The rise of Afrobeats, has brought life from the streets across West Africa, in cities like Lagos and Accra to the centre of a black global culture. Yet, before there was Afrobeats with an ‘S’ - a sound called Afro-beat had to be invented. From the legendary Nigerian musician and freedom fighter, Fela Kuti, came an electrifying fusion of jazz, highlife and traditional West African sounds that ignited Africa’s popular music scene in the 70’s and 80’s. This short vox pop explores the historic and contemporary significance of these movements in West African popular music from the grassroots perspective of a group of creatives based in Lagos.