I recently shot the short interview, below, with Niyi Okuboyejo, creative director of New York City men’s accessories brand, Post-Imperial (for a short documentary graduate class at The New School). Okuboyejo, the son of Nigerian immigrants, describes what he does as a “coup against the regime of Fashion.” Post-Imperial is a men’s accessories brand focused on ties and pocket-squares. Constantly creating for now, what sets Post-Imperial apart from other menswear brands is the vision of tomorrow. “I hardly use nostalgia to bait people,” says Okuboyejo. “I feel like a lot of menswear brands in this day in age, especially the heritage brands, try to use nostalgia to bait people into living a certain, false life or standard.” Collection IV features products treated in ‘adire’–an old and rare dying technique developed by the Yorubas in the Southwest region of Nigeria. Due to the nature of the process, each piece varies in uniqueness and individuality. Here’s the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZmioSXjyLA

Further Reading

Energy for whom?

Behind the fanfare of the Africa Climate Summit, the East African Crude Oil Pipeline shows how neocolonial extraction still drives Africa’s energy future.

The sound of revolt

On his third album, Afro-Portuguese artist Scúru Fitchádu fuses ancestral wisdom with urban revolt, turning memory and militancy into a soundtrack for resistance.

O som da revolta

No seu terceiro álbum, o artista afro-português Scúru Fitchádu funde a sabedoria ancestral com a revolta urbana, transformando memória e militância em uma trilha sonora para a resistência.

Biya forever

As Cameroon nears its presidential elections, a disintegrated opposition paves the way for the world’s oldest leader to claim a fresh mandate.

From Cornell to conscience

Hounded out of the United States for his pro-Palestine activism, Momodou Taal insists that the struggle is global, drawing strength from Malcolm X, faith, and solidarity across borders.

After the uprising

Following two years of mass protest, Kenya stands at a crossroads. A new generation of organizers is confronting an old question: how do you turn revolt into lasting change? Sungu Oyoo joins the AIAC podcast to discuss the vision of Kenya’s radical left.

Redrawing liberation

From Gaza to Africa, colonial cartography has turned land into property and people into populations to be managed. True liberation means dismantling this order, not redrawing its lines.

Who deserves the city?

Colonial urbanism cast African neighborhoods as chaotic, unplanned, and undesirable. In postcolonial Dar es Salaam, that legacy still shapes who builds, who belongs, and what the middle class fears the city becoming.