[HN Gopher] Fela Kuti First African to Get Grammys Lifetime Achi...
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Fela Kuti First African to Get Grammys Lifetime Achievement Award
Author : defrost
Score : 117 points
Date : 2026-02-01 07:36 UTC (4 days ago)
(HTM) web link (www.aljazeera.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (www.aljazeera.com)
| e40 wrote:
| It's sad that we don't have recordings of his work, and all we
| really have are people's recollections of him.
| defrost wrote:
| There are recordings, and video of some his live performances.
| Lemi Ghariokwu, a renowned Nigerian artist and the designer
| behind 26 of Fela's iconic album covers, says the fact that
| this is the first time an African musician gets this honour
| "just shows that whatever we as Africans need to do, we need to
| do it five times more."
|
| Fela Kuti & Africa 70 (Berlin 1978):
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kr8oRpA2SpE
|
| What withered a little on the vine was his philosophy of pan-
| africanism.
|
| > all we really have are people's recollections of him.
|
| His children, former band members (he had _big_ ensembles) are
| still performing his compositions and in his style.
|
| eg: Seun Kuti performing a Fela Kuti number along with Newen
| Afrobeat: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFSRCG4DrmI
|
| He's still relevant today, he dedicated an entire album to
| faceless armed thugs operating as state sponsered death squads.
|
| * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zombie_(album)
| The album was 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 (a commune that Kuti had established in
| Nigeria), during which one thousand soldiers attacked the
| commune.
|
| * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qj5x6pbJMyU
| e40 wrote:
| I appreciate the reply.
|
| On a podcast recently and they talked a lot about his
| influence, but didn't play any music. And, when I went to
| look for it on YT, I didn't find the items you referenced.
| Thanks!
| echelon_musk wrote:
| The film that is most mined for recordings is 'Fela Kuti -
| Music is the Weapon'.
|
| There's an English cut and a French cut.
|
| The French cut doesn't hide the cannabis use and you'll see
| people rolling spliffs and Fela taking his 'Fela Gold'
| 'medicine' which was something like a cannabis rosin.
| BigTTYGothGF wrote:
| > And, when I went to look for it on YT, I didn't find the
| items you referenced
|
| What exactly were you looking for and how did you miss:
| https://www.youtube.com/@felakuti
| localbolu wrote:
| Scrolled just to see if someone had mentioned the Newen
| Afrobeat + Seun Kuti session -- just an absolute masterclass.
| viccis wrote:
| Good news, you can search him on Spotify or Youtube and get
| tons of recordings of him.
|
| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fela_Kuti_discography
| notesinthefield wrote:
| I dont know if youre referring to his music as "his work" -
| quite the opposite, we have a lot!
|
| His family recently began releasing many albums on Bandcamp.
| Ive been a fan for awhile and this is likely the best
| collection youll find online : https://felakuti.bandcamp.com/
|
| The Best of the Black President is a good place to start. Dive
| in! Fela is the godfather of Afrobeat and highlife.
| BigTTYGothGF wrote:
| > It's sad that we don't have recordings of his work
|
| I am literally, while typing this reply, listening to a
| recording of Fela Kuti right now that I ripped myself from a CD
| I bought maybe 15 years ago at a physical record store.
|
| ("International Thief Thief" off of "Original Suffer Head")
| evolve2k wrote:
| I recommend this excellent podcast (episode) that is dedicated to
| going over his life and impact. Incredible person and story!
|
| https://pca.st/episode/e2940e8b-c7da-43bd-abca-8750538acf7c
| echelon_musk wrote:
| It's very good, but in the end I was disappointed with how
| uncritical it was.
|
| I bought the vinyl reissue of The Best of the Black President.
|
| I think it was a mistake that Fela's cousin's criticisms were
| only briefly mentioned.
|
| As well as leaving Seun Keuti unchecked after screaming "bitch,
| get me a pen!".
|
| I also found it funny that they used Barack Obama's name in the
| marketing release but you only ever hear about ~30 seconds from
| him!
| tinktank wrote:
| Can't say I'm surprised. Well deserved!
| thaack wrote:
| Afrobeat (of which Fela Kuti pioneered) and Afro-rock are
| genuinely some of the coolest fusion genres to ever exist.
|
| If you need an introduction, the Nigeria 70 compilation is a
| great place to start:
|
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upN0WEbFmUY&list=OLAK5uy_nQZ...
| draw_down wrote:
| If I may suggest two artists besides the great Fela Kuti:
| William Onyeabor (try "Tomorrow") and Dizzy K Falola (try
| "Sweet Music").
| thaack wrote:
| William Onyeabor got me into African fusion. He's definitely
| one of the most interesting characters on the scene and the
| synthesizers in his music were some of the best. RIP.
| photon_garden wrote:
| King Sunny Ade is another great Nigerian artist! Ja Funmi is
| one of my favorites:
| https://youtu.be/LIO9MjfOo48?si=bZFOTgQF0SZZgT_X
|
| Africa has a ton of fantastic musicians.
|
| For instance, Dur Dur Band from Somalia:
| https://youtu.be/cVfrEmO5no4?si=aeqeufJpsKiIyvQX
|
| Mulatu Astatke from Ethiopia:
| https://youtu.be/jXdVpT_aSJU?si=jMzwDIS75L9pqhxf
|
| John Wizards from South Africa:
| https://youtu.be/1FNWfhmTn1M?si=lmHOUgvqxYS_P_Av
|
| It's a very deep well.
| ChrisMarshallNY wrote:
| I've enjoyed some of the Touareg stuff (like Tinariwen or Tarwa
| N-Trini). You can see where some of the American blues came
| from.
| t312227 wrote:
| hello,
|
| i discovered fela anikulapo kutis music back in the 2nd half of
| the 1980ties - still a big fan!! :)
|
| cheers,
|
| a..z
| phr4ts wrote:
| Fela bled for Nigeria--literally.
|
| He carried scars on his back from police and soldier beatings
| meant to silence him for speaking against the government. His
| houses and estate were set ablaze. His land was seized by the
| government and never returned.
|
| His mother was thrown off a building by soldiers.
|
| Yet, the very people he fought for chose to focus on his vices
| and mocked him for them.
|
| I'm glad he finally got this award.
| loudmax wrote:
| I can't tell whether the words to Fela Kuti's "Water No Get
| Enemy" are profound or trite.
|
| But I can declare with 100% confidence that this song *rocks*! Go
| check it out.
| blacksmith_tb wrote:
| I think "If water kill your child / Water you go use" is fairly
| profound, and a good demonstration of the idea that the pidgin
| expression refers to. And it rocks, of course.
| melsmo wrote:
| Did anyone see Fela, the musical? It was so good.
| https://felakuti.com/us/legacy/fela-the-musical?
| endorphine wrote:
| Beasts of no Nation is a personal favorite!
| learingsci wrote:
| Long time coming. All these years later, still heavy in my daily
| rotation.
| josefritzishere wrote:
| If you are not familiar with Fela Kuti, he's like the James Brown
| of Afro-Pop. His music is super funky and amazing, and his family
| history is fascinating. Highly reccomended.
| somalihoaxes wrote:
| Next: Fela Tio
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