Blazing Afrobeats

About this episode

This episode explores the Afrobeat genre and its influences, highlighting artists who follow in Fela Kuti's footsteps.

Afrobeat is a music genre which involves the combination of elements of West African musical styles such as fuji music and highlife with American jazz and later soul and funk influences, with a focus on chanted vocals, complex intersecting rhythms, and percussion. The term was coined in the 1960s by Nigerian multi-instrumentalist and bandleader Fela Kuti, who is responsible for pioneering and popularizing the style both within and outside Nigeria. The artists we are playing for this podcast are the ones following in his footsteps from across Africa.

Topics covered

• Afrobeat
• West African music
• Fela Kuti
• music genre

Keywords

• fuji music
• highlife
• American jazz
• soul
• funk
• percussion

Mentioned in this episode

Places: Nigeria, Africa

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