By Flourish Joshua
On the vibrant evening of May 23rd in Bradford, music, laughter, and cultural celebration converged at the highly anticipated UK Laugh & Sing concert organised by Tope Dada.
Hosted at the Glory Community Centre, the event brought together an eclectic blend of music, live performance, comedy, poetry and communal expression in what became one of the city’s most uplifting multicultural gatherings of the season.
Yet amid the vocal performances and jubilant atmosphere, one figure consistently controlled the emotional temperature of the evening without needing to stand at the centre microphone: Emmanuel Ifejika, widely recognised as Emmy Stikxx.
As lead drummer for the concert, Emmy Stikxx delivered a masterpiece in rhythmic storytelling. His drumming did more than accompany songs; it animated the entire experience. Every transition between music, celebration, and spontaneous audience interaction seemed guided by the intelligence of his drums.
From the opening moments of the concert, his drums established a pulse that audiences instinctively responded to. Whether underscoring soaring vocals or driving moments of collective praise, his drumming carried both precision and spirit. The crowd swayed, clapped, danced, and sang in synchronisation with rhythms that felt deeply African yet universally accessible.
The concert itself was designed as a celebration of unity, wellbeing, faith, and positive community engagement through creative expression. But it was Emmy Stikxx’s drums that often transformed those ideals into something tangible and physical.
At several moments throughout the evening, his drumming became almost conversational. He anticipated emotional peaks before they arrived, gradually layering rhythms that lifted the audience into collective participation. His playing possessed an unusual balance: technically disciplined yet spiritually instinctive.
Watching him perform, one understood quickly that drums for Emmy Stikxx is not background music. It is language.
The Bradford-based musician has steadily emerged as one of the defining drummers and percussionists within the city’s expanding African arts movement. His performances across major cultural programmes connected to Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture, including BD:Festival 2025 and the Bradford African Festival of Arts 2025, have established him as both performer and cultural ambassador.
Days after the concert, I spoke with Emmy Stikxx in an aftermath conversation about arts and the evolving role of drums in diasporic creative spaces:
Flourish Joshua: Your performance at UK Laugh & Sing seemed deeply emotional for audiences. What does drumming represent to you personally?
Emmy Stikxx: Drumming is communication for me. In African tradition, drums speak before words do. They carry emotion, spirituality, celebration, warning, even healing. So every time I play, I feel connected to something much older than the performance itself.
Joshua: African drums seem capable of connecting people regardless of culture or language. Why do you think that is?
Emmy Stikxx: Because rhythm is human before it is cultural. Everybody understands vibration. African drums connect directly to the body and spirit. You may not understand the language of the singer, but your body understands rhythm instinctively.
Joshua: How important are events like UK Laugh & Sing for African artists in the diaspora?
Emmy Stikxx: They’re very important because they create visibility and belonging. They allow African creativity to exist confidently in mainstream cultural spaces instead of being treated as something occasional or secondary.
Joshua: Some people still see drummers mainly as supporting musicians. Does that perception concern you?
Emmy Stikxx: Not really. The drum has always been central in African music. Remove drums from many performances and the emotional structure changes completely. Drummers are storytellers too, we just tell stories through rhythm.
Joshua: What do you hope audiences leave with after watching you perform?
Emmy Stikxx: Connection. Joy. Energy. I want people to feel something authentic. If somebody leaves more inspired, more united, or more curious about African culture, then the performance has achieved something meaningful.
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There is a growing confidence among African artists in Britain today, a willingness not merely to participate in cultural conversations, but to shape them. Emmy Stikxx belongs firmly within that movement.
His artistry exists at the intersection of preservation and evolution. He honours traditional African rhythmic structures while adapting them for contemporary multicultural audiences. He performs not with nostalgia, but with continuity, carrying heritage forward rather than simply looking backward.
In many ways, his performance at UK Laugh & Sing reflected the broader artistic awakening currently reshaping Bradford itself. The city’s cultural renaissance has increasingly become defined by artists capable of bridging communities through creativity, rhythm, and shared experience.
And on that unforgettable evening at Glory Community Centre, Emmanuel “Emmy Stikxx” Ifejika once again proved why drums remain one of the most powerful artistic languages ever created.