How not to write about Duke Ellington
Everything that is wrong with Adam Gopnik's New Yorker essay on Ellington (and the Beatles).
Culture
The Black Panther
Before Eusebio, it was unthinkable for a European national team to be dominated by or build around players of African origin.
The Last Rehearsal
A very subjective list of the top ten films of 2013.
Our Favorite Album of 2013
I’ve had Shane Cooper’s “Oscillations” in my possession for the past four months. From the onset, it
The monologue of her silence
The Senegalese director, Khady Sylla, made films out of the impossible and the untranslatable.
Facepalm: Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore’s “Africa”
We have no illusions about Sandler having a responsibility to create smart cinema.
Vintage Cru
The Johannesburg-based crew challenges the status quo in South Africa with dance.
A short film about African migrants in Barcelona
How does one hold on to a deeply rooted sense of self, a cultural identity, and make new paths to adapt and make new forms of home?
Somali first, Muslim second, gay third
The melodic world alive in the work of Somali author Diriye Osman.
An interview with Ghanaian artist Sarkodie in the lead-up to his new album
Few rappers on the continent have been as prolific as Sarkodie this year. The Ghanaian emcee
A wayward couple in Dakar
Martin Scorsese digitally restores Djibril Diop Mambéty’s masterpiece Touki Bouki.
The donkey that carried the cloud on its back
A Kenyan film asks in order to evolve, what part of ourselves do we keep and what part do we leave behind.
South African Jazz for Nelson Mandela
A playlist of jazz tunes dedicated to South Africa's first democratically elected president, Nelson Mandela.
The Woolworths ‘Tribute’ to Nelson Mandela
Are corporate entities really well intentioned in celebrating Mandela the freedom fighter or are they merely using these tributes to position their brands on the right side of history?
Windhoek characters
Netta Kornberg watch film trailers so you don't have to: This time, Namibian short films are the focus of her #TrailerTakedown.
We embarrassed Nelson Mandela
For the author, watching memorials for Mandela, South Africans have lost their ability to generate theater, the theater of the mass event.
The problem with the Hollywood Mandelas
Hollywood films about Nelson Mandela separates him from the movement that produced him. The fact is, movements made Mandelas, not the other way around.
Four Women Musicians from Niger
Safiath, ZM, Habsou Garba and Fati Mariko: producing diverse sounds in rap, hip-hop and soul.
Miley Cyrus has Nigerian parents
Parody performers, the Naija Boyz, take on Miley Cyrus' "Wrecking Ball." It is unclear what they're trying to say.
A Brief Cinematic Guide to ‘Mother of George’
The film is a complex and nuanced exploration of the questions and limits of what one will do for love, told by an unorthodox filmmaker.