Inspiration, name-free
William Onyeabor
Late-1970s nigerian synth afro funk from the 1970s: squelchy moog lead, arp string synth, wobbling synth bass, hypnotic and futuristic in feel. A name-free Suno recipe that reproduces the signature sound without tripping the artist-name filter.
Style: Afro-Funk · Related styles: Synth-Funk, Funk, P-Funk, Highlife
History
William Onyeabor made some of the strangest and most hypnotic funk to come out of West Africa, built on cheap drum patterns, buzzing analogue synthesizers and long, repetitive vamps. Working from Enugu in Nigeria, he released his records himself on his own Wilfilms label between 1977 and 1985, eight albums including Crashes in Love, Atomic Bomb and Body & Soul. His tracks often run for many minutes on a single groove, with synth lines that wobble and squeal over a steady beat, chanted hooks and plain-spoken lyrics about love, war and fate. They sound closer to early electronic pop than to the horn-driven Afrobeat of Lagos. After his music career he became a born-again Christian, turned to business and refused to talk about his songs for the rest of his life, which only deepened the mystery. The 2013 Luaka Bop compilation Who Is William Onyeabor? brought the music to a wide international audience, decades after it was made. He died in Enugu in 2017. A listener recognises him instantly by those raw synth riffs looping over a drum machine.
The recipe
Opening the recipe…