Afrobeat icon Femi Kuti has dismissed claims that the late legendary drummer, Tony Allen, co-pioneered the genre with his father, Fela Kuti.
Tony Allen, who was Fela’s lead drummer and music director, is regarded by both local and foreign media as a co-pioneer of Afrobeats.
Femi Kuti, who disagrees with the above, refuted the claims in a recent video message shared via his social media page.
According to Femi Kuti, such claims are the “biggest bullsh*t ever”.
“My father was a multi-instrumentalist and composer. He studied music. He knows every single part of his instrument.
“You probably have read that they said he said, ‘Without Tony Allen, there is no Afrobeat.’ That is the biggest bullsh*t ever said about my father. It is such a big lie.
“They tried to sell Tony Allen, so they decided to lie. Yes, he was a good drummer, but Fela taught him his style of drums. Fela came up with all his drum patterns. We saw it.
“I was a child, a teenager, a man, we saw Fela do it. Fela wrote all his patterns. I keep telling them, why didn’t Tony Allen tell us which songs he did for Fela?
“He couldn’t because there was no song that Fela asked him to put the drum pattern for him. It is impossible.
“When Fela was writing, no one could make any inputs because he goes into a trance while making music. Everyone around him then must maintain calmness and listen to his composition and instructions.
“So, I asked those saying Fela credited Allen for Afrobeat where he did, and they can’t produce it.
“There is no article, recording or footage from any interview to prove it. It is impossible that Fela would make such a statement, and there is no copy anywhere,” Femi Kuti stated.
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