British actor, Andrew Garfield, has revealed that the music of late Nigerian Afrobeat pioneer, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, inspired aspects of his portrayal of Spider-Man, particularly the character’s movements and sense of justice.
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Fela Anikulapo-Kuti
Garfield made the disclosure in a video posted on YouTube by the Track-star-show, titled “Testing Andrew Garfield’s Music Knowledge” , cited by our correspondent on Tuesday.
The actor said he created playlists for the characters he played and began listening to Fela’s music when he first took on the role of Spider-Man, adding that the musician’s sound and rhythm helped him connect with the character physically and emotionally.
“I create a playlist for every character I play, which is a lovely fun thing to do anyway. So I started listening to Fela Kuti when I first got Spider-Man, and there was something about the sound and the rhythm that was really useful to me for that character,” he said.
Garfield explained that Fela’s revolutionary background and music helped him explore the character’s physicality and commitment to justice.
“There was something about suddenly being in touch with the body, but also justice-seeking, because obviously he was a revolutionary figure,” he said.
He added that the movements he adopted while playing Spider-Man were partly influenced by the Nigerian musician’s music.
“And the way that I moved in that film, in the suit, has some inspiration from Fela and his music,” Garfield stated.
The actor said he was drawn to the power conveyed through Fela’s music and wanted to reflect some of that energy in his portrayal of the superhero.
“I was like, I don’t know what it is about this guy’s power that I want to somehow reflect in this guy’s power,” he said.
The song played during the segment was Fela’s “Water No Get Enemy” , a track from his 1975 album “Expensive Shit”
