There can no longer be any doubt that Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, the legendary Nigerian musician, activist and father of Afrobeat music, has become an easy career booster for today’s Afrobeats artists who are undergoing creative droughts.
Fela’s invention, Afrobeat, is an ensemble and performance-based category that blends jazz, funk, rock and traditional West African chant and rhythms. It originated in the early 1970s through continued experimentation after a stint with highlife music. Afrobeats, however, is a 21st century creation of beat-heavy electronic pop music from Nigeria with steadily growing global audiences. It’s become an umbrella term describing the music of contemporary West African stars, including the likes of Wizkid, Burna Boy and Tems.
