Fela Kuti

"Fela" redirects here. For the Broadway musical, see Fela!.

Fela Kuti
Fela Kuti in 1970
Background information
Birth name	Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti
Also known as	Fela Anikulapo Kuti Fela Ransome-Kuti
Born	15 October 1938(1938-10-15) Abeokuta, Nigeria
Died	2 August 1997(1997-08-02) (aged 58)
Genres	Afrobeat, Highlife
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, instrumentalist, activist
Instruments	Saxophone, vocals, keyboards, trumpet, guitar, drums
Years active	1958–1997
Labels	Barclay/PolyGram, MCA/Universal, Celluloid, EMI Nigeria, JVC, Wrasse, Shanachie, Knitting Factory
Associated acts	Africa '70, Egypt '80, Koola Lobitos, Nigeria '70, Hugh Masekela, Ginger Baker, Tony Allen, Femi Kuti, Seun Kuti, Roy Ayers, Lester Bowie
Website	felaproject.net

Fela Anikulapo Kuti (15 October 1938 — 2 August 1997), or simply Fela ([feˈlæ]), was a Nigerian multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, pioneer of Afrobeat music, human rights activist, and political maverick.^[1]

Biography

Fela was born Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti^[2] in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria^[3] into a middle-class family. His mother, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti was a feminist activist in the anti-colonial movement and his father, Reverend Israel Oludotun Ransome-Kuti, a Protestant minister and school principal, was the first president of the Nigerian Union of Teachers.^[4] His brothers, Beko Ransome-Kuti and Olikoye Ransome-Kuti, both medical doctors, are well known in Nigeria. Fela was a first cousin to the Nigerian writer and Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, the first African to win a Nobel Prize for Literature.

Fela was sent to London in 1958 to study medicine but decided to study music instead at the Trinity College of Music. While there, he formed the band Koola Lobitos, playing a fusion of jazz and highlife.^[5] In 1960, Fela married his first wife, Remilekun (Remi) Taylor, with whom he would have three children (Femi, Yeni, and Sola). In 1963, Fela moved back to Nigeria, re-formed Koola Lobitos and trained as a radio producer for the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation. He played for some time with Victor Olaiya and his All Stars.^[6] In 1967, he went to Ghana to think up a new musical direction.^[4] That was when Kuti first called his music Afrobeat.^[4] In 1969, Fela took the band to the United States. While there, Fela discovered the Black Power movement through Sandra Smith (now Izsadore)—a partisan of the Black Panther Party—which would heavily influence his music and political views and renamed the band Nigeria '70. Soon, the Immigration and Naturalization Service was tipped off by a promoter that Fela and his band were in the U.S. without work permits. The band then performed a quick recording session in Los Angeles that would later be released as The '69 Los Angeles Sessions.

After Fela and his band returned to Nigeria, the band was renamed The Africa '70, as lyrical themes changed from love to social issues.^[5] He then formed the Kalakuta Republic, a commune, a recording studio, and a home for many connected to the band that he later declared independent from the Nigerian state. Fela set up a nightclub in the Empire Hotel, named the Afro-Spot and then the Afrika Shrine, where he performed regularly. Fela also changed his middle name to Anikulapo (meaning "he who carries death in his pouch"),^[7] stating that his original middle name of Ransome was a slave name. The recordings continued, and the music became more politically motivated.^{[citation needed]} Fela's music became very popular among the Nigerian public and Africans in general.^[8] In fact, he made the decision to sing in Pidgin English so that his music could be enjoyed by individuals all over Africa, where the local languages spoken are very diverse and numerous. As popular as Fela's music had become in Nigeria and elsewhere, it was also very unpopular with the ruling government, and raids on the Kalakuta Republic were frequent. During 1972 Ginger Baker recorded Stratavarious with Fela appearing alongside Bobby Gass.^[9] Around this time, Kuti was becoming more involved in Yoruba religion.^[10] In 1977 Fela and the Afrika '70 released the hit album Zombie, a scathing attack on Nigerian soldiers using the zombie metaphor to describe the methods of the Nigerian military. The album was a smash hit with the people and infuriated the government, setting off a vicious attack against the Kalakuta Republic, during which one thousand soldiers attacked the commune. Fela was severely beaten, and his elderly mother was thrown from a window, causing fatal injuries. The Kalakuta Republic was burned, and Fela's studio, instruments, and master tapes were destroyed. Fela claimed that he would have been killed had it not been for the intervention of a commanding officer as he was being beaten. Fela's response to the attack was to deliver his mother's coffin to the Dodan Barracks in Lagos, General Olusegun Obasanjo's residence, and to write two songs, "Coffin for Head of State" and "Unknown Soldier", referencing the official inquiry that claimed the commune had been destroyed by an unknown soldier.^[11]

