Weekend Music Break No.107 – French presidential election edition

Paris, even though I’ve never lived there, has perhaps been more important in my formation as a DJ than any other city (ok maybe New York is tied). Its diverse immigrant communities have created a rich cultural mix, the impact of which has spread across the globe. For example, without France’s African communities, the global Afropop (Afrobeats) industry from Lagos to Johannesburg wouldn’t have the reach or aesthetic it touts today. Standing on the front lines of the global battle against European supremacy, and redefining what belonging means in the global North in general, I believe we all owe France’s immigrant communities a deep debt.

This playlist is dedicated to all my French immigrant whatever generation brothers and sisters living up and down the country. My thoughts and heart are with you this weekend.

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.