Wanda's Picks

Today we will feature King Sunny Adé, musical ambassador who is known for a musical style he made popular, "JuJu." Born into a Nigerian royal family, the artist/entrepreneur told me about how he began his musical career, why he took the name, "Sunny" and the work he has done as a member of the cultural arts ministry in Nigeria. He was on a tour with his latest album, "Seven Degrees North," when I decided to celebrate my birthday at his concert. It was also a day of freedom and jubilation--Juneteenth, a day that honors the Emancipation of black people in America. Adé’s father was a church organist, while his mother was a trader. Adé left grammar school in Ondo under the pretense of going to the University of Lagos. There in Lagos his mercurial musical career started (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Sunny_Ad%C3%A9). As he spoke to me via phone in a conversation which was in two parts, as we got disconnected, I asked him about the legacy of slavery and how his family addressed the issue, how the Nigerian gov