Barack Obama is honouring Fela Kuti in “Fela Kuti: Fear no man,” a new 12-episode podcast series from Higher Ground, the media company he owns with his wife, Michelle Obama.
In a video posted on his social media account, Obama announced the series, which commemorates the life and legacy of the late Afrobeat pioneer. “You may have heard our documentary podcast last year about Stevie Wonder… Well, I want to be the first to tell you about the next podcast from Higher Ground that just came out. It’s about the legendary Fela Kuti,” he said.
Obama described Fela as “a musical genius from Nigeria” who fused funk, jazz, and soul into the Afrobeat genre. “He is a musical genius… who made some music that I really love,” Obama stated, calling him “a unique figure in musical history who mixed art with activism.”
The podcast, currently in its fourth episode, traces Fela’s genealogy and his life in 1969 Los Angeles, where a “potent mix of music and politics turned a ‘missionary boy’ into a Pan-Africanist freedom fighter.”
The former US president is also featured as an interviewee in the first episode, “To Hell and Back.” “Music like Fela’s is able to not just keep folks moving but also makes them feel alive,” Obama said. “Our very best art and very best music… touch the soul.”
According to the producer, the series draws from over 200 interviews with Fela’s family, friends, scholars, and luminaries. Guests include Fela’s children Yeni Kuti and Femi Kuti, his grandson Mádé Kuti, and figures like Burna Boy, Paul McCartney, Questlove, and Santigold.
The podcast’s description states that “Fela Kuti: Fear No Man” journeys “deep into the soul of Afrobeat to explore the transformative power of art and the role artists can play in this current moment of global unrest.”
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