Nigeria’s rebel artist families - a podcast by BBC World Service

from 2020-02-24T17:04

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In the first of four programmes from Lagos, Nigeria, Helen Oyibo meets the artists and revolutionaries who have shaped the country. A poet, playwright and essayist, Wole Soyinka became Africa’s first Nobel Laureate, and endured two years of political detention during Nigeria’s civil war.

Femi Kuti is a musician and son of the legendary Fela Kuti. He tells Helen about how growing up in the shadow of one of Nigeria’s most famous musicians has shaped his life and own musical career. He also gives us a tour of a Lagos institution, The New Afrika shrine.

Falz is part of the new generation of rebel artists in Nigeria – his parents are both famous activists and he's a popular Afrobeats star whose subversive music has got him into trouble with the government. He reveals why he's continuing his parents' work through his music.

Presenter: Helen Oyibo
Producer: Harry Graham

Picture: Falz, Femi Kuti, Wole Soyinka
Credits: Getty Images, BBC

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