By Peter Omopo
Afrobeats superstar David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, joined members of the Kuti family and other leading figures in the Nigerian music industry in Los Angeles for the Grammy Honors Party celebrating the legacy of Afrobeat pioneer Fela Anikulapo-Kuti.
The event was organised to mark Fela’s posthumous conferment of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, a historic recognition that makes him the first African artist to receive the prestigious honour.
Videos from the celebration, shared on Instagram by Davido’s logistics manager, Israel DMW, showed the singer in the company of Fela’s children, Femi and Yeni Kuti, as well as other family members and close associates. In one of the posts, Israel DMW described the occasion as “a night for late Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, Abami Eda of the universe,” noting that the gathering took place in Los Angeles.
Fela is expected to be formally honoured by the Recording Academy this weekend, with the Lifetime Achievement Award scheduled for presentation at a ceremony in Los Angeles on Saturday, ahead of the main Grammy Awards gala.
The award will also be presented to other global music icons, including Cher, Whitney Houston, Carlos Santana, Paul Simon and Chaka Khan.
Meanwhile, Davido is also a nominee at this year’s Grammy Awards. His song With You, featuring Omah Lay, has been nominated in the Best African Music Performance category. Other contenders in the category include Love by Burna Boy, Gimme Dat by Wizkid and Ayra Starr, Hope and Love by Ugandan singer Eddy Kenzo featuring Mehran Matin, and Push 2 Start by a South African artiste.
The gathering in Los Angeles highlighted the growing global recognition of African music, as well as the enduring influence of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti on generations of artists worldwide.
