HMV Magazine ranked him as #46 on a list of the 100 most influential musicians of the 20th century.
The musical style performed by Fela Kuti is called Afrobeat, which is essentially a fusion of jazz, funk, highlife, and traditional Yoruban chants and rhythms. It is characterized by having African-style percussion, vocals, and musical structure, along with jazzy, funky horn sections. The endless groove is also used, in which a base rhythm of drums, shekere, muted guitar, and bass guitar are repeated throughout the song. His band was notable for featuring two baritone saxophones, whereas most groups using this instrument only use one. This is a common technique in African and African-influenced musical styles, and can be seen in funk and hip-hop. Some elements often present in Fela's music are the call-and-response within the chorus and figurative but simple lyrics. Fela's songs were almost always over 10 minutes in length, some reaching the 20- or even 30-minute marks, while some unreleased tracks would last up to 45 minutes when performed live. This was one of many reasons that his music never reached a substantial degree of popularity outside of Africa. His songs were mostly sung in Nigerian pidgin, although he also performed a few songs in the Yoruba language. Fela's main instruments were the saxophone and the keyboards, but he also played the trumpet, guitar, and took the occasional drum solo. Fela refused to perform songs again after he had already recorded them, which also hindered his popularity outside Africa. Fela was known for his showmanship, and his concerts were often quite outlandish and wild. He referred to his stage act as the Underground Spiritual Game.
Fela was born Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria, to a middle-class family. His mother, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, was a feminist activist in the anti-colonial movement and his father, Reverend Israel Oludotun Ransome-Kuti, a Protestant minister and school Principal, was the first president of the Nigerian Union of Teachers. His brothers, Dr. Beko Ransome-Kuti and Professor Olikoye Ransome-Kuti,both medical doctors, are both well known in Nigeria.
Fela was sent to London in 1958 to study medicine but decided to study music instead at the Trinity College of Music. While there, he formed the band Koola Lobitos, playing a style of music that he would later call Afrobeat. The style was a fusion of American Jazz, psychedelic rock, and Funk with West African Highlife. In 1961, Fela married his first wife, Remilekun (Remi) Taylor, with whom he would have three children (Femi, Yeni, and Sola). In 1963, Fela moved back to Nigeria, re-formed Koola Lobitos and trained as a radio producer for the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation. In 1969, Fela took the band to the United States. While there, Fela discovered the Black power movement through Sandra Smith (now Isidore)—a partisan of the Black Panther Party—which would heavily influence his music and political views and renamed the band Nigeria ’70. Soon, the Immigration and Naturalization Service was tipped off by a promoter that Fela and his band were in the US without work permits. The band then performed a quick recording session in Los Angeles that would later be released as The '69 Los Angeles Sessions.
Fela and his band, renamed Africa '70, returned to Nigeria. He then formed the Kalakuta Republic, a commune, a recording studio, and a home for many connected to the band that he later declared independent from the Nigerian state. Fela set up a nightclub in the Empire Hotel, named the Afro-Spot and then the Afrika Shrine, where he performed regularly. Fela also changed his middle name to Anikulapo (meaning "he who carries death in his pouch"), stating that his original middle name of Ransome was a slave name. The recordings continued, and the music became more politically motivated. Fela's music became very popular among the Nigerian public and Africans in general. In fact, he made the decision to sing in Pidgin English so that his music could be enjoyed by individuals all over Africa, where the local languages spoken are very diverse and numerous. As popular as Fela's music had become in Nigeria and elsewhere, it was also very unpopular with the ruling government, and raids on the Kalakuta Republic were frequent. In 1974 the police arrived with a search warrant and a cannabis joint, which they had intended to plant on Fela. He became wise to this and swallowed the joint. In response, the police took him into custody and waited to examine his feces. Fela enlisted the help of his prison mates and gave the police someone else's feces, and Fela was freed. He then recounted this tale in his release Expensive Shit (now released together with "He Miss Road" as Expensive Shit/He Miss Road).