Fela and his band then took residence in Crossroads Hotel as the Shrine had been destroyed along with his commune. In 1978 Fela married twenty-seven women, many of whom were his dancers, composers, and singers to mark the anniversary of the attack on the Kalakuta Republic. Later, he was to adopt a rotation system of keeping only twelve simultaneous wives.^[12] The year was also marked by two notorious concerts, the first in Accra in which riots broke out during the song "Zombie", which led to Fela being banned from entering Ghana. The second was at the Berlin Jazz Festival after which most of Fela's musicians deserted him, due to rumors that Fela was planning to use the entire proceeds to fund his presidential campaign.

Despite the massive setbacks, Fela was determined to come back. He formed his own political party, which he called Movement of the People. In 1979 he put himself forward for President in Nigeria's first elections for more than a decade but his candidature was refused. At this time, Fela created a new band called Egypt '80 and continued to record albums and tour the country. He further infuriated the political establishment by dropping the names of ITT vice-president Moshood Abiola and then General Olusegun Obasanjo at the end of a hot-selling 25-minute political screed titled "I.T.T. (International Thief-Thief)".

In 1984, Muhammadu Buhari's government, of which Kuti was a vocal opponent, jailed him on a charge of currency smuggling which Amnesty International and others denounced as politically motivated.^[13] His case was taken up by several human-rights groups, and after 20 months, he was released from prison by General Ibrahim Babangida. On his release he divorced his twelve remaining wives, saying that "marriage brings jealousy and selfishness."^[12] Once again, Fela continued to release albums with Egypt '80, made a number of successful tours of the United States and Europe and also continued to be politically active. In 1986, Fela performed in Giants Stadium in New Jersey as part of the Amnesty International Conspiracy of Hope concert, sharing the bill with Bono, Carlos Santana, and The Neville Brothers. In 1989, Fela and Egypt '80 released the anti-apartheid Beasts of No Nation album that depicts on its cover U.S. President Ronald Reagan, UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and South African Prime Minister Pieter Willem Botha.

His album output slowed in the 1990s, and eventually he stopped releasing albums altogether. In 1993 he and four members of the Afrika '70 organization were arrested for murder. The battle against military corruption in Nigeria was taking its toll, especially during the rise of dictator Sani Abacha. Rumors were also spreading that he was suffering from an illness for which he was refusing treatment. On 3 August 1997, Olikoye Ransome-Kuti, already a prominent AIDS activist and former Minister of Health, stunned the nation by announcing his younger brother's death a day earlier from Kaposi's sarcoma which was brought on by AIDS. More than a million people attended Fela's funeral at the site of the old Shrine compound. A new Africa Shrine has opened since Fela's death in a different section of Lagos under the supervision of his son Femi Kuti.

Music

Main article: Afrobeat

The musical style performed by Fela Kuti is called Afrobeat, which is a complex fusion of Jazz, Funk, Ghanaian/Nigerian High-life, psychedelic rock, and traditional West African chants and rhythms. Afrobeat also borrows heavily from the native "tinker pan" African-style percussion that Kuti acquired while studying in Ghana with Hugh Masakela, under the uncanny Hedzoleh Soundz.^[14] The importance of the input of Tony Allen (Fela's drummer of twenty years) in the creation of Afrobeat cannot be overstated. Fela once famously stated that, "without Tony Allen, there would be no Afrobeat".

Afrobeat is characterized by a fairly large band with many instruments, vocals, and a musical structure featuring jazzy, funky horn sections. The "endless groove" is used, in which a base rhythm of drums, shekere, muted West African style guitar, and melodic bass guitar riffs are repeated throughout the song. Commonly, interlocking melodic riffs and rhythms are introduced one by one, building the groove bit-by-bit and layer-by-layer to an astonishing melodic and polyrhythmic complexity. The horn section then becomes prominent, introducing other riffs and main melodic themes.

