I’m happy Fela didn’t exist in our generation, says Singer Burna Boy


Grammy award-winning Nigerian singer, Damini Ogulu popularly known as Burna Boy, has stated that if Fela existed beyond the period he did, he would have been criticised and probably arrested.
He said he is grateful that the late afrobeats pioneer, Fela Kuti, didn’t exist in this generation.

The ‘Last Last’ crooner disclosed this in an interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe in New York.

The African giant said Fela’s existence was good while it lasted, adding that he passed on the message his songs carried and explored the music space extensively.

According to Burna Boy, if Fela had existed in this current generation, most people holding him in high esteem today would have criticised and called for his arrest.

He said: “What I have realised is that the times are really funny. Fela in his time was going through things that, if he was here today, it might have been a whole different feeling like a whole bunch of people from Nigeria who you see today celebrating Fela, are the same people that would have been tagging the police to go and arrest Fela if there was Twitter then.

“So, at the end of the day, I feel like God doesn’t make mistakes. You know what I mean like the times are just perfect for everyone, you know. If he Fela was here today, like his career started now, he may not have the space to explore that [his conscious creativity] because there is too much in this day and age that it just doesn’t interlock with the spirits. Right now, spirituality is almost non-existent.

“Now, the society is just mostly run by stupidity and ignorance. It was still the same back then [during Fela’s era], but it wasn’t as amplified or accessed [as it is today]. Now, everything is defined by stupidity and ignorance.

“I’m grateful for the fact that he Fela existed in his time so that we can get an experience of the true organic nature of what he was, the essence of what he stood for and the messages he passed across to us.”