'Welcome to Cork': New painting brightens up South Mall

"Every fela is welcome in Cork" - that's the message on a traffic light box painting on South Mall, honouring Nigerian musician and activist Fela Kuti.

People's Republic of Cork enlisted local artist Tom Doig to paint the colourful piece, which has amassed a huge reaction on social media, with Twitter users lauding it as "outstanding" and "magnificent". 

"Every fella (and beour!) is welcome in Cork!

"The paint is hardly dry on this new South Mall traffic box but we are delighted with the big reaction to it already. 

"It features Nigeria's legendary musician Fela Kuti," People's Republic of Cork wrote on Twitter.

At the back of the traffic light box, the painting says 'Welcome to Cork' in English, Irish, Yoruba and Hausa.

The late Fela Kuti was a pioneering musician, who invented his own style of music known as Afrobeat.

He was also a human rights activist who used his music to express his beliefs.

Kuti was arrested and beaten on numerous occasions for writing lyrics that questioned the Nigerian government.