Crazitive African Magazine Issue 9: Body Shaming | Page 14

LEMI

GHARIOKWU

Designer of 26 Album Covers for Fela Kuti.

Lemi met Fela Kuti in 1974 through Babatunde Harrison( a journalist for Sunday Punch). He walked into a pub and stumbled on an art work Lemi did for the pub owner. He requested to see more and he saw one of the illustrations Lemi did of Roforofo Fight. This spurred him to take Lemi to meet Fela. On this first meeting, Fela was impressed with Lemi ' s work and offered to pay him but he refused the money. This became his ticket into Kalakuta Republic. Lemi ' s relationship with Fela Anikulapo Kuti was very cordial. He gave Lemi total freedom with his work and thoughts to the level that he just did as he pleased, albeit responsibly, with how and what he wanted to express. Lemi had the rare privilege of putting his photograph and comments on some of the covers and was treated like a son, friend, adviser and comrade by the Afrobeat legend. Ghariokwu ' s approach to his work with Kuti involved listening to and digesting the music and then expressing his reaction in his paintings, design and comments which provide a high level of detail on the many album covers he delivered.