His mood darkens, however, as he recalls the authorities’ assault on Kuti’s Lagos HQ, the Kalakuta Republic, on 18 February 1977. When Fela saw it, again he said: ‘Wow. I told Fela and his friends, and they all laughed at me.”Later that day, Kuti realised that Ghariokwu needed to go home. “When Fela saw it, he jumped for joy, shouting, ‘You see?’ like I should always have been smoking marijuana. “Fela broke my heart,” says the artist, who had always enjoyed “100% freedom” in his work for Kuti.

Source: The Guardian January 07, 2026 18:08 UTC