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1. Afrobeat:
the
poli/cs
of
Fela
Ku/
#med332

2. Fela
Ku/
funeral,
1997
1
million
people
a?ended
Image
©
Reuters

3. One
of
a
rela/vely
small
group
of
African
musicians
to
achieve
some
measure
of
international fame and
success,
par/cularly
in
Europe
and
the
United
States,
his
death
was
noted in the
Western press by
newspapers
and
magazines
ranging
from
The
New
York
Times
and
Time
magazine
to
Rolling
Stone
and
Spin.
In
each
of
these
cases-­‐-­‐along
with
the
men/on
of
his
musical
accomplishments,
his
radical
poli/cs,
and
his
frequent
imprisonment
by
the
Nigerian
government-­‐-­‐comes
men/on
of
his
twenty-seven wives and
his
habit
of
performing
dressed
only
in
bikini
briefs
-­‐
Stanovsky,
1998

4. afrobeat

5. “polygamist”
“misogynist”
“other”

6. Born
Olufela
Olusegun
Oludotun
Ransome-­‐Ku/
15
October
1938

7. Funmilayo
Ransome-­‐Ku/
with
her
son
,
Fela

8. London,
1958

9. Trinity
College
of
Music

11. 1960:
Fela
married
to
Remilekun
Remi
Taylor

12. jazz + highlife

14. Highlife
influences:
E.
T
Mensah
(Ghana)
Victor
Olaiya
Bobby
Benson

15. 1969:
USA
Exposed
to
poli/cs
of
Malcolm
X
&
Eldridge
Cleaver

16. It's
crazy;
in
the
States
people
think
the
black-­‐power
movement
drew
inspira/on
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
na/onal
dress
un/l
we
saw
pictures
of
blacks
wearing
dashikis
on
125th
Street.
-­‐
Ku/
cited
in
Stanovsky,1998

18. Men
are
born
Kings
are
made
Treatys
are
signed
Wars
are
fought
Every
country
has
its
own
problems
So
has
Nigeria
so
has
Africa
Let
us
bind
our
wounds
and
live
together
in
peace
Nigeria,
one
na/on
indivisible
Long
live
Nigeria
Viva
Africa
The
history
of
mankind
Is
full
of
obvious
turning
points
and
significant
events
Though
tongue
and
tribe
may
differ
We
are
all
Nigerians
We
are
all
Africans
War
is
not
the
answer
It
has
never
been
the
answer
And
it
will
never
be
the
answer
figh/ng
amongst
each
other
Let's
live
together
in
peace
Nigeria
one
Na/on
Indivisible
Let's
eat
together
like
we
used
to
eat
Let's
plan
together
like
we
used
to
plan
Sing
together
like
we
used
to
sing
Dance
together
like
we
used
to
dance
United
we
stand,
divided
we
fall
You
know
what
I
mean
I
hope
you
do
Fela
Ku/
–
‘Viva
Nigeria’
(1969)

19. Fela’s
refusal
to
speak
out
against
the
government
at
this
/me
was
an
a?empt
to
secure
state
sponsorship
-­‐
Veal,
2000

20. h?p://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0383yt5

25. contradictions…

26. Musically,
Fela
was
an
accomplished musician
but
his
extrasonic
or
extramusical
reputa/on
dominated
and
s/ll
dominates
that
of
the
musical.
He
thoroughly
enjoyed
this
extramusical
reputation and
repeatedly
stoked
its
fire
in
pronouncements
and
lifestyle,
but
he
nevertheless
struggled
laboriously
in
each
(of
his
trademark
one-­‐
song)
album
to
subvert
and
redirect
that
a?en/on
to
the
musical.
-­‐
Tejumola
Olaniyan,
2001:
76

27. At
the
level
of
personal
lifestyle,
he
was
an
indefa/gable
campaigner
against
tyranny
but
ran
a
strictly hierarchical household,
much
like
a
palace,
though
with
hardly
the
structural
checks
and
balances
of
model
indigenous
Yoruba
monarchies.
He
was
the
son of Nigeria's foremost
nationalist feminist […]
but
he
was
also
the
one
who
gave
many
boys
of
my
genera/on
a
language for our sexism,
and
made
that
sexist
language
extremely
musically
pleasurable
-­‐
Olaniyan,
2001:
76-­‐77

28. na/vism
vs
cosmopolitanism

29. recurring
mo/fs:
• An
Africa
beset
by
tyrannical
leaders,
• poli/cal
instability,
• corrup/on
and
nepo/sm
throughout
na/onal
ins/tu/ons
• economic
crises
• social
inequality
• poor
city
infrastructures
• interethnic
figh/ng
• an/
government
rebellions
• families
torn
apart
and
forced
to
live
vast
distances
away
in
order
to
find
work

