Grammy-winning musician Burna Boy gathered with his family in Lagos on Sunday, June 7, 2026, to celebrate the 90th birthday of his maternal grandfather, the legendary music critic and broadcaster Pa Benson Idonije.
The private get-together brought together key players from the Nigerian arts scene to celebrate a career that had a direct impact on the roots of modern popular music.
Burna Boy was at the celebration with his parents, Bose and Samuel Ogulu, and Fela Kuti’s first daughter, Yeni Kuti. It was a rare gathering for families with more than six decades of common history in the Nigerian entertainment industry. Burna Boy told a family reception how his grandfather was instrumental to his career journey, and said he is “forever indebted” to the early training and record collections he was exposed to growing up under Idonije’s care.
Beyond his family ties, Idonije has a unique place in the history of West African music. In the mid-1960s he was the first manager of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, managing the early years of the Koola Lobitos band and helping to develop the touring and presentation structures that would ultimately give rise to Afrobeat.
He later joined the broadcasting industry and was part of the team that founded Radio Nigeria 2 in 1977. His programmes introduced rural and urban listeners to global jazz and highlife.
The Ogulu family has not announced any upcoming public events to follow the private dinner but music archivists in Lagos confirm discussions are underway to digitise Idonije’s private journals and early radio scripts for public release later this year.
