Femi Kuti is an award winning Nigerian musician, and the oldest son of lege… Read Full Bio ↴Femi Kuti is an award winning Nigerian musician, and the oldest son of legendary Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti.

Femi was born in London on 16 June 1962 and grew up in the former Nigerian capital Lagos.

Like his father, Femi has shown a strong commitment to social and political causes throughout his career, but he differs in his religious views.

In 2001, Femi collaborated with a number of US musicians such as Common, Mos Def, and Jaguar Wright, on his Fight to Win album. This album was widely regarded as the most influential Neo-Afrobeat album of the early 21st century.

Dem Bobo
Femi Kuti Lyrics

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Yesterday, Dem tell us sey
Sey today, na we go gain
So we struggle, suffer dey
For this new democratic change
But the truth of the matter be sey
Dem disguise another way
To continue their crooked ways

Oh Yes! Dem bobo!

Dem bobo your mama!
Dem bobo your papa!
Dem bobo your mama!
Dem bobo your papa!
Dem bobo your grandmama!
Dem bobo your grandpapa!
Dem bobo the market women!
Dem bobo you journalist!
The human right activists!
In the name of democracy!
Dem bobo your mama ahahaha ahaha!

For tomorrow, they make us wait
Then again, we wait in vain
So many troubles in the rain
To make this a proper mighty change
But the truth of the matter be sey

Dem disguise another way
To continue their crooked ways

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Femi Kuti's "Dem Bobo" describe the frustration and disappointment felt by many Nigerians after the transition to democracy in the late 1990s. The song talks about how the people were promised a better life and a brighter future under the new democratic government, but instead they continue to struggle and suffer. The lines "yesterday, dem tell us sey sey today, na we go gain" highlights the false promises made by the government.

The chorus of the song, "Dem bobo", is a slang in pidgin English meaning "they deceive us". Femi Kuti calls out to different groups of people who have been deceived by the government such as market women, journalists, human rights activists, and even the listeners' parents and grandparents. This is to show that nobody is safe from the deception of the government and corruption in the society.

The song highlights the continuous cycle of broken promises made by the government to the people. The lyrics "for tomorrow, they make us wait, then again, we wait in vain" depicts the constant waiting and hopelessness felt by Nigerians for real change to happen. The phrase "to continue their crooked ways" emphasizes the belief that the government officials were not doing enough to create change but rather exploiting their power for their own benefits.

Line by Line Meaning

Yesterday, Dem tell us sey
Yesterday, they told us that

Sey today, na we go gain
That today, we will gain

So we struggle, suffer dey
So we struggle and suffer each day

For this new democratic change
For the change towards democracy

But the truth of the matter be sey
But in reality, the truth is that

Dem disguise another way
They are disguising another strategy

To continue their crooked ways
To continue their dishonest and corrupt ways

Oh Yes! Dem bobo!
Oh Yes! They deceive us!

Dem bobo your mama!
They deceive your mother!

Dem bobo your papa!
They deceive your father!

Dem bobo your mama!
They deceive your mother!