INTERVIEW WITH YENI ANIKULAPO KUTI.

INTERVIEW WITH YENI ANIKULAPO KUTI.
By Yemi Olakitan
published in Dog's World Magazine

Dog’s world Magazine’s publisher, Bomi Rosiji and its Managing Editor, Yemi Olakitan were on a visit to Yeni Anikulapo Kuti's house.Yeni is the beautiful daughter of Nigerian, legendary, afro-beat musician and political activist, late Fela Anikulapo Kuiti.
Yeni is a passionate Dog Lover, who has 11 dogs! A passion she mentioned she inherited from her father who had 8 dogs.
This makes her a perfect guest of Dog’s world Magazine.Yeni is pretty, lovely, funny, interesting and radical like her late father. She spoke about her love for dogs, the state of the nation, and how far she and her brother, Femi Kuti with the support of others have been able to keep Fela’s legacy alive.
Below are the excerpts of the exclusive interview. Enjoy!

Who is Yeni Anikulapo Kuti?

Aah! I don’t know who I am oh. (Laughter) I’m just Yeni Anikulapo Kuti.
I used to dance, I don’t dance so much anymore, I have now left that to the younger ones. I now manage the shrine; I try to manage my brother’s band. Try.
The key word there is trying, but, am not a manager.
I can’t manage his kind of voice. I just tried to help him out, but I can’t. He has agents and all sorts of people that work with him

What’s your relationship with your dogs like?

My daughter is the real dog lover in the house, so I’m the inheritor of my daughter’s dogs,
These are my daughter’s children, I’m their grandmother really.
We got Leo, he is about Seven or eight, and he was taken from the other house which was a rented apartment and she was very vicious and use to bite people especially women. He used to really attack people. This one, he has mellowed with age now and had a cancer, we have to remove his bowels since then he has soften up, he is still a wild dog, he disciplines all the dogs in the house, he is the Alfa maid and he thinks he is my husband. This is what my daughter doesn’t like.
She doesn’t like him at all. He was very attached to me. I like him, I remember when he was sick I thought he was going to die, we were all so sad even my daughter who doesn’t like him was so sad.
She’s got him into the house, but he is still my own dog because he is really fond of me.No body likes him in the house except me
Why?
Because he was wild. He used to bite and we pay so many hospital bills because of this dog oh. He has bitten so many people. So many (Laughter)

Does he still bites
He hasn’t bitten anybody for over a year, may be two years, because of his health, but he is still the one that barks, he is the real man, the man of the house.

Tell us about the other dogs?
Let me see if I can get them in the house for you .This is snowy, this one has almost lost his life several times. We got this from a friend. We used to have this dog Zanda that was from the same parents, and he was so beautiful. He was so nice, he was very active. He used to bark, he backs at people, he was tiny o, but very vicious and then there was this commotion at the shrine, and he ran outside and he was hit by a car and he died. It was so sad, so sad so, when the parents were pregnant again I said I need another dog from them and this is how we got this wretched fellow here. This one (Laughter) and he is a wretched fellow.
He is supposed to be in an exile o, but he as refused to remain there, his children are in exile, but Leo has a daughter there that is in exile. Most of them are family now. These are Leo’s children. They won’t come in, they might come in but they are very afraid of people and Susie, she bites, she is not very friendly. She doesn’t even let you stroke her. She is so slim, but I can’t stroke her. Not that she would bite me o, but she just won’t stay.
My grandmother used to have dogs in her room, and when she stopped them coming to her room, they used to attack my grandmother.

I hope you feed them with JO-JO
We don’t know Jo-JO dog food. They eat meat and fish; we used to buy one dog food. (Not Jo-JO) It is expensive, quite expensive.

Why don’t you buy the dry one, it’s cheaper than the can food.

I don’t know oh, I don’t know
Dr.Tunji recommends this noodles dust to us. You can buy the noodles dust for N2000 and it seems they like the noodles more than the rice. You can see the rice is all about, I left some yesterday. We use Titus fish; you know Titus fish is soft, when you mash it to the rice, they like that.

