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I intend also to avoid givens: Robert Plant, Mick Jagger, David Bowie, Freddie Mercury, any of the Beatles (apart from Ringo obviously), as this would be both boring for me and uninteresting for you. In short, I am attempting to initiate a new, younger class of music legends who have either shown greatness or are showing the potential to do so. And now, with the housekeeping in order, let’s begin...
Kele Okereke
At the tender age of 29 this might be a controversial choice. However, Kele Okereke is without a shadow of doubt one of my musical heroes. Often portrayed by the press as being awkward, shy and even difficult, Kele has never pandered to the wants of the public. He is very much his own man and has a unique take on the modern world and depicts this with his immensely emotive voice. You could describe his philosophy of public and personal property as closed or standoffish but I believe this deserves a great deal of respect in a time when most people are more than willing to sell themselves out for an ounce of fame. As a musician Kele has made it clear that his public expression should come from his music, not his personality. From my perspective anyone put off by his media demeanour should listen to the open and insightful music he creates to get a true image of the man.
Kele is by no means a conventional rock star. Significantly for me, Kele is frank and brave in his lyrics and doesn’t shy away from controversial topics. Musically his courage is also evident, never happy to rest on his laurels Kele has shown a hunger for new styles that led him to pursue a solo project outside of his main band Bloc Party. During the band’s hiatus Kele released his first solo album, The Boxer, which has received mixed critical and commercial success. I myself enjoyed Kele’s solo material, however it was with Bloc Party where my adoration for the man began.
Although never comfortable with the labels that came with it, Kele was unable to stop himself from becoming somewhat of an indie icon for a ‘young, misfit’ generation. As a black front man and, sometime later, an open homosexual, Kele seemed to connect with a large, disillusioned audience. However, I felt it was always his prophetic, haunting and candid observations of modern life and its struggles that ingratiated Kele with his cohort of fans rather than as a public performer.
Kele is somewhat of an enigma. With the potential to seem colossal and universal whilst performing but then at the same time somehow introverted, sensitive and bashful, Kele fascinates. Combine that with his vocal ability, clear musical ear and individual style and you have the makings of a legend. Crucially Kele makes music that matters, music about real issues and real people. Music that, in his own words, helps to ‘lessen the sense of alienation and isolation’. This is an important man.
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