The Compositional Aesthetics of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti’s Afrobeat: A Musicological Analysis

This study undertakes a systematic musicological analysis of the compositional aesthetics of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, examining the structural, harmonic, rhythmic, and textual features that define his Afrobeat sound and its revolutionary musical legacy. Fela Kuti is widely recognised as one of Africa's most significant musical innovators, yet formal musicological analysis of his compositional techniques has been limited compared to the considerable sociological and biographical scholarship on his life and politics. This research analyses a purposive selection of 20 compositions from across Fela's career, spanning the early 1970s to the mid-1990s, employing formal musical analysis including transcription, harmonic reduction, rhythmic pattern mapping, and text-music relationship analysis. The compositional elements examined include Fela's characteristic use of extended jazz harmony over Yoruba rhythmic ostinatos, his employment of the saxophone as narrative melodic voice, his call-and-response structures, and the rhetorical organisation of his politically charged Pidgin English lyrics. Theoretical grounding draws on African musicology, jazz studies, and postcolonial music theory. The study situates Fela's compositional practice within the traditions of Yoruba music, jazz, James Brown-influenced funk, and African high-life. Findings will produce an original musicological portrait of Fela's compositional language and contribute to scholarly understanding of Afrobeat's formal foundations. Keywords: Fela Kuti, Afrobeat, compositional analysis, musicology, African music.