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Afrobeat pioneer Tony Allen dies aged 79 | |
(32 minutes later) | |
Nigerian pioneering drummer Tony Allen, a co-founder of the Afrobeat musical genre, died in Paris on Thursday aged 79, his manager says. | |
"We don't know the exact cause of death," Eric Trosset told AFP, adding it was not linked to the coronavirus. | |
Allen was the drummer and musical director of musician Fela Kuti's famous band Africa '70 in the 1960-70s. | |
Fela, who died in 1997, once said that "without Tony Allen, there would be no Afrobeat". | |
He has also been described by UK musician Brian Eno as "perhaps the greatest drummer who has ever lived". | |
Allen's career and life story were documented in his 2013 autobiography Tony Allen: Master Drummer of Afrobeat, | |
Afrobeat combines elements of West Africa's fuji music and highlife styles with American funk and jazz. |