While onstage I allow myself to go where the song wants to take me. Often, it is my band that takes a groove somewhere else and I follow, other times it will be me exploring a melody and my band following me. But in the end we always come back to the song!

Back onstage with his full band after a three-year hiatus, Sodi Cookey’s inaugural show at The Camden Club was a barn-storming success.

The packed venue was treated to two hours of incredible African-jazz-infused music - ranging from standards, like a rendition of Sarah Vaughn’s Misty, to Nigerian hi-life to down-and-dirty funk.

Raised in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, Cookey continued to show why the continent is a melting pot of musical talent able to compete on the international stage in any musical medium.