Fela Kuti Trivia Quiz

Answer: Nigeria

Fela was born in 1938, in what was then British Nigeria and is now part of Ogun State, Nigeria. His mother was a prominent women's rights activist in the country and his father was a schoolteacher and Anglican priest.

Answer: Afrobeat

Fela blended traditional Nigerian fuji music with American jazz and funk and threw in some Ghanaian highlife as well to create his unique sound. It is a genre still popular today, thanks to artists such as Amakye "Iron Boy" Dede from Ghana, Dele Sosimi from UK and Fela's eldest son Femi Kuti.

Answer: Ginger Baker

Baker has long been regarded as a drum pioneer for blending jazz and African styles to produce a unique rock style, so who better to accompany him on this solo outing than Fela? Fela plays keyboards on four of the six tracks, also taking on vocal duties on two tracks, The album also featured the talents of Bobby Tench, vocalist and guitarist for the Jeff Beck Group.

Answer: Zombie

"Zombie" was an full frontal attack on the Nigerian military and their tactics and the success of the album angered the Nigerian government to such an extent that one thousand soldiers were ordered to attack Fela's compound containing his studio and residential area. Fela was badly beaten, his studio, musical instruments, and master tapes were destroyed, buildings were burned and his 77 year old mother was thrown from a third floor window.

She lapsed into a coma and died on 13th April 1978 as a result of her injuries.

Answer: 27

With rumours circulating that the government was going to arrest Fela on the trumped up charges of selling his backing singers into slavery, he decided to marry them all, along with his dancers and songwriting partners in order to protect both them and him.

He took all 27 wives to Ghana on honeymoon and later began a rotation system of just 12 simultaneous wives. In 1986 he divorced all of his wives although many of them chose to continue living with him at his compound even though they were no longer married.

Answer: Movement Of The People

Movement Of the People (MOP) was formed by Fela so that he could challenge the corruption of the Nigerian government and he vowed to "clean up society like a mop". In 1979, with Nigeria holding its first presidential elections in over a decade, Fela put himself forward, but his application was refused by the authorities.

Answer: Amnesty International

As he continued to antagonise the Nigerian government, Fela was jailed for five years for currency smuggling, a charge which was trumped up according to Amnesty International, who declared him a prisoner of conscience and began a campaign to secure his release. Upon his release, after serving 20 months, he played at this concert, along with U2, the Neville Brothers and Joan Armatrading, Peter Gabriel and the Police.

Answer: Beasts Of No Nation

"Beasts Of No Nation" was Fela's first release after being released from prison on false currency smuggling charges and it tackled the world we live in, with particular reference to Nigeria. The album focused on the "Inside World" (prison), the "Outside World" (freedom) and the "Craze World" (a combination of both), about which he said, "what name can one give a world with: police brutality, army oppression, courts without justice, magistrates who are supposed to uphold the law, obviously seen bending the law to please some special interest?" The book "Beasts Of No Nation" by Uzodinma Iweala is about a a child soldier in an unnamed African country and serves as the basis for the Idris Elba film.

Answer: Afrika Shrine

The Afrika Shrine was one of the buildings burned down in the military attack on Fela's compound in 1977, but it has been replaced by the New Afrika Shrine, which is maintained by Fela's children who also perform there regularly. It plays host to the annual "Felabration" festival, celebrating the life and music of Fela.

It is a hotbed of Afrobeat and a huge tourist attraction, one that I haven't been lucky enough to visit yet, unlike President of France, Emmanuel Macron who told journalists in 2018, of his visit there in 2002 while a student.

Answer: The Visitor

A movie I heartily recommend for the way it portrays immigration views and multi cultural communication in a post 9/11 society. The movie won awards at both the Brisbane and Moscow International Film Festivals and many film critics, including those for the "Wall Street Journal", "Hollywood Reporter" and "New York Post" rated it as one of the top ten films of 2008. Respected movie critic, Peter Travers, writing in "Rolling Stone" magazine even felt Jenkins' performance was Oscar worthy, and although he was nominated, he lost out to Sean Penn for his portrayal of Harvey Milk in "Milk" (2008).