Femi Kuti, the son of late Afrobeat legend, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, has broken the world record for the longest single note held on a saxophone.
He attained the feat on Sunday at the New Africa Shrine as shared by his sister, Yeni Anikulapo-Kuti on her Instagram page @yenikuti: “This evening, 7th May, at the New Africa Shrine, Femi Kuti broke the world record for the longest single note on a saxophone note set in 1997 by Kenny G.
The record stood at 45 mins 37 seconds….Femi did 46 mins 38seconds!! Give it up, we have a world champ.
“This was witnessed by a large audience which included Senator Ben Murray-Bruce, Deputy High Commissioners of Netherlands and the United Kingdom.”
The record was previously set in December, 1997 by legendary saxophonist, Kenny G, when he held an E-Flat for over 45 minutes.
Kenny G was reported to have used a technique called Circular Breathing, which keeps a steady stream of air flowing through the saxophone even as the player breathes.
For Femi Kuti, it is unclear yet what technique he used or even the member of the sax family he used to achieve the massive feat.
He started playing the sax when he was 15 and joined his father’s band The Egypt 80.
He later formed his own band, Positive Force in the late 1980s.
Femi, four-time Grammy award nominee, is skilled on other musical instruments, including the trumpet and the piano.
According to media reports, Femi awaits official recognition by the Guinness World Record.