In 1977 Fela and the Afrika ’70 released the hit album Zombie, a scathing attack on Nigerian soldiers using the zombie metaphor to describe the methods of the Nigerian military. The album was a smash hit with the people and infuriated the government, setting off a vicious attack against the Kalakuta Republic, during which one thousand soldiers attacked the commune. Fela was severely beaten, and his elderly mother was thrown from a window, causing fatal injuries. The Kalakuta Republic was burned, and Fela's studio, instruments, and master tapes were destroyed. Fela claimed that he would have been killed if it were not for the intervention of a commanding officer as he was being beaten. Fela's response to the attack was to deliver his mother's coffin to the main army barrack in Lagos and write two songs, "Coffin for Head of State" and "Unknown Soldier," referencing the official inquiry that claimed the commune had been destroyed by an unknown soldier.
Fela and his band then took residence in Crossroads Hotel as the Shrine had been destroyed along with his commune. In 1978 Fela married 27 women, many of whom were his dancers, composers, and singers to mark the anniversary of the attack on the Kalakuta Republic. Later, he was to adopt a rotation system of keeping only twelve simultaneous wives. The year was also marked by two notorious concerts, the first in Accra in which riots broke out during the song "Zombie," which led to Fela being banned from entering Ghana. The second was at the Berlin Jazz Festival after which most of Fela's musicians deserted him, due to rumors that Fela was planning to use the entirety of the proceeds to fund his presidential campaign.
Despite the massive setbacks, Fela was determined to come back. He formed his own political party, which he called 'Movement of the People'. In 1979 he put himself forward for President in Nigeria's first elections for more than a decade but his candidature was refused. At this time, Fela created a new band called Egypt 80 and continued to record albums and tour the country. He further infuriated the political establishment by dropping the names of ITT vice-president Moshood Abiola and then General Olusegun Obasanjo at the end of a hot-selling 25-minute political screed titled "I. T. T. (International Thief Thief)."
In 1984, he was again attacked by the Military government, who jailed him on a dubious charge of currency smuggling. His case was taken up by several human-rights groups, and after 20 months, he was released from prison by General Ibrahim Babangida. On his release he divorced his 12 remaining wives, saying that "marriage brings jealousy and selfishness." Once again, Fela continued to release albums with Egypt 80, made a number of successful tours of the United States and Europe and also continued to be politically active. In 1986, Fela performed in Giants Stadium in New Jersey as part of the Amnesty International Conspiracy of Hope concert, sharing the bill with Bono, Carlos Santana, and the Neville Brothers. In 1989, Fela & Egypt 80 released the anti-apartheid "Beasts of No Nation" album that depicts on its cover U.S. President Ronald Reagan, UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and South African Prime Minister P.W. Botha with fangs dripping blood.
His album output slowed in the 1990s, and eventually he stopped releasing albums altogether. The battle against military corruption in Nigeria was taking its toll, especially during the rise of dictator Sani Abacha. Rumors were also spreading that he was suffering from an illness for which he was refusing treatment. On 3 August 1997, Olikoye Ransome-Kuti, already a prominent AIDS activist and former Minister of Health, stunned the nation by announcing his younger brother's death a day earlier from Kaposi's sarcoma brought on by AIDS. (Their younger brother Beko was in jail at this time at the hand of Abacha for political activity). More than a million people attended Fela's funeral at the site of the old Shrine compound. A new Africa Shrine has opened since Fela's death in a different section of Lagos under the supervision of his son Femi Kuti.
Excuse-O
Fela Kuti Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Excuse o
Excuse ooo
Excuse o
Make we no hala
Make we no quarrel
Make we cool am down
Make we no quarrel
Make we cool am down
Make we cool am down
Excuse ooo
Excuse o
Excuse ooo
Excuse o
Make we no quarrel
Make we no hala
Make we cool am down
Make we no quarrel
Make we no hala
Make we cool am down
I buy my drink, I put am for table
I turn my back, I dey talk to my friend
You carry my drink, you take am away
I go turn, I go look I go open my mouth
You go hear excuse o
Make we no quarrel
Make we no hala
Make we cool am down
Give me my drink back
Give me my drink back
I go for bank, I get five naira
I go inside bus, I turn my back
You pocket your hand, inside my pocket
I go turn, I go look I go open my mouth
You go hear, excuse o
Make we no quarrel
Make we no hala
Make we cool am down
Give me my money back
Give me my money back
Give me my money back
I go for town, I meet one woman
I hustle for am, she no wan listen
I sing for am, she like that one
I say I dey, she say she dey
We go for lunch
We go swimming pool
We go for dinner
We go cinema
We go for stadium
We go party
We get shakiss
We go for shrine
We sit down for table
Then you come for dance, I allow you to dance
You dance the first, you dance the second
You dance the third, you dance the fourth
You dance the fifth, I go come to you
I go look at you, I go open my mouth
You go hear excuse o
Make we no quarrel
Make we cool am down
Make we no hala
Give me my thing back
Give me my thing back
Make we no quarrel
Give me my thing back
Excuse ooo
Excuse ooo
Make we no quarrel
Give me my thing back
(Instrument)
Fela Kuti's song "Excuse-O" is a satirical take on the culture of excuses in Nigerian society. The lyrics speak to various scenarios in which someone does something wrong or takes something that does not belong to them, and they immediately offer an excuse to avoid any conflict or confrontation. The repeated refrain of "Excuse ooo" emphasizes the prevalence of this behavior and the frustration it causes.
