- Femi Kuti
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Femi Kuti 
Kuti performing 10 November 2008
Photo: Carlos Fernández San MillánBackground information Birth name Olufela Olufemi Anikulapo Kuti Born 16 June 1962 Origin London, UK/Nigeria Genres Afrobeat, jazz Occupations Singer-songwriter, instrumentalist Instruments Saxophone, vocals, trumpet, keyboards Years active 1978–present Associated acts Egypt 80, Positive Force Past members Music sample Sorry Sorry
Performance at Warszawa Cross Culture Festival - 25 September 2011
Olufela Olufemi Anikulapo Kuti (born 16 June 1962) popularly known as Femi Kuti, is a Nigerian musician and the eldest son of afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti.[1]
Femi was born in London to Fela and Remi Kuti and grew up in the former Nigerian capital, Lagos. His mother soon left his father, taking Femi to live with her. In 1977, though, Femi chose to move in with his father. Femi eventually became a member of his father's band.
Like his father, Femi has shown a strong commitment to social and political causes throughout his career.
He created his own band Positive Force in late 80s with Dele Sosimi (Gbedu Resurrection), former key-board player of Fela Anikulapo Kuti. His international career began in 1988 when he was invited by the French Cultural Centre in Lagos and Christian Mousset to perform at Festival d'Angoulême (France), New Morning Club in Paris and Moers Festival in Germany.
In 2001, Femi collaborated on his album Fight to Win with a number of U.S. musicians, such as Common, Mos Def, and Jaguar Wright.
In 2002, Femi's mother, who had played an influential role in Femi's life, died at the age of 60. Femi's son currently appears as part of his act, playing alto saxophone.
Also in 2002, Femi contributed a remake of his father's classic song, "Water No Get Enemy," to Red Hot & Riot, a compilation CD in tribute to Fela Kuti that was released by the Red Hot Organization and MCA. His track was created in collaboration with hip hop and R&B artists, D'Angelo, Macy Gray, The Soultronics, Nile Rodgers, and Roy Hargrove, and all proceeds from the CD were donated to charities dedicated to raising AIDS awareness or fighting the disease.
Femi Kuti's voice is featured in the videogame Grand Theft Auto IV, where he is the host of radio station IF 99 (International Funk 99, described as "playing a great selection of classics from West Africa, the US and elsewhere").
Kuti's first nomination for a grammy occurred in 2003 and he was again nominated for a second time in 2010 in the world music category.
In similar fashion as his father, there have been complaints of Kuti's criticism of his homeland Nigeria, specifically in the song "Sorry Sorry".[2]
Contents
Discography
- No Cause For Alarm? (1989, Polygram)
- M.Y.O.B. (1991, Meodie)
- Femi Kuti (1995, Tabu/Motown)
- Shoki Shoki (1998, Barclay/Polygram/Fontana MCA)
- Fight to Win (2001, Barclay/Polygram/Fontana MCA/Wraase)
- "Ala Jalkoum" (on the album Rachid Taha Live) (2001, Mondo Melodia)
- Africa Shrine (Live CD) (2004, P-Vine)
- Live at the Shrine (Deluxe Edition DVD) + Africa Shrine (Live CD) (2005, Palm Pictures/Umvd)
- The Best of Femi Kuti (2004, Umvd/Wraase)
- Femi Kuti The Definitive Collection (2007, Wrasse Records)
- Grand Theft Auto IV soundtrack (2008, IF99)
- Hope for the Hopeless (2008) Collaboration with Brett Dennen
- Day by Day (2008, Wrasse Records)
- "Vampires" (on the album Radio Retaliation by Thievery Corporation) (2008, ESL Music)
- Africa for Africa (2010, Wrasse Records)
See also
References
- ^ Birchmeier, Jason. "Biography: Femi Kuti". AMG. http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p144290. Retrieved 9 May 2010.
- ^ Okechukwu Jones Asuzu (2006). The Politics of Being Nigerian. Lulu.com. pp. 97. ISBN 978-1411619562. http://books.google.com/books?id=XZH93qwrFJkC&pg=PA97&dq=sorry+sorry+femi+kuti+critical+of+his&hl=en&ei=S8bcTI71Ooq-sAPwj4D-Cg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCUQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=sorry%20sorry%20femi%20kuti%20critical%20of%20his&f=false.
External links
- The Shrine Unofficial website for Fela Kuti and Afrobeat Music with news, bio's, tour dates, gig reviews, interviews, lyrics and forum.
- LA Weekly interview, Jul. 2007 by Matthew Fleischer
- Son of a Lion, interview on flyglobalmusic.com 2004
- Photos and Biography
- The AfroFunk Music Forum Daily news, music reviews and commentary on Afrobeat and related music
- MCA artist page
- VIDEO: Femi Kuti at Lincoln Center, July 2010 - Interview and Performance Footage
- theartsdesk Q&A: Femi Kuti (24 November 2010)
- Video interview from July 2011 on Al-Jazeera's "One on One"
Categories:- Nigerian people
- 1962 births
- Living people
- Nigerian musicians
- Nigerian saxophonists
- Wrasse Records artists
- World music musicians
- Yoruba musicians
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