NIGERIA: Afrobeat king, Femi Kuti, says African leaders have let the continent down

Record ID: 235191

  • Title: NIGERIA: Afrobeat king, Femi Kuti, says African leaders have let the continent down
  • Date: 14th September 2007
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (English) AFROBEAT MUSICIAN, FEMI KUTI, SAYING: "Nobody would like to go into any of these offices if you are honest. When you look at it sincerely, and truthfully, when you look at Nigeria and you at it objectively, you'll run. Ha! this? A hundred million people you want to make, a hundred million people happy? It is an impossibility. The problems...to do the salaries of the policemen... education, healthcare problems..ahh! you'll not sleep, except if you are ready to die there. Look, if they don't kill you because of honesty, sickness will kill you there..if you trully want to do the job, you want to change Nigeria round, ha! I have thought of it sincerely, you wouldn't want to do that job."
  • Embargoed: 29th September 2007 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Nigeria
  • Country: Nigeria
  • Topics: International Relations,Arts / Culture / Entertainment / Showbiz
  • Reuters ID: LVA2YDXCKB4KV5GFQS5FXHUPQXBT
  • Story Text: Nigerian afrobeat king Femi Anikulapo-Kuti, said he hoped to see the changes he sings about in his songs even as he continued to heap blame on corrupt Africa leaders for ruining the continent.
    Born in 1962 in London, Femi Kuti, is an award-winning musician and the eldest son of legendary afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti. The genre is a fusion of American jazz and African traditional beats.
    Femi took on the afrobeat mantle after the death of his father in 1997.
    The late Fela was regarded as one of the most ardent protesters against injustices in post-colonial Nigeria and around Africa.
    "Somehow I might live to witness some of the changes of my songs in the political life in Africa. A lot of young people are listening to it and if they assume office, hopefully they will change characteristics, attitudes in the environment of the communities pertaining to what I have been singing about. I think my father's songs, if he didn't sing those songs, really as Africans or Nigerians we would not have anything to really fall back to explain the 70s irrespective of what songs we are talking about, the climate, what was Nigeria like, what was Africa like. What was even New York like at the time he was making thing we refer back to. So it is a plus for us since we have songs like my fathers songs talking about our political climate in Africa, as a young generation we can look and ha! we can see how thing have gotten worse between the 70s and now we are in 20th century, early 2007,"
    Femi said.
    Femi started his music career at an early age, performing shortly with his father before breaking off to form his own band, the Positive Force. He has produced several albums and has a strong following both in and outside Nigeria. Femi has also shown a strong commitment to social and political justice.
    "If it is not that the leaders we have are so corrupt, that even now that we are in a democratic change, it is worse than in the military times. In the military, we could identify because of their uniform...is it the colonel or brigadier? So when there is a coup you can just round them up. Now huh! You have to arrest the cousin of the aunty of the sister, ha! Democracy, you will arrest everybody because everyone is corrupt and they are all chopping to the detriment of the rest of millions of other Africans,"
    Femi added.
    His songs decry the level of injustice and corruption in the Nigerian government and around Africa. Nigeria is Africa's largest producer of crude oil but most of its 140 million people do not have access to clean water or electricity.
    In Lagos, fans flock every evening to watch Femi and his band rehearsing at his night-club known as the African Shrine.
    "By and large I think Femi is right. Femi's role is very vital, keeps the government on its toes. He uses his music to sensitize people, so to a large extend Femi knows what he is talking about. He is part of the system, he sees what we see and just like his father discharges it out in very lovely music. As far the government is concerned, the anti-corruption drive, I'll take that away, every other thing I am not pleased," said one of Femi's fans.
    Many of his fans are unemployed youth from around the sprawling Lagos suburb of Ikeja who use the Shrine's relaxed atmosphere to relax and maybe smoke marijuana. But most people who come here, come for the dynamic performances of the country's premier entertainer.
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