• Genre :: Urban/Hip hop
• Listen :: xx
• View :: Band Website
• download :: HiRes Image

Opus Akoben is an innovative rhyme-driven hip-hop funk band. Their name combines opus, the English word for a piece of music, with Akoben, the African Adinkra symbol warhorn, which means a call to action. The band calls its sound "funk hop" and describes it as "what Sly and the Family Stone would sound like if they did hip hop." They participated in the 2005 Rhythm Road tour to Northern Africa and the Middle East.

Jay Nichols (drums) is a drummer and pianist. He is a producer and songwriter for television and film and is currently the drummer for international recording artist Citizen Cope. Mr. Nichols has performed in Japan, Europe, and across the U.S. He currently lives in Washington D.C.

Terence (Sub-Z) Nicholson (vocals) is an accomplished painter, musician and martial artist who co-founded the Freestyle Union in 1994. He attended the Corcoran School of Art on a scholarship for painting and sculpture and later founded Opus Akoben with his childhood comrade, Carl Walker. Mr. Nicholson remains active in the visual arts community and has also earned a black belt in Chinese boxing. He currently teaches martial arts to children with special needs in Washington, D.C. and exhibits his paintings and sculpture.

Kokayi (pronounced koh-kai-yee) (vocals) unites people with his incredible performance ability. He is multi-talented—singing, playing piano and drums, writing poetry, and creating visual art. His acclaimed freestyle ability earned him a space on the board of the Freestyle Union, an organization dedicated to the art of hip-hop.

Ezra Greer (bass) started playing guitar at age 5 and switched to bass at age 8. He grew up playing in the very fertile scene of funk bands in the D.C. metro area and went on to produce tracks with various hip-hop artists. In 1991, Mr. Greer produced an album with saxophonist Steve Coleman. He has been playing and producing with Opus Akoben since the group's conception.