Nigerian Afro-funk star Femi Kuti [ tickets ] returns to North America in January for a headlining outing in support of the performer's first studio album in seven years.

Kuti, son of the late Afro-beat pioneer Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, kicks off the trek Jan. 7 in Boston. The 13-city tour stretches from coast to coast, winding up Jan. 24 in San Diego. Dates are below.

The multi-instrumentalist Kuti returned to his first instrument, trumpet, for the recording of "Day By Day," which hit stores in October. His saxophone playing dominates the performer's previous studio release, 2001's "Fight to Win," which features collaborations with hip-hop stars Mos Def and Common, among others.

"Listen to 'They Will Run' and 'Better Ask Yourself,' they are more jazz than anything I've done before," Kuti said in a press release. "That's the effect of playing the trumpet coming out."

The performer began his career playing in his father's band and formed his own group, Positive Force, in the mid-'80s. Like his father, he has used his music for political commentary, but the younger Kuti has made lifestyle choices that are far less likely to anger the Nigerian government, making the establishment more likely to work in cooperation with him, according to Kuti's bio.

Fela Kuti is credited for creating Afro-beat music, which fuses jazz, soul and funk with African percussion and vocal stylings, but "copying note for note his father's music has never been Femi's goal," according to the younger Kuti's online bio.

Kuti's younger brother, Seun Kuti, released his debut album, "Many Things," earlier this year.

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