THE FIRST NIGERIAN MUSICIAN TO RELEASE AN ALBUM IS A YORÚBÀ MAN.
MEET CANON JOSIAH RANSOME KUTI
It is practically impossible to know Nigeria’s first singer because singing as always been part of the human culture from time immemorial but the first ever Nigerian to release an album is Canon Josiah Jesse Ransome Kuti (Fela Anikulapo’s Grandfather and Prof Wole Soyinka’s great-grand father).


He has been composing songs since 1878 and and his last work was released in 4th August, 1921.

His album is still at the British Museum..
The Reverend Canon Josiah Jesse Ransome-Kuti, was perhaps the earliest person in Nigeria to compose gospel songs in form of Church hymns used in the early Anglican Church at St Peter Cathedral Church, Ake Abeokuta Ogun state Nigeria..
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Fela's family has got a lot of history...

It's almost insane how just one family has so much history and prominence!

For those of you who never heard his music.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ks-2zBjutyU?si=yxNfeh7wUfNAhJJR

brain54:
Fela's family has got a lot of history...

It's almost insane how just one family has so much history and prominence!

He was the one who wrote the Egba anthem in 1922 and the maternal grandfather of the Nobel Laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka, too. Prof's mum was the sister of Fela's father.

I am not sure if he was the first to compose Christian hymns though, there were others like the Pharmacist T.K.E Phillips, Dr J.C Vaughan etc too about same time in Lagos and there was Bishop Ajayi Crowther even before him who died about same time he was born.

A Family filled with talent, just like Bob Marley's family.