Popular Nigerian musician and Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti’s son, Femi Kuti, has opened up about his decision to leave his father’s band to find his own path in music and life. Speaking on the Afropolitan podcast, the 63-year-old artist disclosed that growing up under his father’s towering legacy left him feeling trapped and unable to live his own life.
Femi explained that throughout his school years, he was constantly pressured to be like his father and play the kind of music Fela was known for. “If I wanted to play music, I had to be Femi Kuti,” he said, recalling how he was even made to dress like his father, which made him feel like a “mini Fela.”
He said this suppression drove him to move back to his mother’s home to carve out an independent identity. “The moment I formed my band, my father’s fans descended on me, and the press treated me harshly. Back then, with no internet, defending myself was tough,” Femi recalled.
Perhaps most significantly, Femi shared that living in his father’s shadow left him feeling he had no possibility for his own life, including starting a family. “Being under my father, I didn’t have any possibility of my own life, including having children,” he said.
Femi Kuti’s heartfelt reflections highlight the challenges of stepping out of a legendary shadow to forge an individual path, a journey that has defined his distinguished career while honoring the Afrobeat heritage.