Grammy-nominated Afrobeat star, Femi Kuti, has opened up about the difficult life his late father, Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti, faced at the peak of his early fame.
Femi disclosed that despite the success of Fela’s first hit, Jeun Ko Ku, the family lived in deep poverty and often struggled to feed.
In a recent interview with Afropolitan, Femi Kuti said,
“Fela was very poor. He couldn’t even afford food for us his kids. I mean, really really poor. Then we were living at No. 14A Agege Motor Road, this was all before Kalakuta.
“Every music story was playing Fela’s first Afrobeats hit ‘Jeun Ko Ku.’ I think he too was surprised at the reception he got.”
It would be recalled that Femi’s son, Made Kuti, had previously stated that his grandfather died poor despite making huge sums of money during his lifetime. According to him, Fela’s extreme generosity left him financially broke at the time of his death.