The first verse of the song sets the scene for the rest of the lyrics. Fela sings, "Make we no hala, make we no quarrel. Make we cool am down." He is calling for calm and asking people not to argue or fight over small things. The second verse speaks to situations in which someone takes something that does not belong to them, such as a drink or money. The third verse tells the story of a man trying to impress a woman and the various activities they do together until the woman's friend shows up and tries to steal the man's attention.
The song ultimately highlights the need for people to take responsibility for their actions and avoid making excuses. It challenges the culture of avoiding conflict and encourages people to be honest with each other.
Line by Line Meaning
Excuse ooo
Please excuse me
Excuse o
Please excuse me
Make we no hala
Let's not shout
Make we no quarrel
Let's not quarrel
Make we cool am down
Let's calm down
I buy my drink, I put am for table
I bought my drink and placed it on the table
I turn my back, I dey talk to my friend
I turned my back to talk to my friend
You carry my drink, you take am away
You took my drink away
I go turn, I go look I go open my mouth
I will turn around and speak up
You go hear excuse o
You will hear my excuse
Give me my drink back
Please give me my drink back
I go for bank, I get five naira
I went to the bank and got 5 Naira
I go inside bus, I turn my back
I got on a bus and turned my back
You pocket your hand, inside my pocket
You put your hand inside my pocket
Give me my money back
Please return my money
I go for town, I meet one woman
I went to town and met a woman
I hustle for am, she no wan listen
I tried to impress her, but she didn't want to listen
I sing for am, she like that one
I sang for her and she liked it
We go for lunch
We went for lunch
We go swimming pool
We went to the swimming pool
We go for dinner
We went for dinner
We go cinema
We went to the cinema
We go for stadium
We went to the stadium
We go party
We went to a party
We get shakiss
We had a good time
We go for shrine
We went to the Fela Kuti Shrine
We sit down for table
We sat down at a table
Then you come for dance, I allow you to dance
Then you came to dance, and I let you
You dance the first, you dance the second
You danced the first and second time
You dance the third, you dance the fourth
You danced the third and fourth time
You dance the fifth, I go come to you
You danced the fifth time, and I will come to you
Give me my thing back
Please give me back my things
Writer(s): Fela Anikulapo Kuti
Contributed by Caleb A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@keithbell9117
Only Duke Ellington, Sun RA, and Fela Kuti may be confident that they will never, ever be forgotten. As for the music they produced.
@obi387
The vibe on ' Mr Grammarticalogylisationalism Is The Boss " is a vibe overload! One of the best beats I've ever heard!!! RIP FELA DE GREAT!!!
@CubensisRecords
Keep finding these gems, the master never dissapoints musically or lyrically! Thank you so much.
@antiquetozai1744
Hello dear see I understand that zelkova es Yuji
@tundeezekiel134
Fela excuse o beat and composition is alive with underground system group musical..... This guys are great keeping fela's music alive
@tundeezekiel134
The first 3minutes of mr grammaticoloylysationalism is boss touch my soul.... Fela is hip hop
@wonbadood8243
Excuse O = WTF? }:-{ to me. The music alone is absolutely brilliant. Long live Fela Kuti
@plumbc
YEAH YEAH
@PalenqueRecords
ararara so great baba in so great shape
@hermitfool8119
Solar return with Fela Kuti 🎂🍰