Grammy Awards: Femi Kuti Deserves To Be Honoured This Year

Grammy Awards Femi Kuti Deserves To Be Honoured This Year
Femi Kuti
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For many decades, Nigerian musicians have been doing the continent proud on the international scene, smashing new grounds and winning various international awards. Despite facing the ugliest odds, they have remained undaunted in their quest for every available laurel, especially the coveted Grammy Awards; sharing the African sound with the world and expanding the reach of the Afrobeat genre. 

It is without any iota of doubt that the Nigerian entertainment industry has come of age in recent times. The Nigerian music industry, specifically, has witnessed exponential growth over the years, and this ceiling-shattering growth has introduced a rising hunger for international visibility and dominance. If a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) is anything to go by, Nigeria’s Entertainment and Media industry is expected to be worth about $10.5 billion by the end of 2023. With every passing day, these potentials continue to expand and new levels are being unlocked.

Despite the exponential increase, one area that is yet to witness this groundswell of Nigeria’s seeming dominance is the international award scene, particularly, the Grammy Awards that have remained mostly elusive for Nigerian musicians despite their massive contributions to the growth and development of the art.

For starters, the Grammy Awards, simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognise and celebrate ‘outstanding’ achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the music industry worldwide hence the huge desire for them, further enhanced by the huge sense of fulfillment that it ushers into the lives of their recipients.

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The Grammys is this prestigious award that has eluded Nigerian artists for many years and kept them guessing the keys to unlock them, make valid impressions, and assert themselves. Coming down from the heady days of King Sunny Ade, who was the first Nigerian artiste to be nominated for the award in 1984, and Sade Adu in 1986 who first won it down to the present-day kids on the block like Tems, Wizkid, and Burna Boy, the thirst for global recognition has remained unwavering and has managed to keep the speakers and airwaves buzzing. However, one of the most valid claims to this prestigious award that has remained unsung is the highly respected Olufela Olufemi Anikulapo Kuti.

Femi Kuti as he is widely known was born to Fela and Remilekun (Remi) Ransome-Kuti in London and raised in the old capital of Nigeria, Lagos. The celebrated Nigerian music scion is the eldest son of Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti. Despite being born into prominence and fame, Kuti has managed to crave an identity for himself and etched his name into the hall of fame with his classic records. For lovers of meaningful, impactful, and engaging musical content, his discographies and contributions to the world of music in the African continent will remain unmatched.

After his mother left his father in 1977, Femi decided to live with his father, and from the young age of 15, he was already on the journey of exploring the saxophone and other instruments. His early mastery of these instruments left few surprises when he eventually joined his father’s band shortly after.

Femi Kuti
Femi Kuti

Together with Dele Sosimi (Gbedu Resurrection), a former Fela Anikulapo Kuti keyboardist, he founded his band, Positive Force, in the late 1980s. During that period, he accepted invitations to perform at the Festival d’Angoulême (France), the New Morning Club in Paris, the Moers Festival in Germany in 1988, the French Cultural Centre in Lagos, and Christian Mousset launched his worldwide career.

Femi has got the attention of the Grammy organisers but has not been deemed fit enough to go home with a gramophone. The legendary African musician has been nominated for the Grammy award five times in the world music category in 2003, 2010, 2012, 2013, and 2022 but the awards have only remained on his wish list.

Many Nigerians thought that his last nomination in 2022, which saw him appearing as one of the nominees for the 2022 edition of the Grammy Awards alongside his impeccably talented son, Made Kuti, was going to be the last time he would be leaving the Grammy hall of fame without a laurel. But alas, the experts at the music academy had other ideas.

In 2022, the father and son were nominated for their Legacy + album that featured tracks such as We Struggle Everyday, Stop The Hate, Na Bigmanism Spoil Government, and other amazing, highly conscious, soul searching, and revolutionary tunes.

Before this beautiful joint, Femi has managed to consistently put out unique classic out there for the world, such as Sorry Sorry, One people one world, Pà Pá Pà, Can’t buy me, and many others, all of which will surely outlive him just like the prophetic tunes churned out by his late dad.

Sadly, despite these contributions, one will look at Femi’s award-laden shelf and not sight a gramophone from the Grammy recording academy. This, in itself, places questions on the credibility of the process adopted by the academy members in selecting their winners.

Femi has continued to unleash his ingenuity and continually torch limitations by seamlessly blending styles and genres while fearlessly fuelling the fire heating the melting pot of pop, Afrobeat, and highlife. Saying he has paid his dues in full will be stating the obvious without much ado.

Femi’s continued inability to win a Grammy award has shown that although a lot of voting is involved in the selection process, any nominee who fails to play the political game involved in the final analysis will most likely be going home the way he/she came.  Evidently, from his Lagos base, he lacks the structure or resources to play that political game, which has remained his albatross.

A careful appraisal and study of his journey will show that Femi clearly has no intention to play along with the politicking in music. His record company and distribution outlets don’t seem to have the financial muscle to play the game. This game involves putting one’s album on every radio station in mainstream America to ensure everybody who wants to vote listens to it. The truth is that it is a very complex world, and when one clearly lacks what it takes to do all that from day one, he/she stands no chance of winning.
However, one question that must be asked at this point is, why is the recording academy sacrificing good music on the altar of indelicate commercialisation?

Regardless of how many arguments will be raised against it, recent developments have clearly shown that the Grammy is all about commercialisation and no longer about the content of the music. This stance is fast eroding the integrity of the highly revered music award, and the truth is that should the current trend continue, it looks certain to lose its taste and become just like every other award out there.

In conclusion, Femi has paid his dues to the world of music, and while at it, he paid in full. He surely deserves his flowers and accolades, and anyone hoarding them is doing a great disservice to the world of conscious music. Musical artists who have an impeccable grasp of what music really entails like Femi should be celebrated, not only to encourage them but other amazing young acts desirous of going into the highly saturated industry and making a defining difference for the growth and development of African music.

Africa Digital News, New York

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