It was a platter of wide-ranging musical dishes from Ghana, Mozambique, Denmark, USA and South Africa and the mastermind behind the servings - Ghanaian saxophonist Steve Bedi - was confident there would be more of such feasts in the coming years.
The man has come a long way from his playing days with the Ghana Navy Band to collaborating with first-rate Jazz and fusion acts from around the world and now headlining and directing a music festival he founded.
The maiden edition of his Jazzin’ Africa Festival came off at the Movenpick Ambassador Hotel, Accra on October 25, 2025. It was a moment for him to breathe a sigh of relief that a long-cherished aspiration had been accomplished.
The show tried to showcase different branches of the African musical tree. Guitarist/singer, Albino Mbie from Mozambique, sounded adventurous with his performance as he sang about cultural pride and got the audience involved with his act.
Percussionist Ayi Solomom started his career from Ghana but has over the last 42 years, deservedly become a key figure on the Danish Jazz and fusion scene. He doesn’t like musicians being put into strict categories and perhaps that was why he exhibited himself more as a composer, singer and dancer on the night.
South Africa has a rich, enduring vocal tradition and singer Dudu Makhoba clicked gracefully with almost everyone at the programme. Through her repertoire, she paid tribute to some of her country’s accomplished composers like Jonas Gwangwa, Letha Mbulu and Sibongile Khumalo before closing with a track from her upcoming debut album.
It was American saxophonist, Tom Braxton’s fifth appearance in Ghana on the night. Alternating between alto, tenor and soprano saxophones, he showed what a good entertainer he was by way of his usual smooth grooves of Jazz, Pop, Funk, and Soul fusion and light-hearted interaction with the audience.
Steve Bedi was the last act on the show. He sang a bit, played his alto saxophone and offered a repertoire that included a Highlife-drenched piece from his Syncos Jazz album.
The carpet band of Eric Ofori (drums), James Siebu (percussion), Seth Ansah Otoo (sax), Jonathan ‘Amadan’ Onyame (trumpet) Samuel Agyeman Boahen (guitar), Nicholas Mettle and Carl Amoah (keyboards), Gaddiel Amoah (bass) and a trio of backing singers were highly efficient.
According to Bedi, he and his team had learnt a lot of useful lessons from the inaugural edition of the Jazzin’ Africa event and were already pushing on with preparation for the 2026 edition. He was happy they had supported their words with constructive actions and expressed hope that Jazzin’ Africa could only get better and better as the years roll by.
