Femi Anikulapo-Kuti to perform at opening ceremony of African Cup of Nations tomorrow

AFROBEAT king Femi Anikulapo-Kuti will be one of the three musicians performing at the opening ceremony of the 32nd African Cup of Nations tournament kicking off in Egypt tomorrow.

Femi, a four-time Grammy award nominee, will be joined by two other musicians, Hakim from Egypt and Dobet Gnahore from Ivory Coast. This year's expanded African Cup of Nations involving 24 teams, which lasts until July 19, will be preceded with a colourful opening ceremony.

According to the Confederation of African Football, Femi would perform the official song for this year’s tournament alongside Hakim and Gnahore. He will perform in English, while Hakim and Gnahore perform in Arabic and French respectively.

At the opening ceremony in Cairo, the three international musicians will sing Metgamaeen, which translates to We Are Together, produced by Synergy together on stage. Femi had previously performed at the opening ceremony of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa at the Soccer City Stadium on June 11, 2010 in Johannesburg.

Tomorrow, when the tournament kicks off, hosts Egypt will play Zimbabwe in the opening match while the Super Eagles will take on debutants Burundi in their opening fixture on Saturday. Nigeria, who are one of the favourites to lift the trophy alongside Egypt, Senegal, Morocco and Tunisia, have been placed in Group B alongside Guinea, Madagascar and Burundi.