He was honored posthumously on Saturday alongside Chaka Khan, Cher, Carlos Santana and Whitney Houston. The award underscores the artist’s contribution to music and as the inspiration of one of the most popular contemporary African music genres, Afrobeats. Nigerian music critics welcomed the recognition as a reflection of his enduring influence. “What the recognition means locally is the inspiration Fela has provided for over 50 years,” Joey Akan, a Nigerian music critic and founder of Afrobeats Intelligence, told The Associated Press. Fela, a saxophonist and father of Afrobeat — different from Afrobeats — known more popularly by his first name, was born in 1938 in colonial Nigeria. His music career, which spanned decades between the late 1950s and up to the 1990s across multiple countries, is a signature blend of high-octane horn, jazz, and funk with Yoruba rhythms. Fela’s fight against government corruption and Western imperialism To Nigerians, he wore many hats: a pioneering musician, an activist who was a thorn in the side of Nigeria’s successive military rulers, a cultural reference in the fight …