As Lagos prepares for Felabration 2026, the yearly celebration of Afrobeat pioneer, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, the spotlight returns to a legacy that extends beyond music into fashion, political consciousness, and cultural identity.

Scheduled for October 12 to 18 at the New Africa Shrine, the festival will bring together performances and creative activities that reaffirm Fela’s place in Nigeria’s cultural history while inviting a new generation to engage with his ideas.

Conceived by Yeni Anikulapo-Kuti, Fela’s daughter in 1998, Felabration has grown into a week-long cultural event attracting music lovers and visitors from Nigeria and abroad. Its programme reaches beyond the stage, incorporating art, dance, school debates and fashion.

The Dress Fela fashion show, scheduled for Saturday, sets the tone ahead of the main festival, showing how the musician’s distinctive style continues to influence contemporary expression.

Fela’s legacy remains particularly visible in fashion. His bold prints, loose-fitting trousers, beads and unapologetic stage presence helped create an image inseparable from his music and political convictions. Today, designers and fans continue to reinterpret elements of that look, turning a personal style into a wider statement about African identity, self-expression and cultural confidence.