Why Nobody Cares About Fela Fela Kuti

The life of Fela is full of contradictions, which is part of what makes him so fascinating. People who love him accept the flaws in him.

His songs are often longer than 20 minutes, and sung in a dense Pidgin English that is almost unintelligible. His music is influenced by Christian hymns and classical music. He also includes jazz, Yoruba, and highlife with horns and guitars.

He was a musician

Fela Kuti embodied the idea that music can be an instrument of change. His music was used to advocate for social, political and economic reforms. His influence is still felt today. His musical style, Afrobeat, is a blend of African and Western influences. Its roots are in West-African music as well as funk. However it has evolved into a new genre.

His political activism was ferocious and unflinching. He made use of his music to protest against corruption in the government and human right abuses. Songs such as "Zombie" and "Coffin for the Head of State" were daring criticisms of the Nigerian regime. He also made use of Kalakuta as a place to gather like-minded people and to promote political activism.

The play features a huge portrait of his late mother Funmilayo ransome-Kuti. She was a prominent feminist and activist. The actress who portrays her is Shantel Cribbs, who has successfully depicted her importance in the life of Fela. The play also focuses on her political activism. Despite her declining health, she refused to get checked for AIDS and instead chose traditional treatments.

He was a musician

Fela Ransome Kuti was a multifaceted person who utilized music to bring about changes in the political landscape. He is known as the creator of afrobeat, an invigorating hybrid of funk, dirty and traditional African rhythms. He was a fervent critic of Nigeria's religious and governmental leaders.

Fela's mother was a suffragist who was anti-colonial and it's not unusual that he is a fan for political commentaries and social commentary. His parents wanted him to be an ophthalmologist however, he had other plans.


A trip to America changed his perspective forever. His music was profoundly inspired by his exposure to Black Power movements and leaders like Eldridge Clever and Malcolm X. He adopted a Pan-Africanism ideology, which would inform and guide his later work.

He was a songwriter

Fela encountered Black Power activists like Stokely Carmichael, and Malcolm X while in the United States. The experience inspired him to create an activist movement known as the Movement of the People, and to write songs that expressed his thoughts on political activism and black consciousness. His philosophies were publicly expressed by yabis - a type of that he described as 'freedom expression'. He also began to establish a strict ethical code for his group, which included refusing to use medicine from Western-trained doctors.

Fela returned to Nigeria and began to build his own club in Ikeja. The police and military officials were almost every day. The Mosholashi-Idi Oro hangers-on who he had re the area surrounding the club with hard drugs, particularly "bana" and "yamuna" (heroin). Fela kept his integrity in spite of this. His music is a testimony to the determination with which he fought authority and demanded that the desires of the masses be reflected in official goals. It is a legacy that will last for generations.

He was a poet

In his music, Fela used light-hearted sarcasm to discuss political and economic issues in Nigeria. He also made fun of his audience, government officials, and even himself. In these shows, he would refer to himself as "the big fish in the small pond." These jokes were not taken lightly by the authorities and he suffered repeated arrests and beatings in the hands of the authorities. He was eventually given the name Anikulapo which means "he carries his death in his bag."

In 1977, Fela recorded a song called "Zombie," which compared soldiers to mindless zombies who were able to follow orders without hesitation. The military was irritated by this and conducted a raid on Kalakuta Republic. They burned the place down and beat its residents. In the course of the raid, her mother was thrown out of her second-floor window.

Fela developed Afrobeat in the decades that after Nigeria's independence. Afrobeat is a music genre that combines jazz with native African rhythm. His songs criticised European culture imperialism and supported African traditional beliefs and cultures. He also criticized fellow Africans who betrayed their country's traditions. He stressed the importance of human rights and freedom.

He was a hip-hop artist

A trumpeter, saxophonist and composer and pioneer of the Afrobeat genre, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti was born in 1938 in Abeokuta, Nigeria. He was inspired by jazz, rock and roll and also traditional African music, chants and music. After a visit to the United States, Fela met Sandra Smith. She was an activist in the Black Power Movement. Her ideas were influential in his work.

When he returned to Nigeria, Fela began using his music as a political tool. He criticized the government in his home country and insisted that African culture should not be diluted by Western sensibilities. He also wrote about human rights violations and social injustices. right abuses. He was arrested repeatedly for his criticism of the military.

Fela also advocated for the use of marijuana, also known as "igbo" in Africa. He often held public debates at Afrika Shrine, also known as "yabis", in which he would lampoon officials of the government and share his beliefs on freedom of expression and the beauty of women's bodies. Fela had a harem, an ensemble of young women who performed in his shows, and also supported him vocally.

He was a dancer

Fela was a master at musical fusion. He incorporated elements of beat music, and highlife to create his own distinctive style. He was a leading African musician and vocal critic of colonial ruling.

Despite being arrested and tortured by the Nigerian military junta and seeing his mother killed, Fela refused to leave the country. He died of complications due to AIDS in 1997.

Fela was a well-known political activist who was critical of the oppressive Nigerian Government and endorsed the ideals of Pan Africanism. His albums, including 1973's Gentleman focused on the oppression of both the government and colonial forces. He also pushed for black-power and decried Christianity, Islam and other non-African imports that divide the people of Africa. The title track on the album from 1978, Shuffering and Shmiling, describes the overcrowded public buses filled with poor workers "shuffering and shmiling." Fela was a fierce opponent of religious hypocrisy. His music was in turn complemented by his dancers, who were lively, sensual, and regal. Their contributions to the performances were as important as Fela's words.

He was a militant in the political arena.

Fela Kuti was a militant who used music to challenge unjust authority. He transformed his knowledge of American jazz and funk to African rhythms and modes making music that was ready for fight. The majority of his songs start as slow-burning instrumentals. He layers melodies, riffs, long-lined melodies and other elements until they explode with urgency.

Fela was, unlike many artists who were scared to speak about their politics He was adamant and unbending. He stood up for what he believed in, even when it was risky. Funmilayo Ransome Kuti was a feminist leader of the Nigerian Women's Movement. His father was a protestant minister as well as the teacher's union president.

He also created Kalakuta Republic, a commune and recording studio that was a symbol of resistance. The government raided the commune, degrading the property and injuring Fela badly. He refused to give up, though and continued to voice his opinion against the government. He passed away in 1997 due to complications arising from AIDS. He was succeeded by his son, Femi, who continues to carry on his musical and political legacy.

He was a father

Music is often seen by many as a political action. Musicians use lyrics to call for change. Some of the most powerful music demonstrations are not performed with words. fela lawsuits was one such artist and his music is still ringing out to this day. He was the first to pioneer Afrobeat, combining traditional African rhythms and harmonies with funk and jazz, being influenced by artists such as James Brown.

Funmilayo Ransome Kuti was Fela's activist mother. She was a unionist who fought colonialism. She helped form the Abeokuta Women's Union and fought against gender-discriminatory taxation laws. She also studied marxism and believed in the idea of a Nigeria which served its the entire population.

Fela's son Seun continues his father's legacy through the band Egypt 80 that's touring the world this year. The Egypt 80's music combines the sound of Fela with a scathing denunciation of power structures that still exist today. The new album, Black Times, will be released in March. Many fans attended the funeral and paid their tributes at Tafawa Balewa Square. The crowd was so big that the police had to shut down the entrance.