2Baba headlines German Unity Day concert

The event, which took place last night and commemorated the anniversary of East and West Germany coming together in 1990, was attended by Ade Bantu, Vector and Efe Omoregbe. The evening's host, German Consul General in Lagos Ingo Herbert, welcomed guests and referred to the night’s star attraction as “very much engaged."

Clad in a black traditional outfit and a hat with the image of a red bull, 2Baba began his set with ‘One Love’, managing to reach the stage after a throng of attendees mobbed him with cameras.  Moving from songs from his vast catalogue—including ‘Right Here’ and ‘See Me So’—to a cover of Kool & the Gang's ‘Get Down On It’, he performed to whoops, occasionally pausing to banter his audience and reconstructing parts of his own song. He worked "Germany" into an adlib and switched a well-known line from ‘African Queen’ to “You remind me of a thing and that is the African booty.”

A request for some German words during an exchange with the audience led to someone suggesting “Merci beaucoup”. That is French, he replied, “and since we dey Germany make we use danke.”

The session continued with 2Baba singing a medley of his hit songs including ‘Implication’ and ‘True Love’. About an hour after he got onstage, he departed and was replaced by Vector who sang a couple of songs.

"He is an artist that everyone can connect with and that is what you need for this environment,” said Ade Bantu about 2Baba’s appearance at the event. “You can identify with him boldly in public."

Emeka Okereke, another attendee, spoke about the 2Baba’s importance. “His music came when people wanted to be free,” said Okereke. “When he sings people remember not just the moment; they are also celebrating democracy.”

For Herbert, the night was also about two men not present at the event: the leaders of Germany and Nigeria. He offered a “toast to our two nations” and “to peace and prosperity for our nations and to the wellbeing of our two presidents.”