Singer Femi Kuti has revealed that his legendary father, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, never taught him anything directly, leaving him to learn through observation and sheer expectation.
Speaking at the just concluded Ake Arts and Books Festival in Lagos, Femi said his upbringing under Fela was unconventional, with no formal lessons and constant pressure to “just know.”
He said, “He (Fela) expected me to know how to read. How is it possible to know how to read if am not taught? If I haven’t got any formal education of any sort, how can I read? But I had to read. ‘You should know,’ he would say. ‘Did you take your brain and put it in my head?’”
Femi explained that there was no conventional father‑son dynamic. Lessons were absent, yet Fela expected excellence. He added, “If you are Fela’s person you had to excel beyond reasonable doubt. You just had to know. So you couldn’t give excuses.”
The Afrobeat legend’s approach meant Femi learned mostly by watching. From witnessing police raids to seeing how his father navigated danger, every experience became an informal lesson. Femi recalled, “I learnt by just watching him. I would ask questions probably like ‘Are you not afraid to die?’ He would give me his answer.”
Interestingly, failing at school didn’t elicit anger from Fela. Instead, he would respond with confusing praise. He said, “And as I was growing up I would say ‘what’s wrong?’ … but if I failed… Fela would say, ‘Ah you failed, Well done.’”
Femi’s reflections tie into a lifelong quest to establish his own identity. In September 2025, he admitted leaving Fela’s band to carve out his path. He said, “If God wanted me to be Fela, I would have been Fela. I had to be Femi Kuti.”
He also revealed that Fela had initially condemned his debut album as “rubbish,” yet Femi persevered, building a career on his own terms.
