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Fela Kuti Fela is a man with contradictions This is what makes him so fascinating People who love him are able to accept his flaws His songs are typically longer than 20 minutes and sung in a thick Pidgin English that is almost incomprehensible His music is influenced by Christian hymns jazz classical music Yoruba music chant and hornandguitar heavy highlife He was a musician Fela Kuti embodied the idea that music is a tool for change He used his music to advocate for social and political changes and his influence is evident in the world of today Afrobeat is a form of music that blends African and Western influences Its roots are in WestAfrican music as well as funk However it has evolved into a completely new genre His political activism was intense and he took action without fear He made use of his music to protest against corruption in the government and human rights abuses Songs such as Zombie and Coffin for the Head of State were bold critiques of the Nigerian regime He also used Kalakuta as a venue to meet likeminded people and to promote political activism The play features a large portrait of his mother Funmilayo RansomeKuti who was a wellknown activist and feminist pioneer She is portrayed by actress Shantel Cribbs who has successfully depicted her importance in the life of Fela The play also explores her political activism Despite her deteriorating condition she refused to be tested for AIDS Instead she chose traditional treatments He was a singer Fela Ransome Kuti was a complex individual who used music to effect changes in the political landscape He is credited as the originator of afrobeat an invigorating blend of dirty funk and traditional African rhythms He was also a fervent critic of Nigerias political and religious leaders His mother was a suffragist who was anticolonial and its not unusual that he has a love for political commentaries and social commentary His parents hoped that he would be a doctor however he had other ideas A trip to America changed his perspective forever The music he composed was greatly affected by his exposure to Black Power movements and the leadership like Eldridge Clever and Malcolm X He adopted the PanAfricanism philosophy that would influence and guide his later work He was a music producer While in the United States Fela was introduced to Black Power activists like Stokely Carmichael and Malcolm X This led him to start an activist group known as the Movement of the People and compose songs that reflected the ideas he had about political activism and black awareness His ideas were expressed publicly by yabis a type of public speaking that he called freedom expression He also began to impose a strict ethical code for his band such as refusing to use medications from doctors trained in the West After returning to Nigeria Fela began building his own club The Shrine in Ikeja The snares of military and police officials were nearly constant His MosholashiIdi Oro hangers repopulated the area around the club with hard drug especially bana and yamuna heroin Fela maintained his integrity regardless of this His music demonstrates the determination with which he fought authority and demanded that the popular will be reflected in official goals It is an extraordinary legacy that will be remembered for generations to be He was a poet Felas music utilized sarcasm as well as humor to draw attention to political and economic issues in Nigeria He also snarkily mocked his audience government officials and even himself In these shows he referred to himself as the big dick in the pond with a little These jokes were not taken lightly by the authorities and he suffered repeated arrests and imprisonments as well as beatings at the hands of the authorities He was eventually given the name Anikulapo which means he carries his death in his pouch In 1977 Fela recorded a song called Zombie which compared soldiers to mindless zombies that obeyed orders without hesitation The military was offended by the song which raided the Kalakuta Republic burning it down and beating its occupants In the course of the raid her mother was thrown from her secondfloor window In the years following Nigerias independence Fela created Afrobeat the genre of music that combines jazz with native African rhythm His songs criticized European cultural imperialism and he favored traditional African religions and culture He also criticized fellow Africans who sabotaged their countrys traditions He emphasized the importance of freedom and human rights fela case settlements was an artist of hiphop A saxophonist trumpeter composer and pioneer of the Afrobeat genre Fela AnikulapoKuti was born in 1938 in Abeokuta Nigeria He was inspired by jazz rock and roll as well as traditional African music chants and music After an excursion to the United States in 1969 Fela met Sandra Smith an activist from the Black Power movement and her ideas affected his work dramatically After his return to Nigeria Fela began using his music as a tool for political purposes He criticised the government of his native country and argued against Western sensibilities affecting African culture He also wrote about social inequities and human rights violations and was often detained for his criticism of the military Fela was also a proponent of marijuana in Africa that is also known as igbo He also held yabis public discussions at Afrika Shrine where he would mock government officials and spread his views on the freedom of expression as well as the beauty of womens bodies Fela had a harem which was a group of women who performed at his shows as well as backed his vocally He was a dancer Fela was a master at musical fusion He fused elements of beat music and highlife into his own distinctive style He was a leading African musician and a vocal critic of colonial rule Despite being tortured and arrested by the Nigerian military junta and witnessing his mother be killed Fela refused to leave the country He died in 1997 of AIDSrelated complications Fela was an activist for the political cause who was a critic of the oppressive Nigerian government and embraced the principles of Pan Africanism His albums like 1973s Gentleman focused on the oppression of both government and colonial forces He also pushed for black power and criticised Christianity and Islam as nonAfrican influenced religions that were used to divide the people of Africa The title track from the album from 1978 Shuffering and Shmiling describes the overcrammed public busses full of poor people shuffering and smiling Fela was a staunch opponent of religious hypocrisy The dancers of Fela were an excellent match for his music They were vibrant sensual and regal Their contributions were as significant as Felas lyrics He was a political militant Fela Kuti was a militant who used music to challenge the unjust authority He steered his knowledge of American jazz and funk towards African patterns and rhythms resulting in a sound that is braced for battle The majority of his songs begin as simmering instrumentals slowly layering shortlined melodies and riffs until they burst with urgency Fela like many artists who were scared to speak about their politics was fearless and unbending He stood in his convictions even when it was dangerous to do so His mother Funmilayo RansomeKuti was a fervent feminist who was the leader of the Nigerian Womens Movement His father was a protestant minister and the president of the teachers union He also founded Kalakuta Republic a recording studio and commune that was an emblem of the resistance The government raided the Kalakuta Republic destroying property and severely injured Fela He refused to give up however and continued to speak out against the government He passed away in 1997 of complications arising from AIDS He was succeeded by his son Femi who continues to continue his musical and political legacy He was a father Music is often seen by many as a political act Musicians use lyrics to demand change Some of the most powerful musical demonstrations arent supported by words Fela Kuti was one of them and his music is still ringing out to this day He was the pioneer of Afrobeat music which blends traditional African rhythms and harmonies with jazz and hiphop being influenced by artists like James Brown Funmilayo Ransome Kuti was Felas activist mother She was a unionist and fought colonialism She helped form the Abeokuta Womens Union and fought against genderdiscriminatory taxation laws She also studied Marxism and believed that Nigeria should serve its all citizens Seun Felas son continues to carry on his fathers legacy with the band Egypt 80 The band is touring the world in this year The bands music blends the music and politics of Felas time with a passionate critique of the same power structures that persist in the present Black Times will be released at the end March A large number of fans paid their respects at the funeral at Tafawa Balewa square The crowd was so huge that police had to shut off the entrance to the venue