Fela’s band was notable for featuring two baritone saxophones, whereas most groups were using only one of this instrument. This is a common technique in African and African-influenced musical styles, and can be seen in funk and hip hop. Fela’s bands at times even performed with two bassists at the same time both playing interlocking melodies and rhythms. There were always two or more guitarists. The electric West African style guitar in Afrobeat bands are paramount, but are used to give basic structure, playing a repeating chordal/melodic statement, riff, or groove.

Some elements often present in Fela's music are the call-and-response within the chorus and figurative but simple lyrics. Fela's songs were also very long, at least 10–15 minutes in length, and many reaching the 20 or even 30 minutes, while some unreleased tracks would last up to 45 minutes when performed live. This was one of many reasons that his music never reached a substantial degree of popularity outside Africa. His LP records frequently had one 30 minute track per side. Typically there is an instrumental “introduction” jam part of the song, perhaps 10-15 mins. long before Fela starts singing the “main” part.

His songs were mostly sung in Nigerian pidgin, although he also performed a few songs in the Yoruba language. Fela's main instruments were the saxophone and the keyboards, but he also played the trumpet, electric guitar, and took the occasional drum solo. Fela refused to perform songs again after he had already recorded them, which also hindered his popularity outside Africa.

Fela was known for his showmanship, and his concerts were often quite outlandish and wild. He referred to his stage act as the Underground Spiritual Game. Fela attempted making a movie but lost all the materials to the fire that was set to his house by the military government in power. Kuti thought that art, and thus his own music, should have political meaning.^[10]

Political views

“	Imagine Che Guevara and Bob Marley rolled into one person and you get a sense of Nigerian musician and activist Fela Kuti.	”
— Herald Sun, February 2011 [15]

As a supporter of traditional religions and lifestyles, Kuti thought that the most important thing for Africans to fight is European cultural imperialism.^[10] The American Black Power movement also influenced Fela's political views; he was a supporter of Pan-Africanism and socialism, and called for a united, democratic African republic. He was a candid supporter of human rights, and many of his songs are direct attacks against dictatorships, specifically the militaristic governments of Nigeria in the 1970s and 1980s. He was also a social commentator, and he criticized his fellow Africans (especially the upper class) for betraying traditional African culture. The African culture he believed in also included having many wives (polygyny) and the Kalakuta Republic was formed in part as a polygamist colony. He defended his stance on polygyny with the words "A man goes for many women in the first place. Like in Europe, when a man is married, when the wife is sleeping, he goes out and fucks around. He should bring the women in the house, man, to live with him, and stop running around the streets!"^[16] His views towards women are characterized by some as misogynist, with songs like "Mattress" typically cited as evidence^[17] In a more complex example, he mocks the aspiration of African women to European standards of ladyhood while extolling the values of the market woman in his song "Lady".

Bypassing editorial censorship in Nigeria's predominantly state controlled media, Kuti began in the 1970s buying advertising space in daily and weekly newspapers such as The Daily Times and The Punch in order to run outspoken political columns.^[18] Published throughout the 1970s and early 1980s under the title Chief Priest Say, these columns were essentially extensions of Kuti's famous Yabi Sessions—consciousness-raising word-sound rituals, with himself as chief priest, conducted at his Lagos nightclub. Organized around a militantly Afrocentric rendering of history and the essence of black beauty, Chief Priest Say focused on the role of cultural hegemony in the continuing subjugation of Africans. Kuti addressed a number of topics, from explosive denunciations of the Nigerian Government's criminal behavior; Islam and Christianity's exploitative nature, and evil multinational corporations; to deconstructions of Western medicine, Black Muslims, sex, pollution, and poverty. Chief Priest Say was cancelled, first by Daily Times then by Punch, ostensibly due to non-payment, but many commentators^[who?] have speculated that the paper's respective editors were placed under increasingly violent pressure to stop publication.

The Fela revival

In recent years there has been a revitalization of Fela's influence on music and popular culture, culminating in another re-release of his catalog controlled by Universal Music, off-and-on Broadway biopic shows, and new bands, such as Antibalas, who carry the Afrobeat banner to a new generation of listeners.

