29 years after his death, Afrobeat pioneer Fela Anikulapo Kuti has become the first African artist to be honoured with the 2026 Special Merit Awards, also known as the Lifetime Achievement Award, by the Recording Academy.
Recall that in 2025, Fela’s 1976 album ‘Zombie’ was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
At the award ceremony, which took place in Los Angeles on Saturday, the night before the main Grammys ceremony, Fela received his posthumous Lifetime Achievement Award
His children, Yeni, Kunle, Shalewa and Femi Kuti accepted the award on their father’s behalf at the ceremony.
Remarks
In her acceptance speech, Yeni thanked the Grammys for the “wonderful award”.
“I want to acknowledge my siblings who couldn’t be here tonight, Motunrayo and Seun, and my nephew who is carrying Afrobeat to another level, Made,” Yeni said.
Also speaking, Femi expressed gratitude to all the people who carry the Afrobeat genre, including DJs, the press, his label Partisan, lawyers, and fans all over the world.
“Thank you for bringing our father here; it’s so important for Africa. It’s so important for world peace and struggle,” Femi said.
Other recipients of the 2026 Lifetime Achievement Awards were Whitney Houston, Chaka Khan, Cher, and Paul Simon.
In an official statement, Harvey Mason Jr, CEO of the Recording Academy, describes the honorees as “an extraordinary group whose influence spans generations, genres, and the very foundation of modern music.”
Architect of Afrobeat
In a statement announcing Fela as a recipient of the award, the Grammys described the Abami Eda as an architect of Afrobeat.
According to the body, “Fela Kuti was a Nigerian musician, producer, arranger, political radical, activist, and the father of Afrobeat. In the 1960s, he created the genre by combining funk, jazz, salsa, calypso, and a blend of traditional Nigerian rhythms.
“His influence spans generations, shaping modern Nigerian Afrobeats and inspiring global artists such as Beyoncé, Paul McCartney, and Thom Yorke. His legacy continues to live on not only through music, but through his family and through the Kalakuta Museum and the New Afrika Shrine.”
The Lifetime Achievement Award is presented by vote of the Recording Academy’s National Trustees to performers who, during their lifetimes, have made creative contributions of outstanding artistic significance to the field of recording.
Lifetime Achievement Award
The Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award is conferred by The Recording Academy’s National Trustees to performers who have made creative contributions of outstanding artistic significance to the field of recording during their lifetimes.
It honours a lifetime of work rather than a single year’s achievement.
The inaugural award was presented to Bing Crosby in 1963.
In 1972, the award criteria were broadened to include non-performers.
Past recipients of the award include Julie Andrews (2011), Louis Armstrong (1972), The Beatles (2014), Bee Gees (2015), Harry Belafonte (2000), Beach Boys (2001), David Bowie (2006), James Brown (1992) Sam Cooke (1999), Miles Davis (1990) Sammy Davis Jr. (2001), Everly Brothers (1997), Roberta Flack (2020), Aretha Franklin (1994), Judy Garland (1997), Marvin Gaye (1996) and many others.
