If you’ve got four minutes, here’s the trailer for the highly anticipated (that’s debatable) biopic of Winnie Mandela, starring Jennifer Hudson as the title character and none other than Terrence Howard as Nelson Mandela. It looks cheap and they could at least have gotten the accents right.
This may be the most time I’ll be according this film.
This Sunday, Guineans will go to the polls in a presidential run-off contest between ex-Prime Minister Cellou Dalein Diallo and his rival Alpha Condé in what is considered their first democratic election since independence in 1958. It’s been a long road since the first round of voting in June—the run-off has been delayed several times due to allegations of electoral fraud, and to violent clashes between rival supporters and police.
Hoping for the best are several Guinean artists, including the legendary Mory Kanté. Joined by AIAC favorites, Senegal’s Awadi and Côte d’Ivoire’s Tiken Jah Fakoly, they recently got together for a jam session with a message. The song, predictably, is dope.
In which the super crew from Sierra Leone, Bajah + The Dry Eye Crew, remix Vampire Weekend and Paul Simon, who are well known, of course, for remixing (appropriating?) sounds from across the African continent. I’m a fan.
Happy Monday.
Today marks 85 days until the scheduled southern Sudan referendum for independence, the significance of which cannot be overstated. Just ask George Clooney, new special adviser on Sudan to presidents and policymakers alike.
The two-time Sexiest Man Alive notwithstanding, the next 85 days will be crucial. And while no one can predict what they will look like—yes, that also means you, Kristof—we are all certain of this: the people of southern Sudan are ready.
Junub Sudan, time to vote.
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For a brief moment this past August, the world worked itself into a frenzy over Naomi Campbell’s “hostile” turn on the witness stand at The Hague. Finally, it seemed, we had the perfect ammunition to level at the supermodel that everyone (apparently) loves to hate. Sure, we had all snickered at the stories of her various tantrums and cellphone-throwing fits of rage. Minor league stuff, really. But to go so far as to accept dirty looking pebbles blood diamonds from a dictator? The audacity!
Of course, while we were all busy pontificating, Naomi was having the last laugh. She is, after all, a supermodel.
In case you missed it, here is one the stars of the 2010 World Cup, Ghana’s Asamoah Gyan, making his debut as Baby Jet, in the video for Castro’s “African Girls.”
Despite all the bling, bubbly and booty, it has me wanting to do the Asamoah Gyan dance too.
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What’s old is new again. This time from French fashion magazine, Numéro, which manages to merge two of our favorite (fashion) trends into one spread: black babies and blackface!
I would be offended except this is completely boring and wholly unoriginal. Yawn.
Via Jezebel (h/t Jacob Mundy).
Today, Nigeria celebrates 50 years of independence. To mark the occasion,* we bring you Nigerian-British rapper JJC’s collaboration with Ghanaian-British rapper Sway, and their remix of a song that Sean recently characterized as “hip hop meets twentieth century black Atlantic identity politics.
It’s been a big year for such politics in Africa, what with the 2010 World Cup and 17 of the continent’s countries marking 50 years of independence. [Read more...]
