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 .