30. 1971

31. ‘Why
Black
Man
Dey
Suffer’
(1971)
We
dey
sit
down
for
our
land
jeje
(We
were
living
peacefully
in
our
land)
We
dey
mind
our
business
jeje
(Minding
our
own
business)
Some
people
come
from
far
away
land
Dem
(They)
fight
us
and
take
away
our
land
Dem
take
our
people
and
spoil
all
our
towns
Na
since
then
trouble
start
(That's
when
our
troubles
started)
Na
since
then
trouble
star/
o
(hun,
hun;
one
more
/me
(It’s
been
trouble
ever
since)
Our
riches
dem
take
away
to
their
land
In
return
dem
give
us
their
colony
Dem
take
our
culture
away
from
us
Dem
give
us
culture
we
no
understand
Black
people
we
no
(don't)
know
ourselves
We
no
know
our
ancestral
heritage
We
dey
fight
each
other
everyday
(We’re
constantly
at
one
another’s
throats)

32. Sandra
(Smith)
Isadore
and
Fela
Ku/
circa
1969

33. 1972

34. ‘Lady’
(1972)
She
go
say,
"I
be
Lady
o"!
She
go
say,
"I
be
Lady"
She
go
say,
"I
no
be
woman"
She
go
say,
"Market
woman
na
woman"
She
go
say,
"I
be
Lady”
I
wan
tell
you
about
Lady
(x3)
She
go
say
him
equal
to
man
She
go
say
him
get
power
like
man
She
go
say
anything
man
do
himself
fit
do
I
never
tell
you
finish
(x4)
I
never
tell
you...
She
go
wan
take
cigar
before
anybody
She
go
wan
make
you
open
door
for
am
She
go
wan
make
man
wash
plate
for
am
for
kitchen
She
wan
salute
man
she
go
sit
down
for
chair
She
wan
salute
man
she
go
sit
down
for
chair
She
wan
sit
down
for
table
before
anybody
She
wan
sit
down
for
table
before
anybody
She
wan
a
piece
of
meat
before
anybody
She
wan
a
piece
of
meat
before
anybody

35. 1973

36. ‘Gentleman’
(1973)
I
be
Africa
man
original
Them
call
you,
make
you
come
chop
You
chop
small,
you
say
you
belly
full
You
say
you
be
gentleman
You
go
hungry
You
go
suffer
You
go
quench
Me
I
no
be
gentleman
like
that
[…]
I
be
Africa
man
original
(x3)
You
dey
go
your
way,
the
jeje
way
Somebody
come
bring
original
trouble
You
no
talk,
you
no
act
You
say
you
be
gentleman
You
go
suffer
You
go
/re
You
go
quench
Me
I
no
be
gentleman
like
that
I
no
be
gentleman
at
all
o!
I
be
Africa
man
original
(x2)
Africa
hot,
I
like
am
so
I
know
what
to
wear
but
my
friends
don't
know
Him
put
him
socks,
him
put
him
shoe
Him
put
him
pant,
him
put
him
singlet
Him
put
him
trouser,
him
put
him
shirt
Him
put
him
/e,
him
put
him
coat
Him
come
cover
all
with
him
hat
Him
be
gentleman
Him
go
sweat
all
over
Him
go
faint
right
down
Him
go
smell
like
shit
Him
go
piss
for
body,
him
no
go
know
Me
I
no
be
gentleman
like
that

37. 1976

38. 1977

39. 1983

40. English
man
go
say
"pile,"
Yoruba
man
go
sayjedi-­‐jedi
doctors
want
to
do
something
about
it
doctors
must
give
you
capsule.
Chorus:
no
solu/on!
doctor
must
give
you
tablet
(ch.)
doctor
must
give
you
mixture
(ch.)
injec/on
must
enter
your
nyash
[buG]
(ch.)
doctor
carry
you
go
theater
(ch.)
him
take
de
knife
slice
your
nyash
[he
operates
on
your
buG]
(ch.)
I
say
solu/on
dey
for
African
medicine
I
say
the
solu/on
is
in
African
medicine
in
one
week
jedi-­‐jedi
go
start
to
run
away
(One
week,
and
you
are
cured!)
we
must
learn
to
respect
our
African
medicine
our
doctors
must
go
to
learn
how
to
make
research
but,
but,
but
dem
go
dey
perambulate
and
dem
s/ll
dey
Chorus:
same
same
place
they
go
dey
perambulate
and
dem
s/ll
dey
(ch.)
see
jedi
(ch.);
malaria
(ch.);
gonorrhea
(ch.),
and
syphilis
(ch.)
dem
no
fit
do
dem
(ch.)
(they
can't
cure
all
these
diseases)
me,
I
dey
tell
them
(ch.)
(I
keep
telling
them)
our
medicine
be?er
(ch.)
(Our
medicine
is
beGer)
hey
get
name
for
am
(ch.)
(but
they
have
a
demeaning
name
for
it)
"herbal
medicine"
(ch.)
‘Perambulator’
(1983)

