It seemed inconceivable that thePresident of France will visit the
citadel of Afro Beat iconoclasm andactivism, the New Afrikan Shrine. After
all, the Shrine is a tin-pan, a boisterous,corybantic spot, frequented by
bohemians and oddballs. What then was the presidentof one of the most
important countries of the world seeking at the Shrine? Evidently,there is
more to the Shrine that readily meets the eyes. Beneath the façade
ofclamorous licentiousness and hedonism that the Shrine connotes, it
represents somethingmore profound.
It is the bastion of FelaAnikulapo-Kuti’s legacy. President Macron
revealed that he visited the Shrinebecause, in an earlier visit, its verve
and energy struck a memorable chord inhis then youthful mind. And that the
Shrine is a “symbol and hub of Africanculture”. It is “an iconic place for
a lot of African people and Africanculture”. Just as the Shrine embodies
more than is readily obvious, Fela representedmore than was plainly
evident. He was more than just a dissolute, marijuana-smoking,eccentric
consort of twenty eight wives. He was a trailblazing musician: a
versatile,multi-talented maestro, yet unsurpassed in Africa. With the
exceeding excellenceof his music and the stunning splendor of his stage
work, he took music andentertainment in Nigeria to new heights. He was
also a brilliant, well-readsocial crusader. He had the learning and
versatility of a professor, oratoricalflourishes of a preacher, and the
deep insight of a philosopher.
Macron’s visit to the New AfricanShrine was poignant and instructive. The
visit was an emotional high-point formany Fela fans. They were thrilled by
the recognition and reverence Macron’svisit bestowed on the phenomenon,
Fela: his life, works and legacy. The visit alsotaught us that truly great
men are neither stuck-up nor puffed-up. And, assuch, the snobbery of the
Nigerian political elite and the distance they deliberatelymaintain
between themselves and the masses are the stuff for petty minds and
panjandrums.Nigerians were pleasantly surprised by the humility and
accessibility of theFrench president. In shirt sleeves, he mingled with
people; talking to ordinaryNigerians and shaking hands with them.
It would have been unimaginable forthe president of Nigeria to freely
socialize with ordinary Nigerians as theFrench president did. Unlike the
Nigerian president, he was not shielded fromthe people by a phalanx of
security men. The Nigerian political elite are so conceited,and scornful
of the people they supposedly serve. Therefore, they insist oncopious
buffers, between them and the masses, maintained by hard-eyed,stoned-faced
and vicious-looking security men brandishing automatic rifles, andready to
punch and kick to pulp any one that breached security protocol.
Nigerianpresidents, governors, and legislators behave as though they
represent anoccupying power, and are therefore not only afraid of the
citizens of the occupiedcountry but also need to intimidate and repress
them.
Fela’s global acclaim was inescapablebecause he possessed that very rare
quality among Nigerians, courage. ToWinston Churchill, “courage is the
most important of all human qualitiesbecause it is the human quality that
guarantees all others”. Fela’s courage,for the most part, defined his
life. It endeared him to many in Nigeria, Africaand beyond but also
brought him the cudgel of different Nigerian governments. Hispersecution
by different Nigerian governments culminated to the burning of hishouse
and the killing of his mother by soldiers, and a judicial burlesque
thatsentenced him to four years imprisonment. Still, he did not flinch; he
remainedresolute in his stance against social injustice and the excesses
of power. Manyyears after his death, his message remains uncannily, some
say prophetically,relevant to the Nigerian reality.
The father of modern Zionism,Theodore Herzl, once wrote that, “history is
nothing but noise, noise of armsand noise of advancing ideas”. Fela’s
noise was that of advancing ideas. Headvanced the ideals of freedom,
social justice and good governance with thepower of music. His musical
genre, Afro Beat, was a fusion of traditionalNigerian percussions,
well-defined lead guitar of Highlife music and pronouncedbase-line of
Rhythm and Blues, interlaced with delicately beautiful arrangementof horns
(saxophone, trumpet and trombone) and exquisite piano play ofAfro-American
Jazz.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Nigerianpopular music was under the
powerful influence of Western, especially, Americanmusic. Then, Nigerian
musicians copied the music and vocals of James Brown,Otis Redding, the
Rolling Stones, etc. Unlike the velvety singing of Highlife,and feigned
American accent vocals of Nigerian Pop musicians, the vocalism ofAfro Beat
was loud and coarse. In its further deviation from orthodoxy, the lyricsof
Afro Beat did not praise and ingratiate the rich and mouth
romanticplatitudes. It was fashioned as a tool for mass enlightenment,
crusading against social injustices and denouncing abuse of power.Withhis
poignant and defiant lyrics, Fela brayedagainst social injustice, official
corruption, mass poverty, police brutality,gutlessness of Nigerians, etc.
His music captured the hearts and minds of the Nigerianmasses because it
expressed their moods and sentiments, and hopes andaspirations.
Lamentably, in spite of theexorbitant price Fela paid for his crusading
fervor, the same evils he foughtwith his music continue to define the
Nigerian society. Does that mean that laboredin vain? No, because it is
from such “acts of courage and convictions thathuman history is shaped”.
For example, Theodore Herzl’s campaign for a Jewishhomeland in Palestine
was dismissed by many as the prattling of a starry-eyed idealist.But then,
it sowed the seed of modern Zionism, a seed that sprouted, and, manyyears
later, bloomed to the creation of Israel in Palestine. And driven by
hisrevulsion for slavery, Jim Brown set out, on his own, to overthrow
theinstitution of slavery in the American South. He was captured and
lynched by aWhite mob. But the ripple effects of his failed assault on
slavery later ramified,and through its many branches advanced racial
equality and justice.
More thantwenty years after Fela’s death, his music continues to resonate
because of the matchless splendor of its melody, andthe incontrovertible
pertinence of its message. Its message remains a source ofinspiration to
the Nigerian masses in the continued struggle for social justice,public
accountability and elevated standards of politicalmorality.
TochukwuEzukanma writes from Lagos, Nigeria
0803529 2908
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