Maverick singer Seun Kuti has claimed that his father, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, the late Afrobeat pioneer, also pioneered rap music.
Speaking in a recent episode of the Hits Don’t Lie podcast, Kuti claimed that Fela was the first person to rap, stressing that he did a little bit of rapping on his album ‘Authority Stealing.’
He explained that when Fela rapped on the album, they didn’t know the style would be called Rap.
“Fela was the first person to rap. He did a bit of rapping on the album ‘Authority Stealing.’ When he did it, we didn’t know it was going to be called ‘Rap’,” he said.
However, contrary to Seun Kuti’s claim that Fela was the pioneer of rap music, DJ Kool Herc, regarded as one of the foundational figures who created and shaped hip-hop, introduced the breakbeat in 1973, whereas Fela’s album ‘Authority Stealing’ was released in 1980.
Fela Anikulapo-Kuti is widely recognised for his creation of Afrobeat (blending funk, jazz, salsa, calypso, and West African rhythms) and his role as a political activist.
DJ Kool Herc, Afrika Bambaataa, and Grandmaster Flash are the trio credited for creating and shaping rap music.
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