Tell us about Mimmy,
Mimmy died about 13, he just died naturally. He just past out here, he was, Leo has bitten the nonsense out of his body, by that time. When he first came to the house he used to attack Leo. This was what happened, when Leo was small, mimmy used to attack Leo, by the time Leo became a man, Leo disciplined him. This was what happened with Terror and Lambo.Lambo became a man and killed Terro, in the end, so they killed each other. His head was always shining, very lovely, he was a lovely dog. When he died it was so so sad. Very lovely dog.


How does it feel, having to take care of so many dogs?
It’s stressful, when you get their vet bills well, since I found Dr.Tunji oh, it’s been a bit cheaper because he does house calls. He will come and deworm them here, take care of them. You know weigh them and everything, but before then we have to transport all of them to the vet, you will take taxi, you will take money aah. It’s a bit easier now. It’s a lot of food. You buy a bag of rice for every two weeks.Susie, for instance eats a lot. She’s coming, (Susie comes around while she strokes her) She will only, let me stroke her for a few seconds. She’s so boisterous.




Where did you get your love for Dogs, is it in the family?

I don’t know, I think it’s hereditary my mum and Dad love dogs, before they burnt my father’s house, he had about 8 or 9 dogs. We love dogs, we have them. When I was much younger, I used to see many ugly, skinny, hungry dogs all over the place so I promised myself that when I grow up, am going to have a big house, I will lock up all the dogs in the neighborhood in one place and feed them very well. When you love dogs, you just love them. You share their pains, you share their happiness. Its God’s gift.

So, how many dogs do you have in all?
Eleven! We don’t have canoes in this house. We don’t chain any of the dogs, so they don’t develop anti-social habits. They have to learn how to be friendly with people.

Who assist you in caring for the dogs?
I have People here who assist me, Esther feeds them, and we have some birds too. Once it is five ‘o clock, they will come for food. What’s happening was, They used to come around at first to eat the crumbs when the dogs are been fed, but they used to get killed by the dogs, because sometimes they will forget themselves and start eating from the dog’s plate, so we built a cage for them to eat their rice and fish up there, and that short one, like a sausage, Strappy, he’s the one that used to attacked the birds, It’s really a lovely sight really to watch the birds up there now. If you look around the house, they have their nests around everywhere.
Unless I have appointment outside my house I‘ll stay in the house and read my books and buy the new drinks we used to buy for the shrine.
I do some exercises too, I used to skip and walk round the pool. For now I’m a bit lazy so I’m just into swimming.
Do you have a swimming pool here?

Yea we have a pool here.

What’s a typical day like for Yeni Kuti?
If it like today. We had a show yesterday, it’s a rehearsal but a lot of people come. We don’t charge for gate fees, but a lot of people come around and I have to buy the drinks we need to buy
I account for the shrine. We have a restaurant at the shrine, as well, because we employed about 70 people at the shrine. We have to pay salaries and we have monthly and weekly salaries. I have to do that.
I still save, in as much as I’m paying because we have to pay the musicians , the dancers , about 70 people that we employed and the maintenance of the shrine because if you come to the shrine its a very big place .
You keep on paying, paying, paying. You are paying for electricity, you are paying for lights, and you are paying for the plumbing. It’s too much.
My daughter is always calling you know, to ask me how the dogs are doing. I said you got eleven dogs in the house and your are not even here to take care of them. I bought a ticket in April for her to come home, she didn’t come. She is in the UK pursuing a degree course. She said she’s not coming till June.


Don’t you think you really should be dancing? Its seems that’s where your passion lies.
I do. I wish I could go into dance and choreographing. I do, because that’s where my love lies, but don’t forget that I am 46 am not getting younger.

So, what do you do full time?

