Limbs in a Potion

DJ Sawa from Ghana, Supremos from Angola, and Irish-Nigerian Rejjie Snow, are part of Weekend Music Break, no. 30.

Y'en a Marre in Madrid

Once again, demonstrating Azonto’s global reach, the Azonto London Allstars conquer a myriad of urban landscapes with their indefatigable dance moves to the beat of a mix by DJ Sawa.

Next, with hair fit for the most flamboyant players in the African Cup of Nations, we’ve got Supremos with their video for “Namorado Cola.”

Dublin native Rejjie Snow (formerly Lecs Luther) who is reportedly half-Nigerian, has just dropped a new track called “Lost in Empathy“. With a voice oddly like that of Tyler the Creator, Rejjie, dressed in the video as a “far derrig,” spits about the tribulations albinos endure in some countries where their body parts are used as traditional remedies.

Swimming in the ocean

swimming in the ocean, vanilla face,

candy floss, limbs in a potion.

We can’t wait for ngoni legend Bassekou Kouyate’s new record to drop in early March. The record was recorded in Bamako last year just as the country’s political situation began to deteriorate. Here’s a sneak peek of what will be known as “Jama Ko.”

Because we know that fashion is circular, recycling and reimagining styles of the past, this new banging kuduro jam from Angola’s Da Magical proves that it is officially cool again to look like Milli Vanilli.

Here’s one we missed late last year: Gato Preto (Germany via Portugal via Mozambique and Ghana) worked with MC Zulu on “Musica Di Gato Preto.”

From Harare (“H-Town”, via Berlin), there’s also a new video for Zimbabwean rapper Synik.

And if you were wondering whether the Senegalese Y’en a Marre coalition was still kicking it in Dakar, here’s a 45 minutes concert recently taped at the Place de L’Obélisque, celebrating the movement’s second anniversary. (Ht NomadicWax.) Sound and image recording quality isn’t the best, but you’ll get the message.

Further Reading

On Safari

On our year-end publishing break, we reflect on how 2024’s contradictions reveal a fractured world grappling with inequality, digital activism, and the blurred lines between action and spectacle.

Rebuilding Algeria’s oceans

Grassroots activists and marine scientists in Algeria are building artificial reefs to restore biodiversity and sustain fishing communities, but scaling up requires more than passion—it needs institutional support and political will.

Ibaaku’s space race

Through Afro-futurist soundscapes blending tradition and innovation, Ibaaku’s new album, ‘Joola Jazz,’ reshapes Dakar’s cultural rhythm and challenges the legacy of Négritude.

An allegiance to abusers

This weekend, Chris Brown will perform two sold-out concerts in South Africa. His relationship to the country reveals the twisted dynamic between a black American artist with a track record of violence and a country happy to receive him.

Shell’s exit scam

Shell’s so-called divestment from Nigeria’s Niger Delta is a calculated move to evade accountability, leaving behind both environmental and economic devastation.

Africa’s sibling rivalry

Nigeria and South Africa have a fraught relationship marked by xenophobia, economic competition, and cultural exchange. The Nigerian Scam are joined by Khanya Mtshali to discuss the dynamics shaping these tensions on the AIAC podcast.

The price of power

Ghana’s election has brought another handover between the country’s two main parties. Yet behind the scenes lies a flawed system where wealth can buy political office.

Beats of defiance

From the streets of Khartoum to exile abroad, Sudanese hip-hop artists have turned music into a powerful tool for protest, resilience, and the preservation of collective memory.