Fela Anikulapo Kuti’s influence will forever tower over Afrobeat, with Femi and Seun Kuti alongside a handful of dedicated torchbearers keeping the genre’s originality alive.
Yet, Bisade Ologunde, better known as Lagbaja, stands in a league of his own and arguably comes closest to wearing the crown after Fela himself.
Beyond the distinct spice in his sound, pure, undiluted Afrobeat, not the pop-leaning “Afrobeats’, Lagbaja built a cultural identity that was as powerful as his music. With the persona of the ‘Omo Baba Mukomuko’, he crafted an iconic masked character that endured for years until curious journalists eventually revealed the face behind the mystique.
Hit after hit, high-grossing albums, and sold-out shows across Nigeria and Africa cemented Lagbaja as perhaps the most commercially successful Afrobeat artiste after Fela. His ambitious triple-album release, ‘Me, We & Abami’, remains one of the most notable tributes ever paid to Fela Kuti.
Though the long-rumoured rivalry between Lagbaja and Femi Kuti remains unresolved, one thing is certain: listening to Lagbaja is the only true way to understand his mastery.
His seamless fusion of Juju, Fuji, and hip-hop, while never losing the core Afrobeat identity, is the kind of innovation that deserves academic study.
Like a sacred masquerade that appears only when it truly matters, Lagbaja has never compromised his art, his style, or his disciplined mystique.
In every sense, he remains a classic who continues to break his own records. (Written by Omogbolahan Akinwumi)