10 Websites To Help You Develop Your Knowledge About Fela
Fela Ransome-Kuti
Fela, a musician and political activist who was also a pan-Africanist. He was a defender of African culture and was heavily influenced by Black Power. He traveled to Ghana, where he discovered new musical influences.
He composed songs that were intended to be political attacks on the Nigerian government, and a global order that exploited Africa regularly. His music was radical and uncompromising.
Fela Ransome Kuti was born Abeokuta
Fela ransome-Kuti was famous in the 1970s and 80s for his agitated political views and abrasive music. Many of his songs were direct critiques of the Nigerian government and the military dictatorships which ruled the nation in those days. He also criticized fellow Africans who backed these dictatorships. Fela's rebellion against oppressive governments cost him dearly. He was arrested, beaten and incarcerated numerous times. He once referred to himself as a "prisoner of the Kalakuta Republic" and founded his own political organization known as the Movement for the Advancement of the People (MOP).
The mother of Fela was Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti who was a globally recognized feminist leader and rights for women activist. She was a member of the Abeokuta Women's Union and worked as an educator. She also assisted in the organization of some of the first preschool classes in Abeokuta. She was a suffragist and active in the Nigerian Independence Movement. She was a close kin to writer and Nobel laureate Wole SOYINKA.
Ransome-Kuti was a proponent of Pan-Africanism and was a fervent socialist. She argued for the preservation of traditional African practices and religions and opposed European cultural imperialism. Ransome-Kuti was influenced in her work by the Black Power movement and the works of Malcolm X and Eldridge Cleaver. She was also a participant of the African Renaissance movement.
Fela's music was able, in spite of his opposition to the oppressive Nigerian Government and Western culture, to earn an international following. His music was a mixture of Afrobeats, jazz, and rock heavily in the style of American jazz clubs. He was also a staunch anti-racist.
Fela's rebelliousness against the Nigerian government landed him numerous arrests and beatings. However, it did not stop him from traveling the United States and Europe. In 1984, he was once again attacked by the military and detained on suspicions of smuggling currency. International human rights groups intervened after the incident, and the government was forced to step down. Kuti however, he continued to record and perform until his death in 1998. He was buried in the Kalakuta Cemetery in Abeokuta. The Fela Museum is located in the city.

He was a musician
Fela, a passionate Pan-Africanist, was adamant about making music a tool of social protest. With
fela railroad settlements -driven Afrobeat style, he criticised the Nigerian government and inspired activists across the globe. Fela was born in 1938 in Abeokuta, Nigeria. He was the son of Funmilayo Ransome Kuti who was a fervent anticolonialist and leader of the Nigerian women's movement. His mother was also a doctor and anti-colonialist as were his grandparents. The main goal of Fela's life was to fight for the rights and freedoms of those who were oppressed.
Fela began his career as a musician in 1958 after dropping out of medical school in order to pursue his passion for music. He began playing highlife, which is a popular music genre that fuses traditional African rhythms with Western instruments and jazz. He started his first band in London and was able to develop his skills in the musical capital of Europe. After his return to Nigeria He came up with Afrobeat which combines lyrics written in agit-prop with danceable beats. The new sound was adopted by Africans and Nigerians across the continent. It became one of the most influential genres in African music.
Fela's political activism during the 1970s led him into direct conflict with Nigerian regimes. The regime was concerned that his music would inspire people to revolt against their oppressors and to overturn the status-quo. Fela was adamant, despite numerous attempts to silence his music, continued to produce a ferocious and danceable music until the end of his life. He passed away from AIDS-related complications in 1997.
While Fela was alive, crowds of people were always out the door to catch him perform at his nightclub in Lagos known as Afrika Shrine. He also built an enclave, the Kalakuta Republic, which functioned as his recording studio, club and spiritual space. The commune also served as a venue for political speeches. Fela often criticised the Nigerian government and world leaders such as U.S. President Ronald Reagan, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and South African Prime Minister P.W. Botha.
Despite his death from complications related to AIDS, his legacy lives on. His revolutionary Afrobeat sound continues to influence popular artists, such as Beyonce, Wyclef Jean, and Jay Z, who have been citing him as an inspiration. He was a mysterious man who was a lover of music, fun, and women. But his most lasting legacy is his tireless efforts to fight for the marginalized.
He was a Pan-Africanist
The renowned Nigerian multi-instrumentalist and political activist Fela Anikulapo-Kuti was a Pan-Africanist, bringing his unique musical style to the cause of the people. A master at blending elements of African culture with American jazz and funk, he also used his music to protest against the oppressive Nigerian government. He continued to speak out and stand up for his beliefs despite being often beaten and arrested.
Fela was born into the Ransome-Kuti clan that included anti-colonialists, artists, and artists. His mother Funmilayo Ransome Kuti was a educator and feminist, while his dad, Israel Oludotun Ransome Kuti helped form the teachers' union. He grew singing and listening to the traditional songs and rhythms of highlife - which included jazz standards, soul songs, and Ghanaian hymns. His worldview was inspired by the music of his father. He was determined to bring Africa and the world together.
In 1977, Fela recorded Zombie. The track portrayed the police to a solitary mass of people who would obey orders and slay people. The song angered the military authorities, who seized the home of Fela and took over his property. They beat everyone including Fela’s children and women. His mother was thrown from an open window and died of injuries sustained in the next year's attack.
The war was the catalyst for Fela's anti-government activism. He founded a commune called the Kalakuta Republic. It also was a studio used for recording. He also created an political party and separated from the Nigerian state and his music were more influenced by social issues. In 1979, he dragged his mother's coffin to the headquarters of the ruling junta in Lagos and was later beaten.
Fela was a warrior who was unstoppable and never gave in to the status of the game. He knew he was fighting an inefficient and unjust power, but he never gave up. He was the embodiment the spirit of determination and, in this way, his story was truly heroic. He was a man that defied all odds and changed the course of history. His legacy continues to live even today.
He passed away in 1997.
The passing of Fela was a devastating blow to his many fans across the globe. Many thousands of people attended his funeral. He was aged 58 when he died. His family members said the cause of death was heart failure as a result of AIDS.
Fela played a key part in the creation and development of Afrobeat music which fuses traditional Yoruba rhythms jazz, as well as American funk. His political activism led to arrests and beatings by Nigerian police, but he refused to be disarmed. He encouraged others to resist the corrupt rule of the Nigerian military regime and advocated Africanism. Fela was also a major influence on the Black Power movement in the United States, which inspired him to continue fighting for Africa.
In his later years, Fela developed skin lesions, and he lost weight drastically. These symptoms indicated he was suffering from AIDS. He was an AIDS denier and he refused treatment, but ultimately succumbed to the disease. Fela Kuti will be remembered by generations.
Kuti's music makes a powerful political statement that is a challenge to the status of the art. He was a revolutionist who wanted to change how Africans were treated. He made use of his music as a tool for social protest and was a fighter against colonialism. His music had a profound influence on the lives of a lot of Africans and he'll be remembered for it.
Throughout his career, Fela worked with various producers to create his distinct sound. Some of these producers included EMI producer Jeff Jarratt, British dub master Dennis Bovell and keyboardist Wally Badarou. His music was a mix of traditional African beats, American funk, and jazz, which earned him a global following. He was controversial in the music business and was often critical of Western cultural practices.
Fela is famous for his controversial music and his life style. He was a pot smoker and had numerous relationships with women. He was an activist who fought for the rights the poor in Nigeria despite his sexy lifestyle. His music had an impact on the lives of a variety of Africans and urged them to embrace their own culture.