Rick Asikpo, Afro Fusion

Soundway Records is proud to reissue Got To Be Me, the cult-favourite LP by Rick Asikpo & Afro Fusion—a synth-drenched blend of Southern U.S. jazz-funk and West African soul, originally recorded in 1981 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and pressed only in Nigeria. Long sought-after by collectors, the album now resurfaces as a vital missing link between the dancefloor experiments of Houston and Lagos.

Rick Asikpo was a Nigerian student living in Houston when he joined The People’s Workshop—a Black artist collective known for nurturing youth musicians, poets, and performers. Their Houston Talent Expo LP included “Let’s Get High,” a soulful, slow-burning track that notably featured Charlie Singleton of funk super group Cameo on guitar. This track is also featured on Got To Be Me, suggesting Asikpo’s close ties to a vibrant community of Southern U.S. musicians whose influence stretched beyond state lines.

Asikpo recorded the album at River City Studios in Baton Rouge with local Louisiana musicians, including Ray Mouton, a key figure in the regional zydeco scene - bringing a subtle touch of Louisiana’s rich musical heritage to the project. The result is a distinctive blend of boogie, soul, Afro-disco and funk reminiscent of Earth Wind & Fire and The Crusaders, all refracted through a diasporic lens.