Interview By Elmo Chong
On this week’s Sonical.ly Podcast, we sit down with Femi Kuti — Grammy-nominated Afrobeat pioneer, son of Fela Kuti, and a fiercely original artist who has spent decades forging his own path.
In this rare and deeply personal conversation, Femi shares lessons every music creator should hear:
🔑 Key Takeaways for Music Creators:
🎷 Being self-taught doesn't mean being untrained.
Femi reveals how he learned saxophone and trumpet by ear and willpower, after being handed instruments but no instruction — and how that shaped his relentless approach to practice and originality.
🌍 Make music from your soul.
From embracing spiritual discipline to rejecting outside influences in order to find a sound that was purely his, Femi challenges creators to build from within, not to chase trends.
🧠 Music is a philosophy, not just a product.
His upcoming album Journey Through Life (out April 25) was born during a family crisis — and reflects on love, loss, spiritual resilience, and why the hardest revolution might be working on yourself.
🔥 He also breaks down the difference between Afrobeat and Afrobeats, and sets the record straight on decades of music history — including what people get wrong about his father’s legacy.
Whether you're an independent artist trying to find your footing, or a seasoned creator questioning your "why," this episode is a masterclass in integrity, originality, and perseverance.
🎧 Tune in to hear:
What Femi thinks about the future of music creators in the AI era
The moment his father finally gave him his flowers
Why “you can't cheat time” in your artistic process
For more sonical.ly content go to:
Tiktok: @604sonically
Instagram: @604sonical.ly
Twitter: @sonically604
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Law & Order: Criminal Justice System - Season 1 & Season 2
Season Two Out Now! Law & Order: Criminal Justice System tells the real stories behind the landmark cases that have shaped how the most dangerous and influential criminals in America are prosecuted. In its second season, the series tackles the threat of terrorism in the United States. From the rise of extremist political groups in the 60s to domestic lone wolves in the modern day, we explore how organizations like the FBI and Joint Terrorism Take Force have evolved to fight back against a multitude of terrorist threats.