Afrobeat icons Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 have released the new song “T.O.P.”, which stands for “Things Over People.” “T.O.P.” is the second single from their upcoming album Heavier Yet (Lays The Crownless Head) on Record Kicks.
“I believe that, in this world, humanity has been forced into an unnatural competition,” Seun says. “We are educated in a way where we see our brothers and sisters as our competitors rather than our solution. Everybody wants to be at the top. Everybody wants to be first. Everybody wants to be more special and do better. ‘Things Over People’ is what the system demands. The ultimate goal of this unnatural competition that we create amongst ourselves is to accumulate things. This process causes so many atrocities, from the oppression of nature to the oppression of humanity. I wrote this song not only as a voice of reason, but also as a spokesperson for nature. Humanity has lost a lot of its empathy and sympathy, so there’s no way we can hear nature. I believe that if I speak human language on her behalf, maybe the people will hear it.”
Seun has released four albums during his career with Egypt 80: Many Things (2008); From Africa With Fury: Rise (2011), which was co-produced by Brian Eno and John Reynolds; A Long Way to the Beginning (2014); and Grammy-nominated Black Times (2018), which includes Carlos Santana as guest.
Author: World Music Central News Room
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