Le Freak

Le Freak return to PizzaExpress Live with their usual Christmas show.

Nile Rodgers is the man behind some of the very best – and most iconic dance, funk and pop music ever produced. We would challenge any music lover this side of mars not to have heard and probably danced to his music. Nile Rodgers is one of the most influential artists of his generation.

New York-based Grammy Award winner Nile Rodgers has celebrated success both as an artist and producer, working across a range of genres. He's been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame, having produced work by the likes of Diana Ross, David Bowie and Madonna. Rodgers has also collaborated with Daft Punk, Avicci and Sigala in recent years.

Formed in the '70s with the since departed Bernard Edwards, Rodgers is also the co-founder of CHIC. The band pioneered a musical language that generated numerous top 10 pop hits like Everybody Dance, Le Freak, I Want Your Love and Dance, Dance, Dance – plus their song Good Times sparked the advent of hip hop.

This collective sells out regularly and it’s musicians are renowned for having performed with numerous international artists including Al Hudson, Archie Bell, Kashif, Jean Carne, Roberto Pla etc.

Please note - Le Freak is a collective therefore line-ups can change and alter.

Nile is known in the industry as the funky guitarist, co-founder and primary songwriter of Chic, one of the biggest and most influential bands of the funk and disco era.

Nile’s funky guitar style is very recognisable and widely imitated. His time, groove and feel are what you would associate with the very best in pop, funk and disco music.

Chic’s very first major hit was ‘Everybody Dance’ in 1977, this was followed by ‘Le Freak’ which was also a number one hit in 1978. Chic stamped their reputation as the best commercial funk band of all time, when in 1979 they released ‘Good Times.’ Later ton in the same year, ‘The Sugarhill Gang’ used the groove from ‘Good Times’ on what was the first hip-hop single ‘Rapper’s Delight.’ Nile Rodgers played a huge part in developing an entirely new genre of music. During the same period Nile was to start producing, co-writing, and recording guitar for other artistes. He penned massive global hits for Sister Sledge and in 1980 gave the phenomenal Diana Ross a musical makeover for her major hit album Diana. His work and collaborations also formed the basis of some major rap songs that were to be released some years later. ‘The Greatest Dancer’ became Will Smiths ‘Get’ Jiggy With It’ and “I’m Coming Out” became ‘Mo Money, Mo Problems’ performed by Puff Daddy.

In 1983 Nile worked with David Bowie on his record Let’s Dance. The record became one of DB’s biggest commercial hits and is now arguably one of his most known songs. Nile was also asked to produce the song ‘Original Sin,’ which was the band INXS first major hit in the USA. Responsible for the production on ‘Notorious’ and ‘The Reflex’ he also played a huge part in Duran Duran’s massive career, these titles being two of the bands’ biggest worldwide hits.

Nile’s awesome input on ‘Like A Virgin,’ Madonna’s 2nd album release, set his reputation in stone, as one of the best record producers of the 1980s. The album literally catapulted Madonna to superstar fame with smash hit single releases, ‘Like A Virgin’ and ‘Material Girl.

Nile Rodgers has produced literally dozens of other records, including working with Stevie Winwood, Al Jarreau, Grace Jones, and Cyndi Lauper. In 1989, he co-produced The B-52’s comeback LP Cosmic Thing that features the timeless worldwide success ‘Love Shack.

His most recent of collaborations was when Daft Punk discovered an old Chic record and were inspired to invite Rodgers to work with them on their hit album ‘Random Access Memories.’

The end result was the global smash hit ‘Get Lucky,’ featuring Pharrell Williams. This was Daft Punk’s biggest ever hit record. Nile Rodgers also played on three other songs from the album, and introduced his skills to a whole new generation of fans.