Radiolab – “Fela Kuti: Enter the Shrine”
Episode Date: November 28, 2025
Hosts: Lulu Miller, Latif Nasser, featuring Jad Abumrad
Guest Contributors: Michael Veal, Lisa Lindsay, Moses Uchunu, Nina Darton, and others

Overview

This Radiolab episode spotlights legendary Nigerian musician and activist Fela Kuti, focusing on “the Shrine”—his iconic Lagos nightclub—and unraveling the unique alchemy of music, politics, and place that defined Afrobeat as a transformative force. Drawing from their new 12-part series “Fela Kuti: Fear No Man,” Jad Abumrad, Lulu Miller, and Latif Nasser, alongside a roster of scholars, musicians, and first-hand witnesses, transport listeners into the pulsing heart of 1970s Lagos and the revolutionary experience of entering Fela’s “Shrine.”

Key Themes & Discussion Points

1. The Origin of the Series & Jad’s Fascination with Fela

• Jad’s personal journey: Jad reveals he initially knew Fela as just “the record that Came on at a party… the party got started” (02:46), but discovered a deeper legacy when approached to help create the podcast (04:49).
• Why Fela now? Jad frames Fela as an answer to the “what’s the point?” of making music/art in a distressed society. Fela’s music became a catalyst for social change, embodying the idea that “the point of making art is to try and make a new world…change the world in some way” (05:07).
• Notable Quote:

  “With the music, he almost toppled a dictatorship. This is the point of making music, this is the point of making art, is to try and make a new world, try and change the world in some way.” – Jad Abumrad (05:07)

2. The Power and Mechanics of Fela’s Music

• Music as more than words:
  Fela's music's political power wasn’t just in lyrics—it was “baked into the very grammar of the music itself… in the structure… the sequence of impacts” (06:28).
• Immersive experience:
  Multiple guests recount how the Shrine “was like being hypnotized… the music was inside of me, was all around” (08:07; 23:05).
• Quote:

  “This is a place, this isn’t a song.” – Fela Kuti (archival audio) (25:53)

3. The Shrine: Epicenter of the Movement

• Historical context:
  In 1970, Fela returns radicalized and establishes both the Shrine nightclub and the Calcutta Republic (his self-declared independent commune) as “sovereign” from Nigeria (17:33), an act of bold defiance under military dictatorship.
• Atmosphere and ritual:
  Scholars and journalists recall packed streets, music in blackout darkness, people dancing/smoking openly in defiance of harsh laws, and Fela’s theatrical nightly arrival (09:00; 18:41; 19:53; 21:21).
• Memorable moment:

  “He slowly slips into skin tight sequined pants and a white shirt open to the waist, arranging his strings of beads as if he were smoothing a necktie… A chant. Fela. Fela rumbles out of the dark.” – Nina Darton, recounting a New York Times description (19:53)

4. The Music as Transformation/Trance

• Structure and trance:
  The music’s long, looping, relentless grooves (ostinatos) gradually draw audiences into a trance-like state where they become receptive to Fela’s radical message (24:13; 29:31; 32:31).
• The power of repetition:

  “Ostinato in Italian… means basically stubborn. The loops stubbornly repeat… At some point, a few minutes in, you arrive at this mysterious moment where you stop wanting it to change… My God, this groove is a whole world. This is the trance state.” – Jad Abumrad (32:34)

• From trance to awakening:
  Fela’s lyrics, often introduced after 30+ minutes, come as a jolt—abruptly addressing political oppression, global affairs, and cultural identity. Listeners feel “where has my mind been all my life?” (29:06).
• Quote:

  “I saw the light, that you can now dance to.” – Jad Abumrad (34:38)

5. Music as Weapon and Information

• Fela’s intention:
  Archival interviews feature Fela describing his music as “a weapon to say, so I can talk when I have the chance to. I consider music to be effective, like a weapon to inform people.” (35:39)
• Cycle and time:
  Fela and guests discuss how both the music and African experience are cyclical—echoing across generations (36:10).
• Quote:

  “If anybody tells me 20 years is a long time, I would tell him, no. Time is meaningless unless you want to understand what time is about. There is time for everything.” – Fela Kuti (36:10)

6. The Shrine’s Lasting Impact

• Even decades after Fela’s death, the Shrine (though closed and relocated over the years) remains a symbol of resistance and sanctuary, where Fela’s “protection” is still felt, and defiant freedom is possible (16:53).

Timestamps for Noteworthy Segments

• [02:04] Jad Abumrad discusses hearing about the idea for a Fela Kuti podcast.
• [05:07] Jad shares why Fela’s life resonates as “the point” of making music.
• [07:18] Lulu Miller explains the progression of the multi-part series and intros this episode, focused on the Shrine.
• [09:00] Michael Veal gives a vivid account of arriving at the Shrine in Lagos.
• [18:41] Nina Darton reads her NYT description of Fela’s pre-show ritual.
• [21:21] Nina and Jad recall Fela’s dramatic donkey-riding entrance.
• [23:05] Guests and archival sound convey the physical, hypnotic qualities of the Shrine’s music.
• [25:53] “This is a place, this isn’t a song”: Fela audio and analysis.
• [29:06] Epiphanies and awakenings provoked by Fela’s lyrics.
• [32:31] Jad unpacks the “trance state” of Fela’s grooves.
• [35:39] Fela calls his music “a weapon.”
• [36:10] Fela on cycles, time, and legacy.

Notable Quotes

• "This is the point of making art, is to try and make a new world..."
  — Jad Abumrad (05:07)

• "This is a place, this isn’t a song."
  — Fela Kuti (archival audio) (25:53)

• "I saw the light, that you can now dance to."
  — Jad Abumrad (34:38)

• "It is the information side of the music that is important."
  — Fela Kuti (archival audio) (35:39)

• "Time is meaningless unless you want to understand what time is about."
  — Fela Kuti (archival audio) (36:10)

Episode Flow & Tone

• Curious, reverent, immersive: The hosts and guests are in awe of Fela's artistry and impact, combining narrative history, personal testimony, and immersive sound to place listeners inside the experience of entering the Shrine.
• Mix of wonder, analysis, and personal reflection: Listeners are guided from broad questions about music and change, through vivid sensory depiction, to nuanced discussion of Afrobeat’s structure, meaning, and ongoing relevance.
• Celebratory and probing: The episode celebrates Fela’s legacy, even as it questions the mechanics of transformative music—asking not just “what happened?” but “how did it work?”

Looking Forward

• The next episode of the series will spotlight Fela’s equally extraordinary mother and the movement she led:

  “You could flip it. You could do the 12 episode series about her and then one episode about him in the middle of it.” – Jad Abumrad (37:48)

• Teased episode title: Vengeance of the Vagina Head – referring to the name given by newspapers to a revolt led by Fela’s mother (38:06).

This episode stands out as both primer and immersion: exploring the storied nexus of music, ritual, community, and revolution inside Lagos’ legendary nightclub, and providing both context for Fela Kuti’s meteoric influence and a meditation on why profound art still matters.