In 1999, Universal Music France, under the aegis of Francis Kertekian, remastered the 45 albums that it controlled and released them on twenty-six compact discs. These titles were licensed to other territories of the world with the exception of Nigeria and Japan, where Fela's music was controlled by other companies. In 2005, Universal Music USA licensed all of its world-music titles to the UK-based label Wrasse Records, which repackaged the same twenty-six CDs for distribution in the USA (replacing the MCA-issued titles there) and the UK. In 2009, Universal created a new deal for the USA with Knitting Factory Records and for Europe with PIAS, which included the release of the Fela! Broadway cast album.

Thomas McCarthy's 2008 film The Visitor depicted a disconnected professor (Oscar nominee Richard Jenkins) who wanted to play the djembe. He learns from a young Syrian (Haaz Sleiman) who tells the professor he will never truly understand African music unless he listens to Fela. The film features clips of Fela's "Open and Close" and "Je'nwi Temi (Don't Gag Me)."

In 2008, an off-Broadway production of Fela Kuti's life titled Fela! began with a collaborative workshop between the Afrobeat band Antibalas and Tony award winner Bill T. Jones. The show was a massive success, selling out shows during its run, and garnering much critical acclaim. On November 22, 2009, Fela! began a run on Broadway at the Eugene O'Neill Theater. Jim Lewis helped co-write the play (along with Bill T. Jones), and obtained producer backing from Jay-Z and Will Smith, among others. On May 4, 2010, Fela! was nominated for 11 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, Best Direction of a Musical for Bill T. Jones, Best Leading Actor in a Musical for Sahr Ngaujah, and Best Featured Actress in a Musical for Lillias White.^[19]

On August 18, 2009, award winning DJ J.Period released a free mixtape to the general public via his website that was a collaboration with Somali-born hip hop artist K'naan paying tribute to Fela, Bob Marley and Bob Dylan entitled The Messengers.

In October 2009, Knitting Factory Records began the process of re-releasing the 45 titles that Universal Music controls, starting with yet another re-release of the compilation The Best of the Black President in the USA. The rest is expected to be released in 2010.^{[dated info]}

In addition, a movie by Focus Features, directed by Steve McQueen and written by Biyi Bandele about the life of Fela Kuti went into production in 2010. It was announced in 2010 that Chiwetel Ejiofor would play the lead role.^[20]

Discography

Main article: Fela Kuti discography

Filmography

• Fela in Concert 1981, (VIEW)
• Music is the Weapon 1982, Stéphane Tchal-Gadjieff & Jean Jacques Flori, (Universal Music)
• Fela Live! Fela Anikulapo-Kuti and the Egypt ’80 Band 1984, Recorded Live At Glastonbury, England (Yazoo)
• Femi Kuti—Live at the Shrine 2005, Recorded Live At Lagos, Nigeria (Palm Pictures)

