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Fela RansomeKuti In addition to being a musician Fela was a political activist and a PanAfricanist He was a proponent of African culture and was heavily influenced by Black Power He travelled to Ghana where he discovered new music influences and a new direction for his music He composed songs designed to be political slams against the Nigerian government and a world order that systematically exploited Africa His music was radical and uncompromising Fela Ransome Kuti was born Abeokuta In the 1970s and 1980s Fela RansomeKuti became known for his brutal style of music and his abrasive political statements Many of his songs were direct slams against the Nigerian government particularly the dictatorships of the military that ruled the country during those times He also criticised fellow Africans who backed these dictatorships Felas rebellion against oppressive governments cost him dearly He was arrested beaten and jailed several times He once referred to himself as an prisoner of the Kalakuta Republic and founded his own political movement the Movement for the Advancement of the People MOP Funmilayo Ransome Kuti was Felas mom She was a feminist leader and women rights activist who is known throughout the world She was a teacher and an active member of the Abeokuta Womens Union She also assisted in organising the first preschool classes of Abeokuta She was a suffragist and was active in the Nigerian independence movement She was a close relation to writer and Nobel laureate Wole SOYINKA RansomeKuti supported PanAfricanism and was a staunch socialist She was a proponent of the preservation of traditional African religions and lifestyles and opposed European cultural imperialism RansomeKuti was influenced by Malcolm X Eldridge Clever and the Black Power Movement She was also a member of the African Renaissance movement The music of Fela was able despite his opposition to the oppressive Nigerian Government and Western culture to gain a worldwide following His music was a mixture of jazz Afrobeats and rock heavily influenced by American jazz clubs He was also a staunch antiracist Felas rebellion against the Nigerian government earned him many arrests and beatings However it did not stop him from traveling the United States and Europe In 1984 he again was snatched by the military and detained under questionable charges Human rights groups from around the world intervened after the incident and the government was forced to step down Nevertheless Kuti continued to record and perform until his death in 1997 He was buried at the Kalakuta Cemetery Abeokuta The Fela Museum is located in the city He was a musician Fela a fervent PanAfricanist was committed to using music as a method of social protest He was a critic of the Nigerian Government while inspiring activists from all over the world Fela was born in 1938 in Abeokuta Nigeria He was the son of Funmilayo RunsomeKuti who was a fervent anticolonialist and leader of the Nigerian womens movement His mother like his grandparents was a doctor who was an anticolonialist Fela was raised to fight for the rights of the oppressed and this became his main focus in life Fela started his career in the field of music teacher in 1958 following the time he quit medical school He wanted to follow his passion for the music He began playing highlife music which is a popular genre that combines African rhythms and Western instruments with jazz He started his first band in London where he was able to refine his skills On his return to Nigeria he created Afrobeat which combined lyrics written in agitprop with danceable beats The new sound became popular in Nigeria and across the continent and became one of the most influential forms of African music Felas political activism during the 1970s led him into direct conflict with Nigerian regimes The regime was wary of his musics ability to inspire people to stand up against their oppressors and challenge the status established order Despite repeated attempts to disarm him Fela continued to make incredible and extremely danceable music until the end of his life He died in 1997 from complications arising from AIDS While Fela was alive lines of people were always in line to see him perform at his nightclub in Lagos called Afrika Shrine He also established a commune the Kalakuta Republic that functioned as his recording studio club and spiritual space The commune also was an area for political speeches Fela often criticised the Nigerian government and world leaders including US President Ronald Reagan British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and South African Prime Minister PW Botha His legacy lives in spite of his death due to complications resulting from AIDS His revolutionary Afrobeat sound continues to influence popular artists including Beyonce Wyclef Jean and Jay Z who have cited him as an inspiration He was a mysterious man who was a lover of music and fun as well as women But his most lasting legacy is his unwavering efforts to fight for the marginalized He was a PanAfricanist The renowned Nigerian multiinstrumentalist and political activist Fela AnikulapoKuti was a PanAfricanist bringing his unique musical style to the cause of the people He was a master of blending African culture with American jazz and funk He also employed his music as a way to protest against Nigerias oppressive government Despite being subject to numerous arrests and beatings but the musician continued to stand up for and defend his convictions Fela was born into the RansomeKuti clan which included anticolonialists as well as artists His mother Funmilayo Ransome Kuti was a educator and feminist as was his father Israel Oludotun Ransome Kuti helped to form the teachers union He grew singing and listening to the traditional songs and beats of highlife a mix of soul songs jazz standards and Ghanaian hymns This music influenced the worldview of Fela who was determined to bring Africa to the world and the world to Africa In 1977 Fela recorded Zombie The song compared the police with a mindless group of hordes who would obey orders and savagely attack people The track ticked off the military authorities who surrounded his home and destroyed his home They beat all of them including Felas wives and children His mother was thrown out of a window and died from injuries sustained during the attack the following year The invasion fueled the antigovernment activism of Fela He founded a commune known as the Kalakuta Republic It also was a studio used for recording He also formed a party and separated from the Nigerian government and his songs began to focus more on social issues In 1979 he took his mothers body to the headquarters of the junta ruling in Lagos and was later beaten Fela was a fierce and unbending warrior who never accepted the status established order He was aware that the injustice of fighting an unjust and inefficient power however he did not give up He was a symbol of a spirit that was indefatigable and in that way he was truly heroic He was a man that stood up to the odds and changed the course history His legacy lives on today He died in 1997 The death of Fela was a devastating blow to his fans across the world Many thousands of people attended his funeral He was 58 when he passed away His family claimed that he died due to heart failure due to AIDS Fela played a key contribution to the development and evolution of Afrobeat music which fuses traditional Yoruba rhythms jazz and American funk His political activism led to arrests and beatings by Nigerian police but he refused to be silenced He encouraged others to resist the corrupt regime of the Nigerian military regime and advocated Africanism Fela had a significant impact on the Black Power Movement in the United States This inspired him to fight for Africa In his later years Fela suffered from skin swelling and weight loss that was dramatic These signs clearly indicated that he was suffering from AIDS He refused to receive treatment and denied having AIDS Eventually the disease took him away Fela Kuti will be remembered for generations Kutis music is a strong political statement that is a challenge to the status of the art He was a revolutionary who sought to change the way Africans were treated He made use of his music as a means of social protest and fought against colonialism His music was influential in changing the lives of a lot of Africans and he will be remembered for his contribution to the cause fela attorneys collaborated with numerous producers throughout his career to create his distinctive sound Some of these producers included EMI producer Jeff Jarratt British dub master Dennis Bovell and keyboardist Wally Badarou His music was a blend of traditional African beats American funk and jazz which earned him an international following He was controversial in the world of music and was often critical about Western culture Fela was famous for his controversial music and lifestyle He was a pot smoker and had numerous relationships with women He was an activist who fought for the rights the poor in Nigeria despite his outrageous lifestyle His music influenced the lives of a lot of Africans and inspired them to embrace their own culture