Two of the country’s top Congolese and Afrobeat acts – Elikya Band and Yankari – took to Ballykeeffe Amphitheatre on Sunday on another busy weekend of music in the venue (Kíla were in action on Saturday), driven by Crossroads Recording.
Formed from the ashes of Dublin’s Afrobeat Ensemble in 2019, Yankari combine rhythms, melodies and parables from their respective Yoruba and Igbo roots with addictive hooks delivered in “pidgin English”, creating a sound reminiscent of the afrobeat greats of the ’60s and ’70s, elaborated on to create a 21st-century heavy groove.
Following on from the release of their debut EP “Memoirs of Our Times” and numerous sold-out performances at Dublin’s Sugar Club, Yankari have performed at festivals including All Together Now and the Electric Picnic.
For their part, Elikya (meaning ‘hope’ in Lingala) formed in Limerick in 2001 with the primary objective of promoting multicultural diversity and integration through the medium of Congolese music and culture.
Elikya began as a choir involving mainly people from Africa and students from the Irish World Music Academy at the University of Limerick. It has now evolved into a full-on Congolese Rumba Orchestra interpreting the classics of this dance and melody-driven music whilst pushing the music into new frontiers.
Mc Gig Photography were on hand to capture the action.
Photos: Yankari
Photos: Elikya Band
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