I do the books and I do it because if I give it to other people, they will cheat us. They won’t do it as much or as well as I’m doing it because it’s our business, That’s one of the things that stops businesses in Nigeria, because people are not dedicated. They are not; they won’t do your business like they do their own.
If you are not involved in your business what happens is your business will die. For instance, there, is this bar in Victoria Island, some people who are customers of the bar, were coming and saying they arranged beer at the nightclub they drank beer of thirty thousand naira but the waiters only let them pay eleven thousand. Can you imagine, that means that those waiters are making money off that bar? I give that bar about two years, they will fold up. I don’t know where the owner is, that’s what happens, because the owner is not there, she is not there on full time like me. I know everything that is coming in and going out of my business.
Because I have the numbers of all the suppliers, I know what they supply, I check some people, how much did he drink, how much did he buy this drink. Like somebody reported to me on Sunday that he bought a drink that was supposed to be N350 for N400, aah! So I did my investigations, it was a problem for them, because they know I’m on the job and I’m not going to take it.
Now, we have a price list, everyone knows how much.
It’s not so easy but it’s the only way because when I was going on tour, there was nobody to run the shrine and everything, its was a big problem, we were not making money, I remember, there was a boy, a very, very nice looking boy, very handsome, a young boy that you just wanted to help. I say ah, he is the future of Nigeria; he was an undergraduate in the university, He was in Unilag, which was really like either mid- year or just graduation, I can’t remember sha. So I gave him a job as the Bar- manager.
One day I got up and say let me go and check the drinks, the prices of a crate of star have increased. Then a crate of star was between N300 or N400, suddenly the price was N700. Then I said ah ah star is becoming so expensive. so I check the price out with the supplier. Star was N300 that guy has been collecting N700 from me. Can you imagine? The orientation is so bad with some Nigerian youths.
The boy is even a thief because one day I caught him in my brother’s room, He didn’t know I was there (Femi Kuti’s room) he didn’t know I was there and I saw him stealing my brother’s money.
This is the future of Nigeria; so sad, he was just a young boy, nice looking boy that we wanted to help. Our situation is so bad, so wrong here in Nigeria that when you want to help people, they will end up stabbing you in the back. So terrible!
This same boy we introduce him to the guy doing a documentary on Femi, the shrine and my father and the guy likes him because he’s an educated boy, so he takes him around.
The boy doesn’t come around us again since I caught him stealing, he is too embarrassed to come around us because we got him arrested and was taken away by the police and that is why he is so ashamed that he stole. Everyone at the shrine knows that he stole, and this is not stealing through the books; this is stealing by picking up the money; caught re-handed.
So that one now, send him 4,000 Dollars to go and clear the rights to use the tape he got from AIT.That guy send him 4,000 Dollars, I saw the boy about three weeks ago, in a car; I said Okay, no wonder he has the money to buy car and He was looking at me so proudly that even though I am no longer with you I am getting on.Aah!! He was getting on through someone he met through us, whom he has duped of 4,000Dollars. I just told the guy abroad that he is not going to pay any rights to AIT.He has bought car with your money. it so difficult to work with some Nigerian youths.

Tell us about your experience on tour.

I met Dbanj on tour last year, I joined Femi in Italy and in England, and I did a workshop there before the show, a dance workshop and this year, I Intend to go to America, not with them, but I intend to take Femi’s son to go and join his father after school. I want to do a couple of shows with them. I might not perform but I will definitely be there, and when am there, the girls, they have to smile on stage. If am not there they will not smile as much as I like. Its like am very stern.

What kind of Dance workshop did you do while you were there?
Afro beat dance, an hour. An hour workshop, They really enjoyed it .In the evening when I was going for the show, so many people were saying, beautiful workshop, and lovely workshop and say ah you know, and I was so happy with that!





Was it part of something else?

It was part of a festival, womant Festival, Redden, so they said they wanted to do the workshop, so when the agent finally found out that I was going to be there. He said I should do the workshop, so I said I would do it.
Somebody, you know, there was this Lady, she works with Genevieve now, she was at the workshop and when I met her she said oh I saw your workshop. She comes to shrine regularly and so gentle, dance and you know…..she was even here last week.

Which days do you perform at the shrine?
Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays.
Tuesdays and Thursdays I like going on stage because I just want the members if they don’t know it or are missing it I will, you know, show them.
Sometimes may be one or two persons will want some dance lessons, they have to have come earlier and I will show them how to move their waists.

