DISGRACELAND: "Becoming Fela Kuti"
Podcast: DISGRACELAND
Host: Double Elvis Productions
Episode Date: October 15, 2025
Episode Theme:
This episode traces the pivotal journey of Nigerian musician Fela Kuti, zooming in on his personal and musical transformation from middle-class jazz enthusiast to revolutionary creator of Afrobeat—a sound and movement that challenged Nigeria’s military regime and gave voice to African resistance. Through deeply reported narrative and interviews with key figures, the episode explores questions of identity, diaspora, and how music becomes a political force.
Overview
"Becoming Fela Kuti" is a multilayered narrative exploring how Fela’s encounters with the US Black Power movement, key mentors like Sandra Isidore, and the tumultuous swirl of Nigerian and global politics led him to birth Afrobeat—music as both personal liberation and political weapon. Interweaving oral history, archival music, and sharp analysis, the episode delves into the broader tensions of what it means to be “real” or “authentic” in the Black diaspora, and how Fela’s transformation changed the world of music and activism.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Who Was Fela Kuti? [02:55–04:47]
- Multiple voices attempt to convey Fela’s rebellious spirit:
- “Fela is like Bob Marley and Mandela combined.” – Sandra Isidore [03:06]
- “Definitely with some Ahmed Ali thrown in. And then with the protest element of Dylan. Don’t forget Malcolm X.” – Fela Kuti [03:12]
- Fela’s music and persona are described as "the hardest you’ve ever heard in your life.” – Louis Chudasoki [03:34]
- Fela’s resistance made him a target: “His music was so dangerous...they threw him in jail. Not once, not twice, but a hundred times.” – Interviewer/Narrator [04:23]
2. Fela’s Early Life and Education [06:24–12:00]
- Fela grew up in a middle-class Nigerian family, educated in missionary schools under British colonial rule.
- Attended Trinity College of Music in London, one of few Black students:
- “It is the epitome of the white Western world...Fela would have been one of the few black students to attend.” – Interviewer/Narrator [07:32]
- Studied classical music but chased jazz outside school:
- “Really I was not interested in classics. My aim was to play jazz...I was trying to listen to great men like Miles and Dizzy.” – Fela Kuti [09:53, 11:22]
- Fela returned to Nigeria in the early 1960s, initially playing jazz and highlife, but with little commercial success.
3. Searching for a Musical Identity [12:12–15:28]
- Fela’s early music encompassed jazz, Latin influences, highlife.
- “He was a gentleman musician... singing love songs, funky songs, folklore. He was not drinking alcohol, was not taking marijuana. He was complete gentleman.” – Baba Ani [12:12]
- West African audiences preferred Latin music, and Fela’s blend was not resonating.
4. Influence of James Brown and U.S. Black Culture [15:50–18:13]
- James Brown’s music, and its message of Black pride, reshaped the tastes and cultural orientation of Nigeria’s youth:
- “James Brown turned Africa upside down inside out.” – Fela Kuti [15:50]
- “That music actually gave Africans a point of reference and cultural redefinition.” – Fela Kuti [16:08]
- Funk and soul eclipse highlife—setting the stage for Afrobeat’s emergence.
5. Meeting Sandra Isidore: The Queen of Afrobeat [18:54–32:26]
- Fela and band arrive on a US tour, end up stranded in LA.
- Sandra Isidore (“Queen of Afrobeat”) becomes pivotal mentor and collaborator.
- “Our eyes locked. It was a magical moment. It was like we were connected from day one.” – Sandra Isidore [30:42]
- Sandra’s own awakening: raised shielded from racism in California, exposure comes via family, music (Nina Simone, Malcolm X, Hugh Masekela), and the Black liberation movement.
- “My parents never taught me about racism in America...they kept secrets.” – Sandra Isidore [21:11]
- “In order to know the real story, I’m gonna need to meet a real African.” – Sandra Isidore [26:00]
- Encounter with Fela both shatters and reshapes her perceptions of “authentic” African identity.
6. Cultural Gaps and Diasporic Yearnings [26:43–28:14]
- African Americans in the 1960s-80s seek “Africa” as a source; Africans coming to the U.S. find Black American culture to be the epitome of cool:
- “For me...Black culture coming out of America felt real, it felt cool.” – Louis Chudasoki [27:02]
- “African Americans look to Africa for a past. Folks in the diaspora look to the African Americans...for a vision of possibility.” – Louis Chudasoki [52:50]
- The conversation underscores the performative and shifting nature of Black identity.
7. Rejection, Struggle, and Transformation in Los Angeles [39:07–44:49]
- Fela’s struggles in LA reach a nadir—broke, nearly deported, briefly auditioned (unsuccessfully) for a Disneyland gig.
- “Disney turned them down because their music wasn’t African enough.” – Sandra Isidore [40:07]
- Lived with Sandra's family, wrote songs on her mother’s old piano.
