Afrobeat

1. Afrobeat

2. Fela Kuti Fela Anikulapo Kuti (15 October1938 – 2 August1997), or simply Fela, was a Nigerian multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, pioneer of Afrobeat music, human rightsactivist, and political maverick The Fela Project is a multimedia project that explores and commemorates the influence of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, the legendary Nigerian Afrobeat musician and Human Rights activist who died of AIDS-related illness in 1997.

3. According to Lagbaja, his mask is used as an icon of man’s facelessness. Lagbaja is a Yoruba word that means somebody, nobody, anybody or everybody. It depicts the anonymity of the so-called “common man”. The mask and the name symbolize the faceless, the voiceless in the society, particularly in Africa. He is also known as "Omo baba mu'ko mu'ko"[edit] Style of musicThough the concept was developed long before that, his first album (entitled Lagbaja) was released to national acclaim in 1993. Over the years and more albums later, the music continues to fascinate with its unique focus on a core of African drums. His music is a product of various influences ranging from traditional Yoruba music to Jazz. Often the music is purely instrumental- an interplay between traditional Yoruba percussions, drums, chants, and western instruments, especially the saxophone. When there are lyrics, they are primarily sung in Yoruba, English or a blend of the two as is colloquially spoken in Yoruba cities. Many of his songs dwell on serious social issues, while others simply entertain. Some are dance inducing while others pass serious messages in humorous ways LAGBAJA

4. D’banj D'banj grew up listening to Fela Kuti, who he cites as his "great mentor".[3]. He was introduced to the harmonica by his late older brother,Femi Oyebanjo, who died in a plane crash at age seventeen[2]. With D'banj's love of music being greater than his parents' military aspirations, he struggled with his parents' approval, this can be best heard through an album track, All Da Way from his debut album. He derived his stage name from the combination of the first name and his surname. Dapo Daniel Oyebanjo (born in 1980 Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria),known commonly as, D'banj is a Nigeriansinger-songwriter and harmonica player. "Dapo" is a nickname for the Yoruba name "Ifedapo" (meaning "Love came together").[1] He recently attended the MTV African Music Awards 2008 which he was nominated for best male artist and best video which he won both of them. As a tribute to his mentor, Fela, D'banj brings Afrobeat to life and into the 21st century with breathless enthusiasm as well as a good dose of humour. His songs are based on his life, often hilarious but with a deeper meaning which documents the struggle of a young African trying to achieve his dreams. He performs in Yoruba, English and Pidgin English. All his albums are solely produced by Don Jazzy and himself.