President Bola Tinubu has paid tribute to the late Fela Anikulapo Kuti, describing the afrobeat pioneer as a “fearless voice of the people” and a revolutionary artist whose music challenged injustice and transformed the global soundscape.
The praise came on Sunday as Kuti became the first African recipient of the Grammy lifetime achievement award, bestowed posthumously by the US Recording Academy.
“Fela was more than a musician. He was a fearless voice of the people, a philosopher of freedom, and a revolutionary force whose music confronted injustice and reshaped global sound,” the President said in a statement he personally signed on Sunday.
President Tinubu described Fela’s courage, creativity, and conviction as defining qualities that shaped a generation and continue to inspire the world.
He said that the Grammy recognition serves as an affirmation of Fela’s enduring global influence and his foundational role in the evolution of Africa’s impact on modern music.
“Fela Kuti has blazed the trail with the Recording Academy of America’s Lifetime Achievement Award, becoming the first African to receive this honour, though posthumously.
“The award is an affirmation of his enduring global influence and the foundational role he has played in the evolution and impact of Africa on modern music,” Tinubu stated.
The President drew on Yoruba cultural and spiritual traditions to emphasise the enduring legacy of Fela Kuti.
President Tinubu said “In Yoruba mythology, he has transcended to a higher plane as an Orisa. He is now eternal,” while describing Fela’s immortal place.
“Fela lives,” the President said and emphasised Fela’s pioneering role in defining and popularising Afrobeat, a genre that has become a defining feature of contemporary African music globally.
“He defined Afrobeat, and you can hear and see his influence in generations of Nigerian musicians and in Afrobeats and beyond.
On Sunday, February 1, Fela became the first African musician to receive the prestigious Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
He was posthumously honoured at the 68th Annual Grammy Awards.
The Afrobeat legend, who died in 1997, revolutionised African music through his creation of Afrobeat, a fusion of traditional Yoruba rhythms, jazz, funk, and highlife music.
The Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award stands as one of the Recording Academy’s most coveted accolades, bestowed upon artists whose enduring legacies have profoundly reshaped the music industry and wider culture.
