Buckle up Bangkok, as on Sept 17, Nile Rodgers & Chic will take the stage at UOB LIVE, Emsphere, for what promises to be an electrifying night. For the first time ever, Rodgers and his band will bring their unique blend of funk, disco and dance music to Thailand, offering fans a chance to experience a legacy that has defined the sound of an era and influenced generations of musicians and listeners alike.
Nile Rodgers is no stranger to making history. A Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, a Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee, and a multiple Grammy Award-winning musician, songwriter, composer, producer and guitarist, Rodgers has carved out a monumental career.
He co-founded Chic in the late 1970s with bassist Bernard Edwards, and together they created a musical language that not only defined the disco era but also laid the groundwork for genres that would follow. Hits like Le Freak and Good Times became anthems, each with a unique groove that would go on to influence everything from hip-hop to modern pop.
Le Freak remains the best-selling single in the history of Atlantic Records, a testament to its enduring appeal and the universal joy it brings to listeners.
Reflecting on his upcoming Bangkok debut, Rodgers shared his excitement with Life.
"We've toured a lot, but it's interesting that as much as I love Thailand, I only go to Thailand to have fun, to eat, to either go to Bangkok, Phuket or Phi Phi Islands, you know, just for partying, relaxation, swimming and surfing. But I never went to Thailand to play music. So this is going to be my first time playing music, and I honestly cannot wait to share my culture with Thai people because we are so into partying. And I just want to see people dancing, going crazy, having a good time."
Rodgers' enthusiasm for the upcoming show is palpable, and his setlist is designed to ensure that everyone in the audience has a night to remember. The concert will feature a medley of Chic's greatest hits, including Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah), I Want Your Love, and of course, Le Freak and Good Times. But the performance will also delve into Rodgers' extensive catalogue of work with other artists, featuring tracks he produced for legends like David Bowie, Madonna, Diana Ross and Sister Sledge.
"So here is my setlist," Rodgers explained. "Chic, Daft Punk, David Bowie, Sister Sledge, Madonna, Diana Ross, all the songs that I've written, all the songs that I've produced. We're even adding a couple of new songs that we haven't played for a while, and it's only because we have so many songs in our show that we haven't had a chance. We'll figure out a way to do it, but it's going to be fun. It's going to be nothing but dance and partying."
What sets Nile Rodgers & Chic apart from many contemporary acts is their commitment to live performance. In an era where backing tracks and pre-recorded elements are commonplace, Rodgers and his band keep it real with every note played live.
"And the thing that's cool about Chic, which you will hear is that we're a live band. We don't use any backing tracks. So you'll see that what we do has a certain kind of funk style and interpretation and improvisation. It's almost like jazz and R&B, meets dance music."
For Rodgers, it's not just about performing but about sharing an experience and a culture. His music has always been about bringing people together and making them feel good. Le Freak and Good Times are prime examples of this ethos, songs that continue to resonate with audiences worldwide decades after their release.
"I honestly think that because when we wrote these songs, it was really from the heart, and it was to make people feel good," Rodgers reflected.
"Do you know that we are so confident about the rest of our songs that people may not know as well as Le Freak, like I Want Your Love. We often start our show with those early tunes, and people go, 'Oh, I didn't know that was their song!'. All of those early Chic songs are very popular. But they just somehow don't know that it's Chic."
Rodgers' impact on music extends far beyond his work with Chic. Over the years, he has collaborated with a host of major artists across a variety of genres, each time bringing his unique sound and vision to their projects. His production work on David Bowie's Let's Dance and Madonna's Like A Virgin helped define the sound of the 1980s, while his collaboration with Daft Punk on Get Lucky in 2013 brought his signature guitar sound to a new generation of fans.
"Probably Madonna was my most fun," Rodgers reminisced. "Because Madonna is Madonna, and she's just so much fun. I remember when she was young, she just worked hard and wanted everything to be perfect. And no matter what I asked her to do, she would do it. I could ask her to sing a song 20 times, she would do it without even questioning. But the most interesting collaboration would have been either Daft Punk or David Bowie."
Rodgers has seen the music industry evolve over the decades, and he remains a forward-thinking innovator who embraces new technologies and techniques.
Discussing the evolution of music production, he said: "So I think the interesting thing about production now is that, because the tools can help you so much. The producers now do musical things that in the old days we wouldn't do because we had certain rules that govern music.
"So I find modern music to be very, very interesting, especially hip-hop, because with hip-hop, they'll do things like compound sampling, where they'll put a song on top of another song, just to get the beat. And then just when they get the beat, then they'll drop bars on top of that. When we were younger, we would never think of doing something like that, because it just didn't make sense."
Rodgers is also optimistic about the future of music and the potential of new tools like artificial intelligence to open up even more creative possibilities.
"I think while the current music is amazing, I think that it's going to get even more amazing with AI. Because I think that it's going to allow people's brains to think of stuff that they probably wouldn't try. Because, to an artist, to me, the greatest question that an artist can ask is, what if? What if we did that? What if we do this? And then you put it together, and you fool around, and then all of a sudden you go, Oh my God, listen to that, right? So AI's just the future."
This concert is more than just a performance; it is a celebration of music, creativity, and the unifying power of dance. For Rodgers, it is an opportunity to share his love for music with a new audience and to create an unforgettable experience.
"The reason why we do this set that we do is because people in Thailand have not seen us. So it's important for me to give you early Chic, it's important for me to give you early Sister Sledge. It's important for me to give you Bowie, Madonna, because that's how we started. If it wasn't for those artists, I wouldn't be with Coldplay, I wouldn't be with Kygo, I wouldn't be with Daft Punk, you know what I mean?"
