Pianist Kofi Boakye to play R&B, originals to kick off Valentine's weekend at Knight Stage
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Kofi B. and Friends will kick off Valentine's Day weekend at the Knight Stage at the Akron Civic Theatre Friday with a concert of R&B music plus originals by Akron-born pianist Kofi Boakye.
He'll also feature mashups of popular songs with his original songs that he's made popular on social media.
"It's always that element of surprise that I think I'm really excited to bring to a live stage this year, so it's exciting," Boakye said by phone Tuesday.
The busy Boakye, 24, had his last stop on his Just Play It Tour in Atlanta Thursday. Upcoming cities will be Washington, D.C., Chicago and Los Angeles.
His Akron concert at the 200-seat Knight Stage, featuring his six-man band, costs $40 each. For tickets, see akroncivic.com or call 330-253-2488.
In 2022, Boakye won the 88th Season of the Apollo Theater’s “Amateur Night At The Apollo” competition, going home with a $20,000 prize. With the win, he joined the ranks with previous winners Ella Fitzgerald, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, H.E.R. and James Brown.
More: Akron pianist Kofi Boakye wins grand $20,000 prize in Apollo Theater competition
The same year, Boakye was nominated for two Central Great Lakes regional Emmy Awards for interviews and musical content produced under his production company, BlaBoak Ventures. He maintains a music studio in Akron's North Hill.
Last year, he made his acting debut playing the piano in the biopic "Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody."
More: Akron native Kofi Boakye plays piano in pivotal Whitney Houston movie scene
In Akron, Boakye also will give the talk "Beyond the Keys: An Unplugged Fireside Chat with Pianist Kofi B." at 5 p.m. Thursday at the Jean Hower Taber Student Union Gardner Theatre. The event, hosted by Kierra Cotton, in-game host of the Cleveland Cavaliers and WKYC (Channel 3) reporter, is free and open to the public.
Boakye is an Akron Early College graduate of the University of Akron, where he was the youngest African American pianist accepted into the University of Akron jazz program at age 15. His talk as the 2024 Black History Month keynote speaker is sponsored by UA's Offices of Inclusion and Equity and Multicultural Development.
For more information, see uakron.edu/ie.
Boakye, who works to incorporate speaking engagements about his music journey into cities where he performs, will be keynote speaker next month for the Deeper Learning educational conference in San Diego. Last summer, his speech for Akron's NAACP Scholarship Luncheon went viral on social media.
Arts and restaurant writer Kerry Clawson may be reached at 330-996-3527 or kclawson@thebeaconjournal.com.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Kofi Boakye to perform at Knight Stage show at Akron Civic
