KALETA ZOZO AFROBEAT

Kaleta, Leon Ligan-Majek, was born in the Republic of Benin but moved to Lagos, Nigeria, at a tender age. He began playing guitar in the church choir, having been influenced by not only American musicians like James Brown and Otis Redding but also by Fela Kuti, King Sunny Ade, Ebenezer Obey, IK Dairo, Bob Marley, to mention but a few. He took an active role in kids' drum groups back home in his homeland, playing music popularly known as Kaleta drums and dances. Masquerades that perform annually to raise funds during Christmas. He later played, recorded, and toured with King Sunny Ade, Fela Kuti, Femi Kuti, and Shina Peters before moving to the US, where he also played and toured with Lauryn Hill. Kaleta formed his band ZOZO AFROBEAT in 2005 while still playing with AKOYA Afrobeat, also based in New York. Kaleta has collaborated with many bands and DJs worldwide, among them are DJ Bosq, DJ Mowgan, DJ Center, Zongo Junction, etc. His first Afrobeat album, "Country of Guns," was recorded in New York. He also released two singles in 2012, "Mugabe" and "Shit Music." Two new albums are in the making and will be released in summer 2014. For more info, please follow Kaleta on Facebook as LEON LIGAN MAJEK KALETA and Twitter as ZOZO AFROBEAT.