Nigerian recording artiste, Femi Kuti, has spoken fondly about his iconic father, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, who is the pioneer of Afrobeats.
He spoke at the Fela Lifetime Achievement celebration held in Los Angeles, United States. The event was organised to honour Fela’s historic posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, making him the first African artist to receive the prestigious recognition.
At the event, Femi Kuti spoke about the relationship he had with his ‘unconventional’ father while growing up.
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According to him, Fela was not a conventional father who stayed home to help with homework or live a quiet family life. Instead, he described Fela as “everybody’s father,” explaining that the Afrobeat pioneer dedicated himself to fighting injustice and standing up to authorities at a time when he faced serious danger.
Femi noted that as he grew older, he began to understand that Fela’s distance from traditional parenting may have been his way of protecting his children from the threats and political battles he constantly faced.
Despite sharing his father with the world, Femi said he always saw genuine love in Fela’s eyes, a moment that nearly brought him to tears as he spoke. Clearly aware of his emotional state, Femi dropped the microphone respectfully and left the stage.
Watch the moment below:
Equally, Fela shared the prestigious honour with other celebrated figures in global music, among them Whitney Houston, Chaka Khan, Cher, and Paul Simon.