- “He came and lived with my parents...stayed in a small guest shack at the back of her parents’ property.” – Interviewer/Narrator [40:28–40:53]
- A turning point: a confrontation about African and African American “stupidity” and suffering leads Sandra to educate Fela about slavery, the civil rights movement, and Black oppression in the US.
- “I made sure he saw...what was recently happening in the South...blacks being hosed...” – Sandra Isidore [42:51]
- Sandra gives Fela The Autobiography of Malcolm X:
- “This book, I couldn’t put it down. This man was talking about the history of Africa, talking about the white man...Everything fell into place.” – Fela Kuti [44:53]
8. Birth of Afrobeat [44:49–51:43]
- Fela rethinks his music, steered by Sandra and political awakening:
- “Sandra taught me a lot about blackism, gave me books to read...I have to rethink and reanalyze myself. I started to write new music.” – Fela Kuti [44:53, 45:20]
- Changes band name and musical style, fusing highlife, jazz, funk, Yoruba rhythms—creates Afrobeat.
- “The key...fella found a precise blend where everyone can hear what they want...Fela is like a magician trying to create a kind of Pan Africanist musical language.” – Fela Kuti/Bode Omoshola [51:51–52:22]
- Massive popular success with songs like “Jin Koku,” which cross generations and cultures in Lagos and abroad.
9. Diaspora, Authenticity, and Pan-African Future [52:22–56:23]
- Fela’s music as the “sound of a diaspora meeting itself—locking eyes.”
- “Our eyes locked. It was like a spiritual chord. We were connected.” – Sandra Isidore [52:30]
- On the future and fluidity of Blackness:
- “Blackness is up for grabs. In the same way that we know that whiteness is being transformed by immigration, so is blackness.” – Louis Chudasoki [55:49]
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- "If they think I’m going to change or compromise, they are making me stronger." – Fela Kuti [05:23]
- “Everything about Africa started coming back to me...Everything fell into place.” – Fela Kuti [44:53]
- “Between colonialism and slavery, I’ll take slavery. Those shackles are still on the mind. That’s even worse.” – Sandra Isidore [35:15]
- “You’re doing all this, and you’re singing about some soup?...Why would you do that when you can use your music to uplift people?” – Sandra Isidore [34:40]
- “Disney turned them down because their music wasn’t African enough.” – Sandra Isidore [40:07]
- “For me...Black culture coming out of America felt real, it felt cool. So I was surprised, coming to America, that the Black people here were fascinated by me.” – Louis Chudasoki [27:02]
- “African Americans look to Africa for a past; folks in the diaspora look to the African Americans...for a vision of possibility.” – Louis Chudasoki [53:02]
- "Miles Davis said Fela's Afrobeat was going to be the music of the future." – Fela Kuti [53:10]
- “The single statistic...more Africans have come to the US since 1990 than at the height of the slave trade...Blackness is up for grabs.” – Louis Chudasoki [55:36]
Timestamps for Important Segments
- [02:55] – "How do you describe Fela?" and introduction to his mythic reputation
- [06:24] – Fela's origin story, early influences, school in Britain
- [11:22] – Early musical endeavors and return to Nigeria
- [15:50] – Influence of James Brown, transformation of African pop music
- [18:54] – Fela's arrival in America, meets Sandra Isidore
- [26:00] – Sandra’s search for authenticity, “I need to meet a real African”
- [27:02] – Contrasting diasporic yearnings for authenticity and coolness
- [40:07] – Disney’s rejection for “not African enough”
- [42:51] – Critical confrontation: Sandra schools Fela with images of US anti-Black violence and gives him Malcolm X’s autobiography
- [44:53] – Fela undergoes intellectual and musical epiphany
- [45:57] – Afrobeat is born, first hits composed in LA
- [47:05] – “My Lady’s Frustration” becomes Afrobeat’s first anthem
- [49:06] – “Jin Koku” explodes in popularity across Nigeria
- [52:22] – Fela’s music as a unifying space for the Black diaspora
- [55:36] – The future of Blackness, migration, and identity
Tone & Style
The narration combines irreverence, deep curiosity, and a reverence for historical complexity—balancing musicology, political critique, and personal testimony. The dialogue oscillates between casual storytelling (“You’re doing all this and singing about some soup?”) and moments of gravitas (“Those shackles are still on the mind. That’s even worse.”). There's a palpable sense of discovery and transformation, with contemporary voices reflecting on the layers of identity, resistance, and art.
Final Reflection
"Becoming Fela Kuti" dives deep into how music, politics, and diasporic longing interact to create both personal and collective revolution. Through the fusion of styles, histories, and identities, Fela Kuti’s remarkable journey becomes a lens on the complexities of Blackness—its pain, its creativity, and its never-ending reinvention. The episode ends on the threshold of Fela’s return to Nigeria, where the new Fela will soon set the country—and the world—on fire.