Before an immersive exhibition at the Paris Philharmonic opened on Thursday, Fela Anikulapo Kuti's son, Femi Kuti, talked of his father's daring deed of wielding his "music as a weapon."
The Paris Philharmonic paid tribute to Fela Kuti by recreating the ambiance of his steamy, politically charged Nigerian nightclub, 'The Shrine,' which became a beacon for worldwide giants like Stevie Wonder and Paul McCartney in the 1970s.
The 60-year-old Nigerian artist claimed his father was courageous enough to use his music as a weapon in the battle against corruption in Nigeria.
"Music was the only tool he had instead of taking up a gun," he said. It was a weapon to be used against authority, colonialism, and corrupt African regimes.
“I’m not surprised. Great people like Miles Davis already talked about Fela.
“Afrobeat was the basic element of hip-hop, it’s where hip-hop got its sauce from,” he said.
He also bravely recounted how his father was persecuted and beaten by military officials in Nigeria for his unwavering criticism of their corruption and brutal misrule, which resulted in the murder of his grandmother, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti.
“Soldiers responded to his counter-festival by burning down his home and pushing his mother out of a first-floor window, causing injuries which led to her death a year later.”
“He was a voice for the voiceless, the only opponent who was brave enough to tackle the hardcore military dictators at that time and he paid a very high price.
“But it was ultimately the genius of his music that made him so popular, creating something entirely new with its mix of free jazz, soul, funk, and Yoruba,” Femi remark
"McCartney was one of several motivated to come to The Shrine in Lagos, where he recorded his album, 'Band on the Run,'" he continues.
"Fela emerged out of Africa with this wonderful sound that captivated everyone's attention." Despite the fact that Kuti died of AIDS complications in 1997, his innovative work remains potent today and is widely praised by current superstars.
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