African woman no go 'gree
She go say, she go say, "I be Lady o"
She go say, "I be Lady o"!
She go say, "I no be woman"
She go say, "Market woman na woman"
She go say, "I be Lady"
I wan tell you about Lady
I wan tell you about Lady
She go say him get power like man
She go say anything man do himself fit do
I never tell you finish
I never tell you finish
I never tell you finish
I never tell you...
She go wan make you open door for am
She go wan make man wash plate for am for kitchen
She wan salute man she go sit down for chair
She wan sit down for table before anybody
She wan sit down for table before anybody
She wan a piece of meat before anybody
She wan a piece of meat before anybody
Call am for dance, she go dance Lady dance
African woman go dance, she go dance the fire dance
African woman go dance, she go dance the fire dance
She go cook for am
She go do anything he say
But Lady no be so
But Lady no be so
But Lady no be so
Lady na master
Lady na master
Such an addictive rhythm to this song...
As for the meaning, it's quite obvious that it's spitting on women quite a bit. Some seem to think it's that he's against women being liberated, which I suppose you could find evidence for. I prefer to think of it as him spitting on the whole concept of women's liberation; think about it. It's not equality that he thinks she wants. He thinks she wants to eat, sit down, get respect before everybody else. More than anything, Fela seems to simply be against allowing women to become more dominant than him. it's not against equality; in fact, it's against the opposite inequality that we have now. What happens when women's rights go too far?
"Lady" happens. And it's a fucking GROOVE. SHE GO SAYYYY I BE LADY OHHH... He could be singing about decapitating his mother with a hacksaw and I'd be jamming to it in the dark with a strobe light.
I don't disagree that it's not against equality, but I think it's more of a mockery of African women trying to be "lady-like", like European women, ignoring their more passionate selves in order to seem more gentrified. "if you call a woman 'african woman', she's not going to agree, she's says 'I be lady, not woman'..."
I don't disagree that it's not against equality, but I think it's more of a mockery of African women trying to be "lady-like", like European women, ignoring their more passionate selves in order to seem more gentrified. "if you call a woman 'african woman', she's not going to agree, she's says 'I be lady, not woman'..."
Fela's mother was a very outspoken and well known women's rights activist and I believe part of the reason he was so politically outspoken in his music.
Fela's mother was a very outspoken and well known women's rights activist and I believe part of the reason he was so politically outspoken in his music.