Femi Bankole Osunla, widely known as Femi Foto, remains one of the most important yet unsung figures in the visual history of Afro-beat music. A native of Arigidi in Ondo State, Nigeria, Osunla’s work as Fela Anikulapo Kuti’s personal photographer from 1975 until Fela’s death in 1997 helped shape how the world sees Afro-beat, its culture, and its revolutionary spirit. His extraordinary images captured the essence of a movement and introduced countless people around the globe to the art and power of Afro-beat.
Photography in Nigeria has deep historical roots dating back to the 19th century when George Da Costa opened the first portrait studio in Lagos in 1859. Since then, a remarkable lineage of photographic talent has emerged, including Jonathan Adagogo Green, J.D. Ojeikere and Yusuf Oladele. Into this tradition stepped Femi Bankole Osunla, whose name became synonymous with the visual life of Fela Kuti and the Afro-beat phenomenon.
Osunla’s journey into photography began not far from the stage that would define his life’s work. While learning photography, he met Isaac Olaleye, a maracas player for Fela’s then Africa 70 Band. One night at the Shrine, Olaleye invited Osunla to take photos of his performance. As Osunla prepared to shoot, someone tapped him on the shoulder and requested that he take “some action photos,” and from that moment, his path was sealed. He would go on to document the iconic performances, intimate moments, and rebellious spirit of Fela and his circle.
Over his career, Osunla produced a portfolio of more than 15,000 images chronicling the life and times of Fela Kuti, making Fela one of the most photographed Nigerians of all time.
These photographs are not merely visual records but cultural artifacts that reflect the energy, struggle, joy, and resistance embedded within Afro-beat.
Osunla’s work was not without personal cost. In 1977, a brutal military raid on Fela’s Kalakuta Republic residence and recording studio left him with permanent physical scars. In a later press interview, he pointed to his missing bottom teeth, a small bump on his forehead, and the thin scars on his face, remnants of that harrowing event.
Reflecting on the violence he witnessed and endured, Osunla said the experience was far from easy. He stood on the front lines with Fela in what he described as a lifelong battle against oppressive Nigerian regimes. Despite the pain inflicted by police and soldiers, he remained steadfast, knowing that his images were preserving history for future generations.
“I believed in what he was doing,” Osunla once said. “I took the pain, the police brutality, the soldier brutality, because I wanted future generations to see that Fela was a great man.”
Femi Foto’s legacy extends beyond his photographs of one man. His work captures the soul of a music and a movement that spoke truth to power and celebrated African identity, culture, and resilience. For many who have never set foot in Lagos or Nigeria, it was through Osunla’s lens that they first experienced the dynamism of Afro-beat.
Osunla passed away in 2007, but his images continue to live, teaching new generations about Fela, Afro-beat, and the creative defiance that defined an era. In celebrating Femi Bankole Osunla, we recognise not only a master photographer but a cultural historian whose work shaped how the world understands one of Africa’s greatest musical forms.
Source: bim_babarinde archives.