Notes

1. ^ "Seattle Weekly: Barack Obama and the Original First Black President". http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/dailyweekly/2009/07/barack_obama_and_the_original.php. Retrieved 2009-07-17. 
2. ^ Ogunnaike, Lola (17 July 2003). "Celebrating the Life and Impact Of the Nigerian Music Legend Fela". The New York Times (Manhattan, New York, USA: Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr.). http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/17/arts/celebrating-the-life-and-impact-of-the-nigerian-music-legend-fela.html?pagewanted=2. Retrieved 18 November 2010. 
3. ^ Hamilton, Janice. Nigeria in Pictures p. 70
4. ^ ^{a b c} STYLISTIC ANALYSIS OF AFROBEAT MUSIC OF FELA ANIKULAPO KUTI by Albert Oikelome
5. ^ ^{a b} Olatunji, Michael (2007). "Yabis: A Phenomenon in the Contemporary Nigerian Music". The Journal of Pan African Studies 1: 26–46. http://www.jpanafrican.com/docs/vol1no9/Yabis.pdf. 
6. ^ David Ryshpan. "Victor Olaiya, All Star Soul International". Exclaim!. http://exclaim.ca/musicreviews/generalreview.aspx?csid1=136&csid2=849&fid1=40282. Retrieved 2009-11-03. 
7. ^ "Meaning of Anikulapo in". Nigerian.name. 2008-01-11. http://www.nigerian.name/w/index.php?title=Anikulapo. Retrieved 2011-10-01. 
8. ^ "Fela Anikulapo Kuti: The ‘ghost’ resurrects and the beat goes on, a preview by The Independence". Emnnews.com. http://emnnews.com/archive/fela-anikulapo-kuti-the-ghost-resurrects-and-the-beat-goes-on-a-review-by-the-independence. Retrieved 2011-10-01. 
9. ^ Bobby Gass credits Allmusic
10. ^ ^{a b c} Grass, Randall F. (1986). "Fela Anikulapo-Kuti: The Art of an Afrobeat Rebel". The Drama Review: TDR (MIT Press) 30 (1): 131–148. doi:10.2307/1145717. JSTOR 1145717. 
11. ^ Matthew McKinnon (August 12, 2005). "Rebel Yells: A protest music mixtape". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. http://www.cbc.ca/arts/photoessay/protest/index14.html. Retrieved 2009-11-22. 
12. ^ ^{a b} Culshaw, Peter (2004-08-15). "The big Fela". The Guardian (London). http://music.guardian.co.uk/world/story/0,,1927705,00.html. Retrieved 2010-05-02. 
13. ^ Adenekan, Shola (15 February 2006). "Obituary: Dr Beko Ransome-Kuti". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/2006/feb/15/guardianobituaries.mainsection. 
14. ^ As Iwedi Ojinmah points out in his article "Baba is Dead - Long Live Baba,"
15. ^ Man of Beats Brings a Message with him by Blanche Clark, Herald Sun, February 4, 2011
16. ^ "Fela Kuti". Jaybabcock.com. http://www.jaybabcock.com/fela.html. Retrieved 2011-10-01. 
17. ^ Stanovsky, Derek (1998). "Fela and His Wives: The Import of a Postcolonial Masculinity". Jouvert. english.chass.ncsu.edu. http://english.chass.ncsu.edu/jouvert/v2i1/STAN.HTM. Retrieved 2010-03-16. 
18. ^ This section includes material copied verbatim from "Chief Priest Say", at chimurengalibrary.co.za, released under GFDL.
19. ^ Tony Award Nominations, 2010^{[dead link]}
20. ^ "Chiwetel Ejiofor Fela Kuti Steve McQueen-Directed Biopic". Collider.com. 2010-05-05. http://collider.com/chiwetel-ejiofor-fela-kuti-biopic-steve-mcqueen/24665/. Retrieved 2011-10-01. 

References

• Moore, Carlos (1982). Fela, Fela! This Bitch of a Life. Allison & Busby. UK.  [authorized biography].
• Idowu, Mabinuori Kayode (2002). Fela, le Combattant. Le Castor Astral. France. 
• Olaniyan, Tejumola (2004). Arrest the Music! Fela and his rebel art and politics. Indiana University Press. USA. 
• Olorunyomi, Sola (2002). Afrobeat: Fela and the Imagined Continent. Africa World Press. ??. 
• Schoonmaker, Trevor (ed) (2003). Fela: From West Africa to West Broadway. Palgrave Macmillan. USA. 
• Schoonmaker, Trevor (ed) (2003). Black President: The Art & Legacy of Fela Anikulapo Kuti. New Museum Of Contemporary Art, New York. ISBN 0-915557-87-8. 
• Veal, Michael E. (1997). Fela: The Life of an African Musical Icon. Temple University Press. USA. 
• Jaboro, Majemite. (2009). The Ikoyi Prison Narratives: The Spiritualism and Political Philosophy of Fela Kuti. lulu.com. ISBN 978-1-4452-2626-2. 

External links

• Official website
• 'He was in a godlike state' - Guardian feature
• The Shrine Unofficial website for Fela Kuti and Afrobeat Music with news, bio's, tour dates, gig reviews, interviews, lyrics and forum.
• Fela Kuti discography at Discogs
• Fela Kuti article from the New Official Ginger Baker Archive and Drummers forum launched by the Baker family September 2010
• Fela Kuti biography at World Music Central, includes biography, discography and bibliography

Persondata
Name	Kuti, Fela
Alternative names	Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti (real name)
Short description	Musician and actor
Date of birth	10 October 1938
Place of birth	Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria
Date of death	2 August 1997
Place of death	Nigeria