41. 1977

42. Zombie
o,
zombie
(Zombie
o,
zombie)
Zombie
no
go
go,
unless
you
tell
am
to
go
(Zombie)
Zombie
no
go
stop,
unless
you
tell
am
to
stop
(Zombie)
Zombie
no
go
turn,
unless
you
tell
am
to
turn
(Zombie)
Zombie
no
go
think,
unless
you
tell
am
to
think
(Zombie)
Tell
am
to
go
straight
A
joro,
jara,
joro
No
break,
no
job,
no
sense
A
joro,
jara,
joro
Tell
am
to
go
kill
A
joro,
jara,
joro
No
break,
no
job,
no
sense
A
joro,
jara,
joro
Tell
am
to
go
quench
A
joro,
jara,
joro
No
break,
no
job,
no
sense
A
joro,
jara,
joro
Go
and
kill!
(Joro,
jaro,
joro)
Go
and
die!
(Joro,
jaro,
joro)
Go
and
quench!
(Joro,
jaro,
joro)
Put
am
for
reverse!
(Joro,
jaro,
joro)
Joro,
jara,
joro,
zombie
wey
na
one
way
(x3)
Joro,
jara,
joro
A?en/on!
(Zombie)
Quick
march!
Slow
march!
(Zombie)
Lez
turn!
Right
turn!
(Zombie)
About
turn!
Double
up!
(Zombie)
Salute!
Open
your
hat!
(Zombie)
Stand
at
ease!
Fall
in!
(Zombie)
Fall
out!
Fall
down!
(Zombie)
Get
ready!
Halt!
Order!
Dismiss!
‘Zombie’
(1977)

43. Fela
in
his
life
/me
was
never
"a
good
bedfellow"
of
the
military
ins/tu/on.
As
a
poli/cal
ac/vist,
he
believed
the
army
should
operate
under
the
mandate
of
a
civil
government.
If
na/onal
interest
compels
the
armed
forces
to
intervene
in
government,
the
army
is
obliged
to
hand
over
power
to
a
new
civil
government
elected
by
the
people
and
enjoying
their
mandate.
To
do
otherwise
is
to
usurp
power
par/cularly
since
a
soldier's
duty
is
not
to
seek
a
poli/cal
mandate.
For
emphasis
in
the
song,
he
narrates
the
military
in
mo/on
comparing
their
orienta/on
to
the
Zombie,
without
minds
of
their
own.
Fela
paid
a
big
price
for
this
bold
condemna/on
of
the
military
ins/tu/on.
One
thousand
members
of
the
Nigerian
army
a?acked
and
burnt
down
his
house
azer
the
release
of
the
record.
The
tribunal
set
up
to
inves/gate
the
cause
of
the
a?ack
as
a
result
of
the
public
out-­‐cry
against
the
army,
heard,
as
part
of
the
evidence
presented,
an
example
of
the
Zombie
album
cover
with
the
military
uniform
and
boots
displayed
boldly.
The
army
jus/fica/on
of
the
a?ack
was
that
Fela
treated
the
military
ins/tu/on
with
levity.
[Sleeve
liner
notes)
1977

44. 1980

45. Fela
Ku/
funeral,
1997
1
million
people
a?ended
Image
©
Reuters

46. Summary
• Legendary
performer
• Conflicted
poli/cs.
• Responsible
for
popularising
an/-­‐feminist
sen/ment
despite
being
brought
up
by
a
strong
woman.
• Nigeria
underwent
a
period
of
huge
upheaval.
• Independence
from
Bri/sh
in
1960
–
oil
rich,
large
popula/on,
unequal
division
of
wealth
–
socially
conscious.
• A?empted
to
run
for
President.
• Died
of
Aids
related
illness

47. Images
• Daniel
Lobo
(2013)
Fela
Ku/
• Circuito
Fora
do
Eixo
(2012)
#Coluna
Seu
Guevara
-­‐
22/03/12
• Chris
Weige
(2007)
fela
ku/
• Mark
Morgan
(2010)
Fela
Originals
• Leonard
Bentley
(1958)
Parliament
Square
• Stefano
C.
Manservisi
(2010)
Trinity
College
of
Music
• Deeboy
(2006)
Coltrane
acute
II
• Thomas
Hawk
(2006)
May
4,
1968
• Steve
Snodgrass
(2010)
Power
&
Equality
• Global
Panorama
(2011)
Nigeria
Flag