Two Toronto creatives have joined forces to create a new book that tells the story of Nigerian artist Fela Kuti, the artist credited with creating the popular music genre Afrobeats.
From Burna Boy to Wizkid and Davido, there’s no denying that Afrobeats is gaining traction around the world right now. Meeting that moment, a new project from two Toronto creatives is exploring the life of the man behind the genre.
FELA: Music Is the Weapon is a graphic novel created by Toronto artist Jibola Fagbamiye and writer Conor McCreery. The book tells the colourful story of Kuti, looking at his work as a legendary musician, political agitator, and cultural icon.
Kuti, who was born in 1938, was once considered “the most dangerous man in Nigeria,” being arrested 200 times in the country because of his activism and his art, which took a bold stance against military and government corruption.
“He released almost 80 albums over his career, but that’s just scratching the surface,” Fagbamiye told Now Toronto on Monday.
According to the book creators, Kuti had an interesting life. The musician was born into a wealthy family, with his mother being a leading figure in the fight for Nigerian independence, while his father started the Teachers’ Association of Nigeria. But when he achieved success as an artist, he lived in impoverished areas of Lagos, providing for community members with an open-door policy that saw him welcome people off the streets and into his home to help them.
“He ran for president of Nigeria. At one point, he started a political party called the Movement of the People. He married 27 women in one day, and he even created his own country,” the illustrator explained.
The recently-released novel features Fagbamiye’s bold, expressive artwork, capturing the vibrancy of Kuti’s life and legacy paired with McCreery’s evocative, eloquent writing to create a piece that channels the artist and revolutionary’s spirit while chronicling a decade of his life.
“We’ll see what… brings him into politics. We’ll see how he struggled at first to connect to Nigerian audiences who didn’t necessarily get the Black Power movement of the ’60s in the [United] States, and how that reflected and why that was relevant to them,” McCreery told Now Toronto.
“We’ll see Fela [Kuti] battle a series of military governments that wanted to do everything they could to keep him quiet, which included sending 1,000 soldiers to burn down his commune and try to murder him. And they failed,” the writer continued.
The book also explains what led the musician to marry 27 different women.
“It was actually a bit of a political statement, and also a way to help these women be able to earn their livelihood. They had a different sort of status as wives of Fela [Kuti] in terms of where they could travel and how they could earn their own money,” McCreery explained.
A CAUTIONARY TALE
Discussing the inspiration behind the project, which Fagbamiye started in 2008, before McCreery joined him in 2014, the artist says the book was created as a means of delivering a cautionary tale.
“There are these consistent themes of things that were happening in Nigeria in the 70s, and things that are happening around the world now,” he continued, explaining that this added context includes issues of income inequality and threats to democracy.
Having grown up in Nigeria before coming to Toronto, Fagbamiye was aware of Kuti, but not well-versed in his story. After learning more while reading Carlos Moore’s book This B**ch of a Life, the illustrator knew that the world needed to know this story.
“We’re trying to make this connection that, yes, this is a story of something that may have happened a long time ago in a part of the world you may not know much about, but it’s actually a story of right now, and the Afrobeats music genre created a vehicle and some awareness to be able to talk about it so people have an entry point.”
Those interested in finding out more about the novel and meeting the creators behind the project should check out the book launch happening on Wednesday, Oct. 16, at Space Unltd (1312 Bathurst St.). The launch will feature a conversation with McCreery and Fagbamiye, DJs on deck to keep the good vibes going, and delicious food.
Those who can’t attend the launch but want to purchase the graphic novel online, or find a local spot selling the book can find out more here.
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