How do you move a crowd and uphold a legacy at the same time? One Nigerian Afrobeat artist is doing both – carrying forward the activist spirit that shaped his family’s work. Ọmọ́rìnmádé Kútì, also known as Mádé, comes from one of the most influential musical lineages in Nigeria. His grandfather, Fela Kútì, pioneered Afrobeat – a globally recognized genre that blends traditional Yoruba music with American blues, jazz, and funk. Fela Kútì used this genre not only to innovate musically, but to challenge authority and give voice to the oppressed.
Unlike his grandfather’s confrontational approach, Mádé Kútì’s style is both reflective and forward-looking, shaped by the questions, struggles, and hopes of a new generation.
For the past 60 years, Nigeria has struggled with issues including police harassment of peaceful citizens and protestors, and elections marked by fraud and manipulation. Artists such as Fela Kútì and Femi Kútì, Mádé’s father, have used their music to push for change, calling attention to the country’s challenges while offering visions of something better. Mádé Kútì continues that effort with the release of his debut standalone album “Chapter 1: Where Does Happiness Come From?” on July 25. The album engages both heart and feet, blending vibrant beats with an intent to provoke thought, dialogue, and a vision for a more just future. The artist delivers this through his relatable lyrics, weaving in references to past incidents, and posing questions that challenge listeners to reflect on societal norms.
Why We Wrote This
With his new album, Mádé Kútì, grandson of Nigerian Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kútì, asks listeners to go deep: How can you be a better version of yourself?
In a Zoom interview with the Monitor, he discusses the ideas and values that guide his work. He also opens up about his creative process – the joy of experimenting and finding new ways to compose music – and emphasizes the importance of resilience. “Music is not the solution,” he says. “I think it’s what can inspire people to bring change.” The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
How do you see this album as a message of hope to listeners going through difficult times?
I hope they feel like they are not alone first, and I hope that the album gives them the strength to push forward. … [The song “I Won’t Run Away”] is not really about not running away from circumstances [or] from yourself. … [It] is knowing everything that you’ve become, whatever stage you are in at that moment, and then facing those challenges head on and not denying them or pretending they don’t exist. But, you know, eye to eye, this is what I am and I want to be better.
Your album is titled “Chapter 1: Where Does Happiness Come From?” Why did you choose that as the title?
[The album I released with my father] is called “For(e)ward,” so that was a play on words, forward as in progressively moving forward, but also like … the opening to a book. “Chapter 1” is just how I want to start listing my projects. I feel like the majority of what the songs are sort of targeting lyrically is generally self-happiness and progress. … If people are more conscious of what and who they are, and where they’ve come from and what they want, then it’s easier to not be so driven by movements of the collective. … So yeah, where does happiness come from? The answer really is that it’s within oneself. … It comes with wanting to be a better version of yourself. It comes from striving to acknowledge your faults, acknowledge your weaknesses, and never settling for unhappiness.
What kind of future are you hoping to see for Nigeria?
I hope I can believe one day that we will go on the right track. I think Nigeria’s problem is far beyond what we think is simply [political] corruption. … Everybody has a role to play. … Democracy only really has power when the majority of people have something to stand for or stand against, and collectively we rarely ever do that. And that is by far one of our biggest problems is that we will just wait. I don’t think we really accept that we are just as responsible for the country as any other person.
What role do you think your music plays in envisioning that future?
My music is just trying to be as honest as I can about accountability. Music is not the solution, right? I don’t think it is what will bring about change. If music was a solution, then people would have listened to Fela while he was alive … and listened to the incredible work and projects that he put out during his life. …
I guess we’re driven by what brings pleasure, as opposed to what brings responsibility and work. So we, as musicians, now try to do something that balances both, where you can dance and enjoy, but the lyrics hold meaning. … The value of what Afrobeat is, which is conscious music … can inspire people to bring change. I don’t think a very fantastic song will sort of connect with everybody in such a way that suddenly a revolution will come about. … I feel like maybe little by little people might start [to see] oh, wait, this makes sense. And they will come about, communally share thoughts, it will inspire them to be better. And as a result then, the world can be a better place.
Is that what you think about when you create your music? In most of your tracks, there’s a span of instrumentals, and then a little bit of lyrics that have deeper meaning. Is that what you’re trying to do when you’re creating your music, too?
Yeah, of course, but at the same time, I enjoy being a musician, you know. So a lot of that is me having fun as well with trying to discover new ways of composing Afrobeats, new ways of being experimental, trying things that have not necessarily been done before. Trying different textures, trying different horn lines, bass patterns, and all of that. … I don’t deviate and do things that are popular just because I know they work, but I do things I feel I enjoy, and I take risks in the music, and that’s how I think every creator should work. … When I feel like an industry is just pummeling the same thing because we know it works, it’s a disservice to the listeners because they’re not musicians, so they don’t know what risks to take or how to take those risks. So it’s up to us as musicians to do those things.
In what way does having hope for a better future lead to change?
I plan to have children soon. And if I don’t have any sense of hope for a better sort of Nigeria or a better world, I would feel very irresponsible bringing them into this planet. … So that’s where hope lies for me. It’s really in continuity. … I want to believe that. That’s the thing about music, right, it’s timeless. So a 10-year-old 20 years from now could hear the same thing I’m writing today and gather something from it, as we are still influenced by Fela and my father. … That’s why I write the music that I write, because I want to try to influence in some way that’s … in more positive directions.
