As far back as 1995, SadraK (a member of Negrissim’) stood out as a musician whose experimental lyrics and wordplay inspired a whole generation, and Negrissim’s album Appelle Ta Grand-Mère, released in 2000 solidified the group’s position as pioneers of…
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The Afro-Anarchist’s Guide to Kendrick Lamar’s ‘To Pimp a Butterfly’
Kangsen Feka Wakai http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aShfolR6w8 1. You’ve recently resigned yourself to the fact that at a certain point in a rapper’s career, usually when he/she is already steering the yacht of mainstream success after having surmounted the crab-infested grime of the…
Eka Christa and the New School of Cameroonian Cinema
Dzekashu MacViban profiles Eka Christa, showing how her style eschews stereotypical narratives and goes for stories which are simple, delirious, funny, and highly reflective of the Cameroonian society.
Editorial Internships at Bakwa
Bakwa (a magazine of cultural criticism) is accepting applications from undergrads and graduates for its editorial internship program. Interns work on a part-time, unpaid basis for three to five months and receive practical experience in critical reading and analysis, research,…
Afritude
The excerpt below, from Monique Kwachou’s short story “Afritude” [originally published in the Caine Prize anthology To See the Mountain and other stories] is part of #100DaysofAfricanReads (curated by @SisterKilljoy). The story relates how Elizabeth’s life changes the day she…
[Short Review] The Chairman of Nigerian Hip Hop
Dzekashu MacViban A skit which is as outrageous as it is hilarious introduces us to MI’s third album, The Chairman, setting the tone for the album’s treatment of its main thematic concern, which is overcoming the travails one encounters…
Le Blanc d’Eyenga 2 and the Burden of a Sequel
Dzekashu MacViban One of the most anticipated movie sequels in Cameroon perhaps delivers as much as it falls short. Thierry Ntamack (middle) The desire to leave Cameroon for greener pastures, an issue which is ingeniously documented in the…
From Afrocentrism to Afropolitanism: Subcultural Journeys in Minna Salami’s Poetry
Dzekashu MacViban Cache by Minna Salami: Weedmark Publishing; 2013, ISBN-13: 978-1-291-31161-7. When Nigerian-Swedish writer Minna Salami released a slim collection of poetry on Valentine’s day last year, I immediately recalled that I’d read her poems sometime in 2010 on the…
The Joys of Somali Poetry: the Beauteous Melancholy of Warsan Shire’s Poetry
Dzekashu MacViban Warsan Shire at the Kwani? 2012 Literary Festival. Photo credit: Paul Munene & Kwani Trust 2012 With the clarity of retrospection, when I look back at the 2012 Kwani? Literary Festival which took place in Nairobi, I realize…
BrymO’s Lagosian fiction in Merchants, Dealers & Slaves
Serubiri Moses [Music Review] Reading BrymO’s Lagosian fiction in Merchants, Dealers & Slaves Serubiri Moses Merchants, Dealers & Slaves evokes the confident move of the artist defining their own journey as a songwriter and performer. This is what one gathers…
