"Un-kid-ified music." Now there is a concept.

Un-kid-i-fide music is music that sounds like today's music, but with the kid's focus and vibe removed; music to which the 28 to 65 or older crowd can relate. When so much music is geared to a younger market, and much of it contains objectionable, or border-line objectionable lyrics, Asure Akhi Amen, a.k.a. A-Kube has developed a sound that is geared to a more mature market, or a market that would appreciate a more mature sound.

The music of A-Kube is truly world music and "un-kid-ifide." His music flavor may include a vocal drawl, that some may compare as soulful and mellow as a Marvin Gaye or Sam Cook, with a soulful "like-Otis-Redding" twang. Good luck world, here comes A-Kube.

All About Jazz (AAJ): You have an approach to your music that is unique to popularly promoted music. What is "un-kid-ified" music?

A-Kube (AK): "Un-kid-i-fide" music is music that sounds like today's music, but with the kid's focus and vibe removed. A lot of music today has a backdrop of some kind. Like, how are you riding? What are you packing for self defense? What you want to do to your mate? How you want to kill your brother, or what's happening at school or on the play ground? Hell, for a lot of us baby boomers, the last time we were at the playground we had our grandkids with us, thus the birth of "un-kid-i-fide" music for the baby boomer. I think "un-kid-i-fide" music is music the 28 to 65 or older crowd can relate to

AAJ: Your earliest introduction to this more mature sound in music started as your older siblings introduced you to what they were enjoying musically. What was your earliest introduction to music? How large of a family did you come from? Was your family musical?

AK: My earliest intro to music was through my siblings who were actually my uncles and aunts and a teenage mother. There was always music and dancing. I can remember hearing my grandmother make beautiful sounds come from her mouth. She sang all day long while she did her chores. Gospel, of course. She even introduced me to the click sounds. Click sound are sounds you can make using the tongue and roof of your mouth to make it click or clock like the sounds that horses make when they walk. A lot of music from the African continent use the click sounds. One person I loved to hear do it was Mariam Makeba.

I must have been about five years old when I began to try to imitate the sounds I heard coming from her. I had two uncles, an aunt and my mother as siblings coming up in my family. One of my uncles sang in the school choir and my mother and her sister both sang in the church choir. I can't remember when growing up that music was not in my life. Even though no one played an accompanying instrument and we never gathered around to sing hymns, music was a very important factor in my family. Life was almost like the movies, meaning you can go through life each day and make all the necessary moves, but put some music in it and it suddenly comes alive.

AAJ : Your musical interest grew to include other performers of similar music. How were you introduced to these other performers? Do you consider them, or a combination of these and your earliest introductions your biggest early influences?

AK: My uncles and aunts were between 15 and 20 years older than me, and they kept the stereo going when they were all home together. Without a doubt all that music that was being played throughout the house, like Sam Cook, Jackie Wilson, Solomon Burke, Otis Redding, Jerry Butler, Curtis Mayfield and the Impressions I could go on an on, influences my music today. Listening to them is how I formed my definition of music.

AAJ: How did you start singing?

AK: I started singing trying to imitate my grandmother. She had a magnificent voice. And when you went to our church back in the day, you sang, pretty much everybody sang in the services. That was part of it. The preacher had a very good, strong voice, of course, demanded that everyone open their mouth and sang. On many occasions there was not an organist or pianist. The church during those days had almost perfect rhythm. With the patter of the feet of what seemed liked the entire congregation, the rhythm time was kept. Man it sounded so beautiful. And that was just to much for my young fertile ears to resist. Those vibrations penetrated to my very soul where it affected me to this very day.

AAJ: Growing up as you did in Mobile, (Alabama) you had two options. You either sang in the church choir, or performed under the street lights. What are your earliest memories of singing?

AK: Funny I have never forgotten the little skit I used to do. One room, had a curtain that separated one room from another. All the rooms had curtains that separated them from the other rooms. So when my people would play music, I would come from behind the curtain as if I was on the Ed Sullivan Show. I still can remember that. [Laughs].

comments powered by Disqus