Femi Odewole releases ‘appreciation’, set for debut juju EP

Femi Odewole, a guitarist, musician and leader of a popular highlife group, The Guitar Band, has dropped a new song and video, ‘Appreciation’ to celebrate his 40th birthday.

Odewole, speaking on the idea behind the new song, said that he decided to release a song in celebration of his 40th anniversary and to appreciate the love and reception from fans all over the world who patronise his band and music, adding that he was entering a new phase in his career and would tell his story in a soon-to-be-released EP.

He said, “I am indeed grateful to everyone for the love I have received in my life and career over the years. The journey has not been easy but God has been faithful. To this end, I decided to release a new song titled ‘Appreciation’ to thank God for my life and appreciate my fans all over the world for identifying with my music.

“I have been writing personal songs for a while now. My first official single was titled ‘Unlimited Ariya’ a fusion of Calypso and highlife. Now it is ‘Appreciation’ which is percussion heavy. My EP is almost ready and fans will be quite pleased.”

Going down memory lane, the Chemical Engineering graduate of Ladoke Akintola University spoke about his journey into music.

“I was 21 when I decided to form my band. Before then, I was playing for the legendary Jimi Solanke and later, Gbenga Adenuga. Before forming the band, I decided that I wanted to do things differently so I started rehearsing different old English songs and playing them with African beats.“Afterwards, I recruited people in my age group with the same vision and told them what I was trying to do. It was not easy in the beginning but things smoothened out eventually.”