Angelique Kidjo, What Was the First Album You Ever Bought?

“Boy, I would say that it was probably a compilation album of Aretha Franklin’s greatest hits, but I didn’t get it until I moved to Europe.

In Africa, my brother used to buy a lot of albums when there were still record shops in Benin. But then it became a Communist dictatorship, and all the record shops disappeared, so I didn’t have the chance to buy any record albums when I was there. So it wasn’t until I moved to Europe that I bought my first album.

I was over 20 years old at the time. I remember that day I bought Aretha Franklin, Fela Kuti, Stevie Wonder’s ‘Songs in the Key of Life’ and the fourth one was by James Brown.”

Angelique Kidjo and her band will raise the roof at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall in Troy at 8pm on Thursday. Tix are $20, $25, $29, $37.