Comments on: Photography / Brazzaville’s Sapeurs

By: clog

clog — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 00:10:45 +0000

Ekapa: Do the Swenkas and the Sapeurs compete annually in Hillbrow? And is there a certain time of year/month/day this occurs? I ask because I am actually am quite fascinated by the Sape movement (so much so that I am working on it in my graduate work right now) and am planning on heading to South Africa for research this coming year. While I am familiar with where sapeurs hang in France, I am not very familiar with where they tend to be in South Africa. And it would be wonderful to catch a contest such as this when I am in South Africa!

By: Sean

Sean — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:45:53 +0000

liz: I made a mental note about the band.

ekapa,: you beat me to referencing the swenkas on this blog.

Al Jazeera English (my favorite channel which I can watch live on my iPhone) did a news insert on it:

By: liz

liz — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:48:44 +0000

…and mean while the veterans of african music…keep the spirit alive and well….odemba ok jazz all stars….teaching london that there is much more to black music than roots culture and r&b….check them out seun…they might be comming to a place near to you…..all the best liz

By: ekapa

ekapa — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:33:36 +0000

Sean – You know how to pick them. Great stuff as always. About 6 years ago I watched a contest between the Swenkas and Les Sapeurs in Hillbrow, Johannesburg. It was a blowout: the Swenkas in their more muted style didn’t stand a chance. This year at the same competition it was a closer contest. The Swenkas have have become more influenced by the brighter colors and the more extravagant style of Les Sapeurs. This is a trend I’ve observed in urban South African fashion over the last decade as immigrants from other parts of Africa begin to make their presence felt, despite the rampant xenophobia.

By: Geir

Geir — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 20:56:13 +0000

Great link. Love the images. Thanks!