Roo AOTD #53 Jupiter & Okwess

All aboard the hype train for Bonnaroo 2023! Only 68 days until we are all on the Farm again, can you believe it? It’s coming up fast and we can’t wait to be dancing with all of you at Bonnaroo! Today’s Artist of the Day is the one and only Jupiter & Okwess. Learn more about the artist below. Don’t forget to check out all of our artist spotlights! Check back in with us tomorrow for the next Artist of The Day!

Artist Biography

Jupiter & Okwess is a Afropop band comprised of Jupiter Bokondji and his backing band Okwess. Jupiter was born in the Congolese capital of Kinshasa but spent most of his childhood in Berlin as his father was a diplomat. While in Berlin, he was exposed to American soul and funk music including James Brown and Kool & the Gang. When he returned to Congo, he took further inspiration from rhythms and native traditions to start his music career against his family’s wishes. This all happened prior to the 1980s as that is when Jupiter played with a revolving lineup that combined Western and African music. Jupiter & Okwess was then born in the 90s and found their popularity coinciding with the First Congo War of the same decade. The band performed when they could while enduring the hardships that came from their country’s civil war. French filmmakers Reaud Barrett and Florent de la Tullaye based their 2006 documentary Jupiter’s Dance on Jupiter & Okwess’s music which brought the band to the global stage. In the following decade, the band saw many successes through international touring and collaborations including with Damon Albarn and Robert Del Naja of the Gorillaz and Massive Attack, respectively.

Genre

Afropop, Funk

Scheduled at Bonnaroo

Friday (Link to Daily Schedules)