duro Xtreme Cleveland Ohio, Latin Vintage 1st Friday’s Salsa Social Richmond VA, Pura Vintage Richmond, Mambo Room Norfolk VA, USA, Baltimore Cuban Salsa Party, Baltimore Salsa Bachata Congress, Art In Motion Social in Philadelphia, Johnny Sanchez Salsa and Chips at the Horseshoe Casino Baltimore and various events around the DMV area.
He was the resident DJ at the famous Barking Dog Salsa Tuesdays in Bethesda MD, DJ’s regularly at Clarendon Grill Salsa Mondays in Arlington VA, DC Casineros Cuban Dance Social, Rueda de Casino Baltimore Cuban Dance Social, and also at weddings and corporate events like the Smithsonian museum in DC.
Awards: 2013 Mr. Mambo’s “DJ for Life”, 2013 Honors Night, 2014 Honors Night, 2015 Honors Night DJ of the year, 2014 Salsa Underground DC “Event of the Year”, 2016 Honors Night DJ of the year.
Congresses: Baltimore Salsa Bachata Congress, Capital Congress, DC Fall Salsa Bachata Festival, Alaska Salsa Festival, Interfusion Festival DC, Nixmotion Festival Burlington Vermont
​Weddings Service
Service provide
Consult with Bride and Bridegroom before the event
Answer all questions and ask questions
Music played during cocktails, dinner & dancing as requsted
DJ arrives 1 hour before start time to set-up and conduct sound check
DJ familiar with indoor & outdoor set-up and sound mixing
Professional grade gear that delivers full, clear sound
Wireless microphone system for announcements anywhere in the room
All introductions and special festivities announced throughout the event as directed by you
Requests from your guests incorporated into the playlist unless otherwise directed by you
All of the above and more at a VERY affordable rate
Ask us about room uplighting and/or additional dancefloor lighting!
Seun Olota is a composer, performing artist, and leads the ExTasI gang. He has built his music stint within the context of dance, club, hymnal, c
horal, and therapeutic music with original compositions and orchestrations for the family of strings, percussion, brass, and wind instruments.
An art devotee and critique with zeal for realism whilst not disregarding views from absurdism, expressionism, experimentalism, surrealism, and impressionism in the world of ISMs. These views amalgamate his fusion flick of trado-urban music styles and sound shapes.
With exposures to musical and theatrical workshops, his band is a chunk of uncommon thinkers who are also recording artistes, scholars, and directors in their own rights yet, jointly set on a phrenic and theosophic quest that stretches music beyond aural sensibility into the threshold of touch, sight, taste, and smell. Albums to his credits include: Home Made (2006), Home Brew (2013), and Free Spot Show-Live (2015).
He is involved in advocacy and sensitization initiatives amongst which are surrogate schemes, campaign projects, and awareness programs for and with agencies on breast-feeding, immunization, down-syndrome, marital issues, polity, and gender related issues. He hosts a weekly live music show (The Free Spot Show) at The Freedom Park Lagos-Island in Nigeria featuring guest acts and the show has form a hub for the expression of conscious and alternative music.
He professes his credo simply thus, “… I revere acculturation and cultural barter initiatives because they form the spring-board required to fortify our unity and intellectual vigor.”
Address - Oyarinu Street, Alapere-Ketu, Lagos-Nigeria
Telephone - +234-806-302-9359
Email: olotaseun@yahoo.com
Click to below to listen