With Nigeria's Fela Kuti, African music enters the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

Fela Kuti was named beside Queen Latifah, Celia Cruz, MC Lyte, and Gram Parsons to receive an "Early influence" honour by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation, at the ceremony held in Los Angeles's Peacock Theater.

The Cleveland-based Hall of Fame surveyed more than 1,000 musicians, historians and industry members to choose the final entrants for 2026.

Hip-hop transformers Wu-Tang Clan and punk rocker Billy Idol were among the music luminaries inducted at a star-studded concert gala, where artists like Megan Thee Stallion and Remy Ma.

Phil Collins, Joy Division/New Order, Sade, Iron Maiden, Oaisis and the velvet-voiced late Luther Vandross also joined the rock pantheon.

The evening was an occasion to put Africa on a pedestal, for the first time with recognition for Nigerian musician Fela Kuti.

"For the first time in forty years of existence, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame honours an African artist, proof that rock and roll is not an exclusively American art, but a genre that has been nourished by influences from all over the world, and this well before its creation," producer Ian Brennan told RFI.

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"Going back to the roots of American music, almost all roads lead to Africa, and more specifically to West Africa. Fela Kuti's influence has not only continued, but has even increased considerably over the decades since his passing," he says.

Brennan worked for more than ten years to ensure that the "Black President" received a posthumous Grammy Award – finally awarded in February 2026 for his entire career, making him also the first African artist in history to receive this award.

Fela Kuti's name had been put forward to enter the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation several times over the years, without success.

Revolutionary message

His name was initially included on the list of 16 candidates announced for the 2021 class in the performers category, which sparked a major campaign in Nigeria, amplified by singers like Davido.

But the 1,200 members of the electoral college did not include him in the final selection. A second attempt in 2022 was no more successful.

Finally, Fela's entry into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame was made public last April in the "Early Influence" category, after review by a specific committee.

To be considered, artists must have released their first commercial recording at least 25 years before the year of their nomination and to be an artist "whose music and performances have directly influenced, inspired and evolved rock & roll".

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Rock & Roll Hall of Fame said that nearly thirty years after his death, "Fela Kuti's innovative music, revolutionary message, and generational impact continue to represent the indomitable and evolving spirit of rock & roll."

The Nigerian star is also described as "a revolutionary voice that denounced injustice […], provoking political change while fusing jazz, West African music, and soul."

To illustrate this point, the official Rock & Roll Hall of Fame page dedicated to Fela highlights his key position between the giants of African-American music and the artists he inspired around the world.

On one side: Miles Davis, James Brown, and Parliament-Funkadelic –  from whom Kuti borrowed various elements, both musically and in terms of approach.

On the other hand, there are the influences he exerted, notably on Salif Keita, Burna Boy, and Ginger Baker, who saw him as a role model or learned from him – highlighting the crucial place of the African artist at the heart of the global musical landscape.