Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti was an iconic musician and political activist whose career spanned the late fifties to early nineties. He was born on the 15^th day of October 1938 in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria.

Early Life

Fela, as he was mononymously known, was the third child of a prominent Egba family notable for their contributions to music, religion, medicine, education, and politics in Nigeria. His father, Israel Oludotun Ransome-Kuti, was a renowned Reverend and teacher who was the first president of the Nigerian Union of Teachers.

His mother, Chief Fumilayo Ransome-Kuti, was an anti-colonial suffragist and the first woman to attend Abeokuta Grammar School. His brothers Olikoye Ransome-Kuti and Bekolari Ransome-Kuti were notable doctors. Given this background of solid characters and a spirit of change-driving, it is no surprise that Fela took the path of greatness.

He began his education at Abeokuta Grammar School after taking music lessons on the piano and percussion from his father. He then went to the United Kingdom; his parents hoped he would become a medical doctor like his brothers, but the young Fela had other dreams.

Career

Upon getting to the United Kingdom, Fela chose to study classical music at Trinity College of Music, London. He was exposed to various musical genres such as jazz and rock and soon formed his band, which he called Koola Lobitos. His preference was the trumpet, and he was a favourite at clubs in London.

When he returned to Nigeria in the sixties, he rebranded his style of music into a complex combination of sorts – highlife, jazz, funk, salsa, calypso, and traditional Yoruba music – which he then dubbed "Afrobeat." Thus began the rise of the genre for generations to come.

Fela and his band went on numerous tours around America. On one such tour, he met Sandra Smith (now Sandra Izsadore). Izsadore's influence on Fela was monumental, as he was recorded to have said after meeting her:

 “It was incredible how my head was turned. Everything fell into place, man. For the first time, I saw the essence of blackism (black nationalism). It's crazy; in the States, people think the black‐power movement drew inspiration from Africa. All these Americans come over here looking for awareness. They don't realize they're the ones who've got it over there. Why we were even ashamed to go around in national dress until we saw pictures of blacks wearing dashikis on 125th St...I realized that to be a great man, you have to have a great country behind you. I had no country, just a bunch of Africans running around in suits trying to be Englishmen. I decided to come back and try to make my country African."

Isidore was Fela's mentor, and his band’s only leading female vocalist. She introduced him to Pan-Africanism and the writings of Black activists such as Malcolm X and Eldridge Cleaver. She also brought to his awareness the need to make music with a purpose, unlike the romantic songs he sang, which she considered meaningless. Africa was in shambles, vestiges of colonialism and military juntas lying about. These realities gave his songs a new direction.

Activism

The Afrobeat pioneer renamed his group of musicians 'Nigeria 70,' and they began to make music with a socio-political theme. His lyrics became a source of comfort and expression for the oppressed, the have-nots, and the people at the bottom of society’s totem pole.

The focus of his critical lyrics took a sharper form — the Nigerian Government. He rechristened his band - Africa 70; discarded the name ‘Ransome’, citing its being a colonial inheritance, and adopted ‘Anikulapo’ (we hold death in our pocket) to show that he intended to be the master of his destiny.

Hereon, he became a target of Nigeria’s military government. He was constantly harassed and assaulted for his controversial lifestyle (he smoked marijuana openly and married 27 women in one ceremony). In defiance of the government, he established a community – the independent Kalakuta Republic – a large house, with a recording studio and performance space, for his family and fellow believers, which he called ‘African Shrine’.

He promoted traditional religion and praised the use of marijuana, and his bitter attacks on the government did not let up. He sang at length of their hypocrisy and cruelty towards poor Nigerians, backed by the exploitative support of Western powers.

In 1979 he formed a political party, Movement of the People, to contest the 1979 Nigerian Presidential elections, but the party was banned from participating.

Fela was alleged to have been arrested over 200 times. On one occasion, 1,000 soldiers were said to have been sent to his home resulting in great havoc. He was brutally beaten alongside some of his bandmates, his aged mother was thrown from a window, and many of his tapes were destroyed.

Fela changed his group's name once more to Egypt 80, having been inspired by more African writings and a thinking that Egypt's development and inventions rightly belonged to the African continent.

Legacy

Fela pioneered Afrobeat as the music of resistance and introduced it to the world. Its lyrics pick out what is wrong with Nigeria and Africa, be it corruption, heavy-handed leadership that instils fear, vestiges of colonialism, or the hardship and poverty ordinary citizens endure. Its message is still relevant today.

Continued by his sons – Femi and Seun Kuti - and Afrobeats musicians, Afrobeat has lived on since Fela’s death. His music, if not its message, has become fodder for a new generation of musicians. Several Wizkid hit songs infuse elements of Afrobeat, and his ‘Jaiye Jaiye’ includes the chorus from Fela’s ‘Lady’.