#FelaBack: There Is No One As Great As Fela, And There Probably Wouldn’t Be

With Wizkid’s international recognition, Burna Boy’s Afro fusion sound, and Falz’s social criticism, Nigerians have been in serious debate about which one out of these three is the reincarnation of Fela Anikulapo Kuti. But first, before we try to link Fela with these artists let try and understand who Fela really was. Fela was the kinda of artist that believed in the spirituality of music, he was once quoted saying, “if you use music wrongly, you will die young”, for him music was beyond the money, fame, pretty girls and record deals. Now really think about it, Which of our current artists are at that level of spirituality. Fela had a lot of people steal from him, because he paid little or no attention to it, which is a scary state for someone to be in. Another point, Fela believed in true Africanism, and it’s not just wearing African prints and a chain with the map of Africa as it’s pendant. Fela was African in every word, he delved into the African religion, African culture and African medicine, he did away with every thing western, but today nobody is really in that deep into the African way, you either Christian or Muslim. And with social activism, Fela didn’t just talk and make smart remarks, Fela lived by every word, He called out names, he was sent to prison a lot of times and they still could not shut him up. Also keep in mind that he created a whole new genre of music. Now critically look at it, which amongst the artists we have now has earned the right to be called the reincarnation of Fela.  I am not saying our artists should live their lives as Fela did, because let’s be honest it was a little dangerous and destructive but let just say the truth that man was a legend and after 21 years nobody can compare. Fela wasn’t Just a rebel, he was a rebel with a cause. Photo Credit: Getty

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