The Fader goes to Cape Town
A short profile of the music scene in Cape Town is dominated by white shows – with a lot of electrocentric music and flashy strobe lights.
Music
Kickin’ It With Christian Tiger School
I arrive in Braamfontein twenty minutes early, at 6pm, for a meeting with Sebastiano Zenasi (or
Toto’s Africa–The Disco Edition
Came across this nice little disco edit of Toto’s “Africa.” Since we have a running series
Afrobeat, Brazilian Style
Brazilians may have produced the first ever afrobeat.
Why Is No One Else Talking About These Musicians?
I got the chance to be part of the Redbull Basscamp in Johannesburg during October 2013.
Rap Battle of the Week on Reddit: Johannesburg’s Tumi vs Atlanta’s Ness Lee
Two weeks ago, Club Zen in downtown Johannesburg got packed to its rafters with hip-hop afficionados
The music that changed my life
The Cape Town suburb of Observatory is known for being a small bohemian enclave, providing low
Erykah Badu’s Royal Problem
Erykah Badu’s online defense of her visit to autocratic Swaziland exposed her lack of knowledge about the continent.
Hip hop and electoral politics
South Africans vote on May 2nd, 2014, the country's 5th democratic elections. Do rappers vote?
Tumi Molekane’s New Song
With no Volume to his name, it seemed almost impossible to imagine South Africa-based self-proclaimed poet/emcee
The African Hip-Hop Generation Arrives
Frantz Fanon once said: “Each generation must discover its mission, fulfill it or betray it, in relative opacity.”
The hands played by themselves
Basil Breakey's photographs serves as an important recording of South Africa jazz music in the 1960s and 1970s.
The Sonic Geography of Cartagena
The strong local identity of Colombia's most African big city is slowly being erased. But not all its artists, especially musicians, are giving up without a fight.
Jazz as Tradition in Cape Town
"Jazzing" on the Cape Flats, almost similar to salsa as developed in New York City. It's the dominant sound of parties in Cape Town.
Old Money’s mothership is here to save us all
The musical groups perhaps setting the pace for a new idea of liberation for people of African descent in the Americas.
The Expatriate
Ethiopian-American artist, Wayna, explores issues including police brutality, disenfranchisement, race and identity in her music.
Happy Africans
Pharrell Williams's pop hit, "Happy," is infectious and feel good. But what is it all about really?
Notes from the Native Yards
Cape Town hip hop duo, Ill Skillz's music documents their musical joy-ride through the good, the bad, and the nostalgic.
Lesotho’s Politics Go Pop
Lesotho’s Prime Minister and leader of the coalition government Tom Thabane has found love: ‘It is
Before And After The Disco
The self-titled debut album of Ibibio Sound Machine, features songs mostly in the southern Nigerian language of lead vocalist, Eno Williams.