Grammy-nominated Afrobeat musician Femi Kuti has revealed that his late father, Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti, was poor and, at some point, struggled to feed his family.

In a report by Nigeria’s Dailypost, Femi explained that when Fela’s first hit song ‘Jeun Ko Ku’ was making waves, the family was in abject poverty despite the singer’s fame.

Speaking in a recent interview with Afropolitan, Femi said, “Fela was very poor. He couldn’t even afford food for us his kids. I mean, really really poor. Then we were living at No. 14A Agege Motor Road, this was all before Kalakuta.

“Every music story was playing Fela’s first Afrobeats hit ‘Jeun Ko Ku.’ I think he too was surprised at the reception he got.”