A couple of weeks ago, there was a conversation about who has a better legacy between the Afrobeats music superstar, Wizkid, and the late Afrobeat pioneer, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti. The conversation saw a variety of people, the old and the young, the mundane and the contemporary, disclosing their point of view.
The older generation spoke about how Fela Anikulapo-Kuti was able to wage war against the rulers in Nigeria, especially during the military regime. Fela was defiant, a leader whose instrument was his voice and his mind, which enthralled people through the use of charisma and charm. He inspired a generation to rage against the machine and question authority, but for the younger generation, though, they have Wizkid.
Wizkid is equally an icon within his own rights. In the 2010s, his debut studio album, Superstar, was the most popular among his contemporaries as he was able to introduce the definition and essence of Afrobeats culture to a new generation of music listeners. Though Wizkid is in a league of his own, it is important to note that he isn’t Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, and no artiste in this generation would ever be.
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What made Fela Anikulapo-Kuti so special?
Almost 30 years after his demise, conversations about Fela still emerge. A maverick who never wanted to fit into the system, Fela is renowned for his anti-establishment lyrics and lifestyle. These ideologies commenced from a tender age.
The Early Life of Fela: Son of Freedom Fighters
Born into the Ransome-Kuti family, an upper-middle-class family, on 15 October 1938, in Abeokuta, Colonial Nigeria. His mother, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, was an anti-colonial feminist, and his father, Israel Oludotun Ransome-Kuti, was an Anglican minister, school principal, and the first president of the Nigeria Union of Teachers.
Kuti’s parents both played active roles in the anti-colonial movement in Nigeria, most notably the Abeokuta Women’s Riots, which were led by his mother in 1946.
His brothers, Beko Ransome-Kuti and Olikoye Ransome-Kuti, both medical doctors, were well known nationally.
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Start a Fire: Commencement of Music Career
In 1958, he was invited to London by his younger brother Beko (a medical student at the time) to study music at the Trinity College of Music, with the trumpet being his preferred instrument. While there, he formed the band Koola Lobitos and played a fusion of jazz and highlife.
How Did Fela Create Afrobeat?
After moving back to the newly independent Federation of Nigeria in 1963, Kuti 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.
This phase of his life saw the gradual establishment of Afrobeats. It is important to note that he coined this genre himself.
Specifically, the genre was a combination of Apala, funk, jazz, highlife, salsa, calypso, and traditional Yoruba music. In 1969, Kuti took the band to the United States and spent ten months in Los Angeles. While there, he discovered the Black Power movement through Sandra Smith (now known as Sandra Izsadore or Sandra Akanke Isidore), a partisan of the Black Panther Party. This experience heavily influenced his music and political views.
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Voice of a Generation
Fela’s music is still one of the most played songs in Nigerian music history. His sound has continued to be sampled by major artistes such as Wizkid, Burna Boy, and veteran musician D’Banj, and it has been incorporated into their music.
Kuti was part of an Afrocentric consciousness movement that was founded on and delivered through his music. In an interview included in Hank Bordowitz’s Noise of the World, Kuti stated:
“Music is supposed to have an effect. If you’re playing music and people don’t feel something, you’re not doing shit. That’s what African music is about. When you hear something, you must move. I want to move people to dance, but also to think. Music wants to dictate a better life, against a bad life. When you’re listening to something that depicts having a better life, and you’re not having a better life, it must affect you.”
Kuti’s open vocalization of the violent and oppressive regime controlling Nigeria did not come without consequences. He was arrested on over 200 different occasions and spent time in jail, including his longest stint of 20 months after his arrest in 1984. On top of jail time, the corrupt government sent soldiers to beat Kuti, his family and friends, and destroy wherever he lived and whatever instruments or recordings he had.
Kuti’s lyrics expressed his inner thoughts. His rise in popularity throughout the 1970s signalled a change in the relationship between music as an art form and Nigerian socio-political discourse.
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Fela’s Trans Generational Influence
In January 2026, the Recording Academy posthumously honoured Kuti with the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. at the Special Merit ceremony of the 68th Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. The award recognised his contributions to global music and his pioneering role in the development of the Afrobeat genre. Kuti became the first African musician to receive the Lifetime Achievement Award since it was established in 1963. His children, including Femi, Yeni, and Kunle Kuti, accepted the award on his behalf. The honour placed him alongside other iconic musicians such as Whitney Houston, Chaka Khan, Cher, Paul Simon, and Carlos Santana.
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Conclusion
While musicians such as Wizkid and Burna Boy have been compared to Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, it is impossible for them to replicate his legacy. While the aforementioned musicians want to sing songs about drugs, parties, money, and other forms of hedonism, Anikulapo-Kuti was more concerned about humanity and fighting for justice for the common people. This is what makes Fela an immortal being, and his legacy lives forever.