Tony Allen, the
pioneering drummer who was a member of Fela Anikulapo Kuti’s band, Africa 70,
has died.
Allen died in Paris,
France, on Thursday, April 30. The cause of his death has not been revealed.
Tony Allen was a
drummer, composer and also a songwriter for Afrobeat legend, Fela Anikulapo
Kuti.
He was born in Lagos
in 1940 and was regarded as one of the founders of Afrobeat.
Fela once stated
that, "Without Tony Allen, there would be no Afrobeat."
In 2017, Fela's son,
Femi Kuti said to Rolling Stone: "There was no band like the Africa 70 and
there is no drummer like Tony Allen."
Allen has also been
described by Brian Eno as "perhaps the greatest drummer who ever
lived".
Allen’s career and
life story have been documented in his 2013 autobiography Tony Allen: Master
Drummer of Afrobeat, co-written with author/musician Michael E. Veal, who
previously wrote a comprehensive biography of Fela Kuti.
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