WME Legends is dedicated to legacy brand management with the mission of amplifying the legacies of artists and brands for a new generation.
Fela Kuti, born Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti, was a Nigerian musician, bandleader, composer, political activist, and Pan-Africanist. He was the creator of the Afrobeat genre, a percussive fusion of funk, jazz, fuji, and highlife music. His innovative sound laid the foundation for the 21st-century genre known as Afrobeats, which has steadily gained popularity and ventured into the mainstream over the past few years. Kuti’s legacy endures even after his passing in 1997, following complications related to AIDS.
The WME Legends team will oversee various aspects of Kuti’s legacy, including his name, image, likeness, life story, intellectual property, music, and publishing rights. This management will extend across WME and its parent company Endeavor’s divisions and entities worldwide, working in partnership with the administrators of Kuti’s estate. Existing agreements that govern his recordings and music publishing will remain intact. Partisan Records will continue distributing Kuti’s catalog in North America, while Universal Music remains the distributor for the rest of the world. His music publishing is shared between BMG and Sony on a global scale.
Under the banner of WME Legends, there are ambitious plans to rejuvenate Fela Kuti’s legacy for a new generation. These initiatives include the production of a definitive scripted biopic, an expansion of the Fela! stage musical franchise, release of previously unreleased masters and unpublished songs, licensing and merchandising opportunities, involvement in commercials and endorsements, and more. The distribution and administration for the unreleased material have not yet been determined.
A highly-anticipated biopic about Fela Kuti, the first to receive the estate’s sanction, is currently in development. It’s worth noting that director Steve McQueen, known for “12 Years a Slave,” was previously working on a Kuti biopic for Focus Features, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, although the estate had no involvement in that project.
WME Legends also represents the estates of renowned figures like The Notorious B.I.G., Andy Kaufman, Eartha Kitt, Waylon Jennings, Peter Tosh, and Charlie Sifford, in addition to the Ram Dass’ Love Serve Remember Foundation and the iconic New York punk/new wave venue, CBGB.
During the negotiations, the Kuti estate was represented by Olajide Oyewole, a member of DLA Piper Africa.