Yeni Kuti, the beautiful and ever stylish eldest daughter of the Fela Anikulapo Kuti’s family, recently celebrated her 60th birthday in a grand style at the African shrine in Lagos. What many people don’t know is that, there are many qualities that distinguish this epitome of beauty from the crowd. Without any exaggeration, everybody in the Kuti’s family, from A-Z will tell you that she is the one person who has been holding forth, keeping the Kuti’s family together till date. Her simplicity is out of this world, that you can’t but love this amiable woman. She is bold, fearless, outspoken and one of the very few persons who promote the African culture through their dress sense. When you see Yeni, the aura around her will make you want to talk to her. Her smile is always captivating, but don’t forget she is at the same time blunt. Mostly, when she’s airing her views and opinions on a popular programme on TVC, “Your View” on which she is one of the most-loved presenters.
The night of her 60th birthday was a night of accolades for her. Many people spoke well of her, and many of her outstanding qualities were revealed, including how she had made impact on many people’s lives.
Femi Kuti, in his brief speech, also talked about many roles of her elder sister, Yeni; how she has been keeping the family of Kuti together. How she’s always ready to solve everyone’s problem, and most importantly, her love for fashion. “My elder sister Yeni Anikulapo Kuti, is a woman with a big heart, her heart is full of love and I am sure if there were no rules guiding events in Nigeria, this place would have been filled with people who love her. I cannot wish for anything or anyone better. She is always ready to take up everyone’s problem, trying to help someone’s marriage or to financially help someone, that is because she has so much love to give. She is a beautiful sister, mother and friend to everyone. Her love for fashion is overwhelming because she has a room filled with clothes. This shows how different we are. She is our queen of Africa because she is beautiful and precious to us. She is someone who takes care of everything. She does 90% of the things in my life. I cannot count the number of times she has bought me shoes. she knows I’m a very free person and I can use one or two pairs of shoes as many time as I want once I’m comfortable in them, but she’s not always agreed with me. She manages the shrine, works at TVC, she is a mother and sister and many other things. She gives us the time to do other things in our lives and to crown it all, she is protective of us. All of these do not disrupt her social life and what she does for every other person.
Recall that Monday, 24th May, 2021, will remain a remarkable day for the popular Kuti family, as Yeni Kuti celebrated her 60th birthday in grandstyle.
The celebration took place inside the popular New Afrika Shrine at Agidingbi in Lagos. Many dignitaries, friends and family members were in attendance to celebrate with her.
Yeni Kuti was the cynosure of all eyes on that day as she looked stunning in her birthday dress. She is a stylish lady, who loves to look good all the time.
It was a well planned event, and very organised. Security was top notch and all the Covid-19 rules and regulations were strictly observed, right from the entrance to the sitting arrangement.
The music band was Femi Kuti’s band members and his manager led the band to sing many lovely tunes. And the Dj was at his very best, as he dished out different tunes to entertain guests.
Among the dignitaries who graced the one-in-town event were; Lagos State Governor, Babajide Fashola, Hon. Abike Dabiri Erewa and her husband, Kenny Ogungbe, Dayo Adeneye, I.D Ogungbe, Kunle Afolayan, and many others. Omo Baba, the comedian, anchored the event. And he did a good job of it. He is a very versatile Entertainer. He did not only crack jokes, he also sang.
Omoyeni ‘Yeni’ Anikulapo-Kuti was born on 24 May, 1961, in England, the United Kingdom. She is a professional dancer, singer and a descendant of the illustrious Ransome-Kuti family. Her grandmother was the famous Women’s Rights Activist, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti. Yeni Anikulapo-Kuti pioneered the idea of Felabration, a music festival conceived to celebrate the life and contributions of her father, Fela Kuti, to the society.
Born in England, Yeni Anikulapo-Kuti was born as the first child to Afrobeats pioneer, Fela Kuti and to a British mother. She completed her basic and secondary education in Lagos after leaving the United Kingdom at the age of 2. She holds a Diploma in Journalism as she graduated from the Nigerian Institute of Journalism. In 1986, she joined Femi’s band as a Singer and dancer after dropping her job as a fashion designer. She currently serves as a co-manager of the New Afrika Shrine alongside her brother, Femi Kuti.
