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Femi Kuti—son of the Nigerian afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti—first burst on the international scene back in the 1990s, as a brash, young upstart determined to keep the legacy of afrobeat music alive after his father's passing in 1997.

Since then Femi has distinguished himself with relentless touring and a series of acclaimed studio albums and live releases, including 1999's Shoki Shoki, 2001's Fight To Win and 2005's Live at the Shrine—which also included a DVD that documented his famous "Sunday Jumps" at his nightclub in Lagos, Nigeria.

But it's been seven long years since Femi last released an album of all-new material—a sad fact that Femi rectified earlier this month with the release of his long-awaited album Day By Day. Nat Geo Music took the opportunity to ring Femi up while on tour in Paris, and talk about Day By Day, his father's legacy, and his own life in the vanguard of afrobeat.

Nat Geo Music: So what have you been doing with yourself for the last seven years?

Femi Kuti: I've been keeping very busy. You know we released the Live at the Shrine DVD in that time and we're always touring in Europe and America… playing festivals and those kinds of things. And of course playing the Shrine and maintaining it… that's an ongoing struggle… a very big battle just to cover our operating costs. You know sometimes people come to the Shrine and get very happy, and then they start throwing bottles and chairs… and those chairs have to be replaced. It's not cheap… [laughs]

I heard you were also teaching yourself trumpet and piano in that time, too…

That's correct… The trumpet was actually my first instrument, but I switched to the saxophone very early and never really learned it properly. So I went back to the woodshed and started from the beginning. The piano is so important for composing and arranging, I knew the basics, but I needed more if my music is going to keep growing…

Did learning these two instruments have any impact on recording the new album?

I think the trumpet makes my music calmer, more mature… or maybe that's how I am now, and the trumpet helps me realize that. When I think of the trumpet, I think of Miles Davis and that cool attitude, you know? To me the sax is hot, and the sound is hotheaded, but the trumpet is calm and steady.

It sounds like you've matured, too.

Of course. I started playing in my father's band when I was 16. I started recording my own music when I was in my 30s. Now I'm 46. I have a different perspective now than when I was 16 or when I was 30. And that perspective influences how I make music. Back then my sound was more aggressive, because I was much angrier. Now I think my sound is more mature, because I'm more reflective.

And yet you've still got some very strong political statements on this record… "Democrazy", "Tension Grip Africa", "They Will Run" …

Correct. It's still an afrobeat record, and politics is always part of that. But I think my views on politics are more sophisticated now. I don't get hot and lose my cool when I see injustice and suffering and corruption anymore. Now I ask questions and research to see who is ultimately responsible for these things. Then I focus my anger on the ones who are truly responsible. I can't waste my energy on the minor criminals when it's the big bosses who really pull the strings. With research I understand the role of America, Europe and China in Africa.

Can you give me an example?

Take the situation in Congo, for instance. What is driving the civil war there? It is easy to blame the warlords – and they deserve their share of the blame, of course. But where do they get their weapons from, and where do they get their money to purchase their weapons? When you ask these questions and you dig deeper into the situation you learn that Congo has a lot of important mineral wealth. Strategic minerals like cobalt, that is used in every mobile phone on the planet. The demand for cobalt for mobile phones in the developed world fuels civil war in Congo. Sudan is another example. China is fueling the problems there because of oil. And if you go back to the Congo and look at history, you can see it was the same thing in the 1960s – the CIA had Patrice Lumumba assassinated because Congo has so many important minerals like uranium.

Like "conflict diamonds" in Liberia and Sierra Leone…

Exactly. These are wars for Africa's resources being funded by the developed world. The governments want to claim they are innocent, but they are dependent on African resources and can't afford to pay what they're really worth. They need the war in Congo, they need the war in Sierra Leone. If Africa unites, they can't afford it. So they find new ways to steal them. That's all colonialism is – organized theft. In the 1960s Africa traded colonialism for neo-colonialism, but it's the same shit. It's just an upgrade to a new gang of thieves – Colonialism 2.0.

You sound more like your father all the time…

[laughs] Thank you – that's a big compliment, you know.

Do you think these things will change now that America has a President with African roots?

I hope so, but that's asking a lot. I don't know if you can ask one man to change a system that's been in place for so long. I think expectations for Obama are very high… It's a very big job, and he has to have the nation behind him. But I was really pleased to see that an overwhelming majority in America would vote for a black man. It makes me very happy to see that America could change so much. I couldn't even imagine such a thing back in the '80s or '90s.

What's the feeling towards Obama in Nigeria right now?

You know I wasn't in Lagos on election night. I was in Europe touring. But I'm told that I missed a very big party… [laughs]

So let's get back to Day By Day for a minute – I understand that your son sang on the album?

That's right. My son Made sang the lead on "One Two". He's 13 now, but he's been doing this since he was five years old.

So the next generation of the Kuti dynasty is already being groomed?

Yes, the royal bloodline is intact. [laughs] No, but to be serious it is one of the greatest feelings a father can feel. I am so very proud of him. I look forward to being an old man one day and seeing his concerts. It's a difficult balance, though… I don't take him on tour with me anymore because I don't want to mess up his childhood. I used to take him on tour until his classes became too difficult. Education first!

Speaking of dynasties, how is your relationship with your half-brother Seun these days?

It's very good now. It's been very good since 2006.

Do you think that the release of Seun's debut album last year was kind of a spur that helped you complete your new album?

Not at all. There is no rivalry between us. What we do is separate, but we have a lot of mutual respect. For instance, he has his nights at the Shrine and I have mine. We each have complete freedom to do what we want with our music and our careers.

Do you think you'll ever record together?

That's a good question. I don't know the answer to that. I think maybe in the future, yes, but right now we're both focusing on our own careers. We did just play together at the same festival here at the Shrine in October. We had between 20,000 and 30,000 people show up for a memorial festival for my father. We hosted the Africa Express tour as part of the festival and had Baaba Maal, Damon Albarn, Tony Allen, Amadou and Mariam. It was very successful.

When you first started, you could count the number of Afrobeat artists on one hand. Now there are dozens and dozens. Do you feel like you're more liberated to make your own music now that your father's legacy is assured?

I don't really think about it that way, but there is something to what you're saying. Maybe this is part of the creative freedom I'm feeling now. But I've always taken my own route with the music. There's probably as much jazz on this record as there is Afrobeat, but that's nothing new for me. I never wanted to be a revivalist. I always wanted to take the music further.

What's it like for you to see Afrobeat continue to grow?

It's amazing, really. There are so many groups playing Afrobeat now all over the world… Antibalas, Aphrodesia… I just heard a group from Israel that was very, very good… Every week there's something in the news about Fela, we've had museum exhibits and books and now this summer a musical on Broadway. I expect that in 10 years time that Afrobeat will be a distinct genre just like reggae or salsa.

You know, I always expected this, even when I was a boy. In the 1980s Miles Davis said that Fela was the future of music. My father was a great man, musically, politically, socially – he was a kind of genius. We all know this now. But I can also remember how he had to struggle and how many people tried to stop him and silence him. I can remember how so many people expected his music to die with him.

How does it feel to see my father's music continue to grow? For me, it feels like justice.