Femi Kuti: Biography, career, songs, awards, net worth, legacy

Femi Kuti is a well-known stage name for Olufela Olufemi Anikulapo Kuti, a Nigerian artist who was born in London, United Kingdom, and raised in Lagos, Nigeria.

He is the oldest child of Fela Kuti, the father of Afrobeat, and the grandchild of Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, a human rights activist, women’s rights advocate, and traditional nobleman.

Table of Content hide 1Biography 2Career 3Songs 4Albums 5Awards 6Family 7Net worth 8Legacy 9Conclusion

Biography

Femi Kuti was born on 16 June 1962. He was raised in the old capital of Nigeria, Lagos, but was born in London to Fela and Remilekun (Remi) Ransome-Kuti (née Taylor; 1941-2000). Soon after taking Femi to live with her, his mother abandoned his father. Femi decided to live with his father nonetheless in 1977. At the age of 15, he began studying the saxophone and eventually joined his father’s band. He attended Baptist Academy and Igbobi College for his education. 

Career 

Femi has devoted his career to social and political causes, just like his father Fela Kuti. Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, Femi’s grandmother, was a political activist and proponent of women’s rights. Femi believes that his mother, Remilekun Taylor, has had the most impact on his life, even though he is the son of an international legend. 

In the late 1980s, he formed Positive Force alongside Dele Sosimi (Gbedu Resurrection), a former Fela Anikulapo Kuti keyboardist. His international career began in 1988 when he accepted invitations to perform at the Festival d’Angoulême (France), the New Morning Club in Paris, and the Moers Festival in Germany from the French Cultural Centre in Lagos and Christian Mousset. Several US musicians, including Common, Mos Def, and Jaguar Wright, worked with Femi on his album Fight to Win in 2001. 

The Red Hot Organization and MCA released Red Hot & Riot in 2002 as a tribute album to Fela Kuti. Femi contributed a remake of his father’s timeless song Water No Get Enemy. All CD sales revenues from the song Femi collaborated on alongside hip-hop and R&B musicians D’Angelo, Macy Gray, The Soultronics, Nile Rodgers, and Roy Hargrove were given to organisations that work to prevent or cure AIDS.

The voice of Femi Kuti was featured in the videogame Grand Theft Auto IV, where he was the host of the radio station IF 99 (International Funk 99), described as playing a great selection of classics from West Africa, the US, and elsewhere.

Like his father, Kuti has come under fire for his criticism of his native Nigeria in songs like Sorry, What Will Tomorrow Bring, and 97, as well as other songs. 

ALSO READ: Shina Peters: Biography, career, songs, awards, net worth, family

Femi has been nominated for a Grammy award in 2003, 2010, 2012, and 2013 in the world music category, but he has never taken home the prize.

A management agreement was made between Chocolate City Music Group and Femi Kuti on December 19, 2014. Both Audu Maikori’s social media pages and the official Chocolate City Music Instagram account shared the news. 

Alongside his brother Seun Kuti, he participated in the 2 Kings concert on April 24, 2015. The concert is notable because it is the brothers’ first time performing together. 

On May 15, 2017, Femi Anikulapo Kuti was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records for holding a single note on a saxophone using circular breathing. He set a record of 51 minutes and 35 seconds.

Femi Kuti and his son Made Kuti launched their two-album project, Legacy+, on February 5, 2021, via Partisan Records. Stop the Hate, Femi’s eleventh album, and For(e)ward, Made’s first album, are both included in the collection.

Songs

Some of Femi Kuti’s famous songs are:

• Beng Beng
• Sorry Sorry
• Truth Don Die
• Beast of No Nation
• Water No Get Enemy
• Dem Bobo
• Wonder Wonder
• 97
• The World is Changing
• You Better Ask Yourself
• Oyimbo
• Demo Crazy
• Shotan
• Scatta Head
• Na So we See Am
• Day by Day
• Do your Best
• Survival
• Stop AIDS
• Evil People

ALSO READ: Bob Marley: Biography, songs, death, family

Albums

• No Cause for Alarm (1989)
• M. Y. O. B (1991)
• Femi Kuti (1995)
• Shoki Shoki (1998)
• Fight to Win (2001)
• Day by Day (2008)
• Africa for Africa (2010)
• No Place for My Dream (2013)
• One People One World (2018)
• Stop the Hate (2021)

Awards

Some of his awards include City People Movie Special Recognition Awards 2014, City People Movie Lifetime Achievements Awards 2014, and the World Music Award for World’s Best Selling African Artist, 2020.

Family 

Femi is currently not married. He, however, has five children from his ex-wife Funke.

Net worth 

Femi Kuti is a saxophonist with an estimated net worth of $1.5 million.

ALSO READ: Lucky Dube: Biography, career, awards, death

Legacy 

The son of Fela Kuti, an Afrobeat musician and political activist, Femi carried on his father’s passion for both music and politics. When he was 16 years old, he joined his father’s band and learned to play the saxophone and keyboard. After his father passed away, he took centre stage and began writing and singing. 

Femi continues to be politically motivated while grooving to upbeat funk, jazz, and traditional African music fuelled by lyrics against government corruption, poverty, and the substandard living conditions that most of Nigeria’s citizens endure.

In his album Africa for Africa, Femi Kuti stressed the issue of “Bad Government” in Africa. He informed the populace prior to the 2011 Nigerian elections that there was “no difference between the three contenders running for the presidency in Nigeria.” He added that we may claim that we are progressing in the democratic process. Although it’s certainly better than starting a war, corruption is still rife. People are malnourished and ill. Additionally, since the government controls the media, it is unable to be critical.

Conclusion

In his song Make We Remember, Kuti exhorts listeners to never forget his father’s words and other great black people who struggled for Africa’s liberation. Femi has been utilising music to uplift, inspire, and empower Africans for a long time.

ALSO READ: 2Baba: Biography, career, songs, achievements, net worth, family