Do you dance with the girls?
Me personally I don’t. You have to remember that I’m 46. The girls that dance now are in their 20s. 25, 26. There is no way my energy level will match theirs. So you now look like an ‘’Agbaya,’’come down now, and all my hair is white. You outgrow certain things. I still love to dance I still dance. I danced yesterday. I will not put on my costumes with all my folds. I will be ashamed to show my fat stomach anyway, in a sexy costumes, if I say I don’t like dance, I must be lying. I still love to dance. I still love to perform that’s why I perform at rehearsals; I can do 1 or 2 numbers and then move out of the stage. But if you are doing a new show, you have to stay on stage like 2 or 3 hours. Do I still have that energy level? For a dancer is a lot of energy.

Am sure you still want to do something on Dance in the future.

I keep on saying I am going to open a dance School. It’s still very much on my mind, am going to open a dance School What I need is money but am paying for my daughters university education right now right now.
We should expect a dance School.

Yea hopefully. When I finish with my daughter’s education. I’ll open a dance school hopefully, I only have one daughter. I want the best education for her.

A dance school In Nigeria?
Of course in Nigeria. We live here. I don’t even want to be part of the category of people that takes their money abroad. Femi when he goes abroad, he takes his money back home. He has no account anywhere in Europe or America.
What happens is that we make our money and take them abroad and they use our money to make their country great. Why don’t we take our own money back to us and make own country great.
Nigerians are not investing in Nigeria, they are investing abroad. Why will I go and buy a house in England and be maintaining it with precious pounds. You know how much a pound is to a naira? It’s N250.

What’s your opinion about PMAN problems, Bolaji Rosiji, Charlie Boy and all that?




Me, I’ve been very vocal, to be sincere, I’ve never heard of Bolaji until he became the PMAN President and I was very impressed with the little I saw about him. Let me give you an example. When we were organizing Felabration, He came to the shrine and asked what PMAN can do to support Felabration Festival. I noticed, instead of running away from the shine, he was embracing the shrine. No other PMAN President as done that, except Bolaji Rosiji, and he wasn’t doing it to make himself popular, because he did not come with any journalist. He was coming with a lot of foreigners.
We missed a lot of foreigners through other people, because when foreign artistes come here and ask to see the shrine, Nigerians discourage them, they don’t bring them there, saying it’s a dangerous place, there is no security. You are taking people away from this place. Instead of bringing them here, it’s your cluture, and they will enjoy it. Most of them that come enjoy it. I’ve met so many, a lot of these American artists when they come many of them don’t come to the shrine.

They don’t bring them. They said to me, I’m not very conversant with these Americans. What’s his name o? I ve forgotten his name. He called me saying he would come to the shrine, he didn’t come then I asked why he didn’t come he said; they told him that the security is not tight.
Even this one that just came, is it Akon? Akon came with some other guys. I ve forgotten, one other American guy. The musician spoke to me they will always come to the shrine, they didn’t come. They didn’t let them come, they said it’s dangerous. Snoop doggy dog said he was looking for another venue, when he saw the shrine he said ah ah why didn’t they let Snoop use this kind of venue? They said its dangerous .He must be telling them that they came all the way here and they did not visit the shrine.
The percentage of Nigerians that actually saw Fela performed was very minute.
Nigerians Love Fela more now that he is dead, than when he was alive, because when he was alive they did not go to shrine. I ve met so many of them especially the silver spoon so- called silver spoon children. They used to say I wish I saw Fela performed, when he was alive. Fela when he was alive o .This man was on your doorstep why didn’t you go and see his show; he was very of important to you. There was no reason for you not going. Now that he is dead, the world is celebrating his death; they are all saying ah we love Fela. You are saying you love Fela, how many times did you see him perform? Many of them can’t say they see him perform, many of them cannot say so because they have signed on the bad news, they smoke Igbo there. Where don’t they smoke Igbo in this world No-body forces you to smoke Igbo when you come to the shrine. It’s a peaceful place. You listen to the music. It’s your culture. If Michael Jackson plays anywhere in America, it will be a sell out.

