It really can't be done properly with any less than 12 people. For me, it's never been an issue because the music always comes first. It's always sad when I see a great band, like a great Latin band or a great funk band or a great African band, that I know would sound better if they were able to hire two or three more musicians. But too often the band leader is so intent on just making a living that he's forced to cut corners at the expense of the music. People like to see live music, but at the same time they don't hold it in high enough regard to pay the musicians what they're worth.
Live music is really, really taken for granted.
We definitely have our voice within Afrobeat, and we're pushing the music forward, too. I mean we could just be a Fela cover band, but that's not what we're about. When the group was formed, it was like me running around and doing everything, busting my tail trying to convince people that this was for real and worth doing. At the same time, I was really trying to form a collective. But I think that in any collective, there's generally one person who provides the spark that gets things going.