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World famous Kool & The Gang band thrills fans in Nairobi


Two-time Grammy Award winner Kool & the Gang band on Sunday left jazz, funk and soul music enthusiasts craving for more when they performed at the KICC, Nairobi.

Hundreds of fans showed up for the concert organised by Blankets and Wine in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism and The Stanley Hotel.

They were entertained with hit songs such as Celebration, Cherish, Fresh, Jungle Boogie, Summer Madness, Get Down on It and Ladies’ Night.

In October 2002, the 10-member group founded by Robert “Mr Kool” Bell also performed at an Aids awareness concert at Uhuru Park, Nairobi.

THREE-CITY TOUR

Nine-year-old Maya Okudo poses with the founder of Kool & the Gang, Mr Robert “Mr Kool” Bell, at the Kenya National Theatre, Nairobi, during a press briefing on November 13, 2016. PHOTO | EVANS HABIL
Nine-year-old Maya Okudo poses with the founder of Kool & the Gang, Mr Robert “Mr Kool” Bell, at the Kenya National Theatre, Nairobi, during a press briefing on November 13, 2016.
PHOTO | EVANS HABIL

At a press conference at the Kenya National Theatre, Mr Bell said Kool & The Gang was on a three-city tour also covering Mozambique and Uganda to “celebrate the good times”.

“There is nothing preventing us from recording music with Kenyan musicians,” said the legend. “We have done so in various parts of the world.”

Present were State House deputy director in charge of state branding and events Thomas Kwaka, better known as Big Ted, and ministry officials.

Formed in 1964, the American funk and rhythm and blues band has sold 70 million albums worldwide and won several awards, including two Grammys and seven American Music Awards.

Every song that they produced at the height of their popularity in the 1970s and ’80s turned into an anthem, making them the biggest-selling band of any genre then.