What more can you say about Fela.
I remember when Fela went to America once, he abused Nigerian government, talked politics, the way Fela talked politics, Fela was not going to be saying there is change, Nigeria is changed, in Nigeria papers they abused a whole lot out of Fela .Why was he washing our dirty linen in public. I read about it. I was very angry. Is not right, but now that he is dead they are all over the place.Oh he was a prophet.oh he was great.
It is the real people of Nigeria that really love Fela, that are passionate. Nigeria is not only V/I and Ikoyi .I remember when Femi sang sorry, I picked up a Nigerian newspaper, and they abused him. Why should he sing sorry for Nigerians, is he not sorry for Nigerians? He is watching our dirty linen in public. We are concerned about image without providing basic amenities that makes life good for the common man. It’s the same thing about this Tinapa project. In my opinion it’s a white elephant project.
You don’t have light; you don’t have water you are opening a resort. Does that make sense? It doesn’t make sense to even an idiot. Are they all right? No light and water in your community, in your country, your state, everybody is planning to open a multi billion naira, trillion dollar resort, and they are all hailing Donald Duke as the big one. Put light and water. Where are the roads to even get there?
He could have presented us with solar Energy for electricity power supply. Repair the refineries. They can’t do that for eight years. Look at your presidential elect. He went abroad for medical treatment .That means the hospitals are not good and we are here, we sit down and hail such a person that went abroad for medical care and he is a president elect. The vice president was sick and went abroad. It is disgraceful with the presidential jet. If you can not patronize our hospitals here in Nigeria that means our hospitals are not good. The only one that didn’t go abroad for treatment was Abacha that was because he was rejected. He was facing international sanctions.

What is it about Felabration Festival?
We are celebrating his love and it’s something that we hope will continue because, we really, we don’t have a festival culture in Nigeria.
A lot of my brothers’ income is from various festivals abroad. And when you go to these festivals, they are so lovely. It’s a place for people to make money, a place for people to enjoy and appreciate life. A place to share and to give. If you go to a festival ground, there are shops everywhere, where people are selling different things, it’s a whole, may be four or five days. So many festivals that I can’t mention right now. And we don’t have anything of such in Nigeria. If you come to the shrine, you‘ll see a lot of influence outside there. And that is what I call learning and sharing knowledge. Come and fix whatever you learn from anywhere you go and bring it to your people and share that knowledge and tell them to tell you their observations. I have a situation where there are things that Nigerians are looking for. I have seen some people so worried that get uplifted at the events to the extent that so many people have been coming from abroad. Someone call me from France and said she is coming for Felabration this year.

When is the Festival coming up?
October, 15th because 15th is the day we traditionally kill the cows and sell food to Fela’s fans. Because that is Fela’s birthday ‘gangan’. We are celebrating his life, a life of a great man and then it’s like trying to bring this festival awareness into Nigeria.
The carnival we had last year was not as good as I would have hoped, Like the Northing hill carnival, The masses were thrilled with beautiful dancers from all over Nigeria. Nigeria is showing its culture and people. We have the Ijaw people, Ishekiri people, Calabar people, each one had its own thriller performance and the day was joyous. They went around the streets of Lagos and they all ended at the shrine and we had the major festival.

What would you say are the benefits to Nigeria?
I think celebrating the life of such a great man and bringing business to the state, to the country during that festival which am sure my father will be very proud of. The people that made money during the festival period, after the festival, they are coming to pray for us and say you children God will bless you.
They all made their money, their things got sold because we had a show outside, we had a big screen outside .We had three stages, we have even written to the governor to put more gates and they agreed.


How about the sponsorship from corporate Nigeria?
How can I beg you for what I know it’s good?
We believe that corporate organizations should use this medium to actually come and support the project. We are going to pay all the artistes that are coming to play. Most of the artistes that play at the festival Last year did it for little or no money. I mean we can’t continue to ask them to do it for free. We need people to support us. We don’t make any money from it. The issue is not the money but the service to the people.Guiness did a lot for us last year. We are hoping they will still come on board this year and support us. I brought this promoter Laface, who helped us out with the marketing. I personally do not know much about the marketing, so I’ let the other people that are good at it do it.
We are expecting a lot of artistes from America and other people.