The African contemporary music scene across the UK never seems to stop surprising one. Over the years, this writer has observed quite a number of exciting music activations, community events and concert performances where artists, including faith-based musicians and secular acts, continue to express their artistry towards a wider audience. It is giving the local music scene an international face and has become one of the focal points of our musical growth, especially in how live performances are packaged.

Recently, the Sheffield community in the United Kingdom joined the list of hotspots across Europe where African music continues to thrive.

At A Night with King of Kings, a night of live faith-based music, three artists, Deborah Ajayi, Ipraiz and SimplyFaith, converged on the same stage to perform a medley of indigenous faith-based African folk music. The entire spectacle was another masterclass in indigenous and progressive contemporary African music showcase, built around energetic rhythms, Yoruba lyrics and a stretched band of backing singers and live instrumentalists.

One of the vocalists this writer spotted was Mary Omolara Oluwafemi, whose role as one of the main voices in the backing choir gave the performance another layer of movement. During Eseun o, one of the opening songs, the singers rearranged the familiar Thanksgiving song with new lyrics and crowd interaction prompts. The ad-lib, “What are you doing?” followed by “I am dancing,” had a playful quality that almost resembles the score of SpongeBob SquarePants. Elsewhere, “Shake, shake, shake your bodi!” brings another comic spark into the arrangement, giving the audience little pockets of humour and movement within the music.

The choir also locks into unison with the main singers at key moments, particularly on the Yoruba refrain, “Oya e bere mole ke ma jo.” These moments show how the backing voices can strengthen a melodic section and give the lead vocals somewhere to land. Mary and the other backing singers move within these sections with a clear sense of timing, following the melody while allowing the percussion to take a sonic lead. The tonal clarity of the voices sits neatly against the rhythmic density of the band, creating a resonance that holds the different parts of the performance together.

There is also something interesting about how the backing choir manages the tension of the show. The lead singers carry the primary performance, while the backing voices provide responses, chants, prompts and ad-libs that keep the energy circulating across the stage. Their interventions can be playful, devotional or simply rhythmic, depending on what the song requires. This gives the performance a conversational quality, with the audience constantly invited into the music.

The medley eventually closes with Miracle No Dey Taya Jesus, and by this point, the distinction between the main singers and backing choir almost disappears. Everyone sings alike, filling the performance with a collective vocal force. It is a fitting ending for a show whose strength depends heavily on togetherness.

For Mary, the performance demonstrates the importance of a backing vocalist who understands the larger architecture of a live show. The backing choir supplies harmony, rhythm, response and atmosphere. It gives the lead singers room to breathe while maintaining the momentum of the music. In live performance, these voices can determine how full a song feels, how easily an audience follows its movement and how strongly a musical moment resonates after it has passed. Mary’s contribution sits within that collective effort, adding another voice to the intricate machinery that makes a live African music performance come alive.