Fela slept with me more than his other 27 wives

On the wings of the 2010 Felabration that just ended in Lagos, one of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti's wives, Kevwe, speaks with CHUX OHAI and ADA ONYEMA about her life with the late Afrobeat musician. How did you meet Fela? I used to take food to an uncle of mine known as Gabriel Okpaku. He had a studio. I would take the food to him there. One day, when I got to the studio, he locked me in the dark room and walked away, leaving me in company with Fela, who was visiting him at the time. I had sex with Fela that day. Later, Fela said he wouldn't like me to live in the same house as his boys in the Mosalasi area. He took me to his first wife, Remi, who was Femi's mother. The first day I saw her, I was shocked because she was very light and her hair was as long as that of a white woman. Fela left me in her care and asked her to take care of me. I told her everything about myself and she said that if I should take her word and be like a daughter to her, there would not be any problem.

Which year was this?

That was in 1972. He had just recorded the popular album, Shakara.

Did you eventually marry Fela officially?

Yes, I did. I was one of the 27 women Fela married in one day. His friend took us to his house first before we were taken to a high court for the wedding. The people at the court said we were underage and that Fela should be arrested for even thinking of luring us into marriage. Eventually, they threw us out and we went to his friend's office and from there to the late Dr. Beko Ransome-Kuti's residence. By that time, Fela's house had been burned down. So he rented a hotel where 12 herbalists were invited to conduct the wedding ceremony.

Which one of Fela's house was burnt? Was it the one in Mosalasi?

Yes.

Were you living with Fela then?

Yes.

Can you describe what happened?

I was an eyewitness. What happened was this: Femi was learning to drive a car. On his way back, the police arrested him for one reason or the other. The policemen who made the arrest argued with Fela's boys, who appeared to be drunk at the time. A fight ensued and one of the policemen fell to the ground. The others ran to nearby Abalti Army Barracks and reported the matter to some soldiers. Before the soldiers arrived, the boys had already gone into hiding inside Fela's compound. The police came in and told Fela that they wanted to arrest his boys. But Fela said he was not going to allow that and they threatened to bring in the army. By this time, Fela had fortified his residence, which was walled, with a live electric wire and anybody that touched the wire would be electrocuted to death. When this was going on, he told his mother that he wanted to activate the wire; but she said he should let the police go into the compound as long as they had a search warrant. Also, she said if they didn't come with one, he should be ready to wage a total war with them. Of course, it turned out that the policemen did not come with a search warrant and they came in company with many soldiers. All of them surrounded Fela's compound at once. He had no choice other than to turn on the electricity, thereby activating the wire on the fence. In the process, some soldiers were electrocuted. That was why their colleagues came back forcefully and threw fire into the generator that supplied the electricity and the generator burned out. Having destroyed the power generator, the soldiers were able to gain entry into Fela's home. When they got in, they shot five girls to death instantly. I still remember their names. They were Patience, Kemi, Kehinde and Taiwo, alongside two white men, who were standing at the front gate of the compound. I didn't remember anything else until I woke up to see myself in Abalti barracks.

Was it on the same day that Fela's mother was killed?

Yes, the soldiers killed his mother on that day. They came in with arms and were prepared to kill everybody in sight. Immediately they started shooting, I went to hide in the toilet. But they found me and beat the hell out of me. I saw them go upstairs to Fela's mother and carry her. At that point, I was in pains and half-conscious. But I knew they threw her downstairs. They were really determined to kill.

After you got married to Fela, what happened?

After the marriage ceremony, we went to Ghana for the honeymoon.

All the 27 wives?

Yes, all the 27 wives with Alex Conde, the one that married the late Chief Okotie Eboh's daughter. He took us to Ghana for the honeymoon and from there Fela brought other girls. The other wives were always jealous because Fela paid a lot of attention to me. Fela used to tell us to smoke marijuana or he would not accept us as his own people.

Were you smoking marijuana before you married him?

No. He introduced me to smoking. Whenever I refused to smoke, he would get angry and disgrace me in public.