Three decades after his death, the ‘father of Afrobeat’ Fela Kuti has made history by becoming the first African to get a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grammys.
The Nigerian musician, who died in 1997, posthumously received the commendation along with several other artists at a ceremony in Los Angeles on Saturday, on the eve of the 68th Annual Grammy Awards.
For his family and friends – some of whom were in attendance – it is an honour they hope will help amplify Fela’s music, and ideology, among a new generation of musicians and music lovers. But it is an acknowledgement they also admit has come quite late.
“The family is happy about it. And we’re excited that he’s finally being recognised,” Yeni Kuti, Fela’s daughter, told media before the ceremony. “But Fela was never nominated [for a Grammy] in his lifetime,” she lamented.
The recognition is “better late than never”, she said, but “we still have a way to go” in fairly recognising musicians and artists from across the African continent.
Lemi Ghariokwu, a renowned Nigerian artist and the designer behind 26 of Fela’s iconic album covers, says the fact that this is the first time an African musician gets this honour “just shows that whatever we as Africans need to do, we need to do it five times more.”
Ghariokwu said he feels “privileged” to witness this moment for Fela. “It’s good to have one of us represented in that category, at that level. So, I’m excited. I’m happy about it,” he told media.
But he admits he was also “surprised” when he first heard the news.
“Fela was totally anti-establishment. And now, the establishment is recognising him,” Ghariokwu said.
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