Name Death & Text
Achille Mbembe unpicks the assassination, disfigurement, and attempted degrading of Ruben Um Nyobè. Ruben Um Nyobè, Secretary General of the CPU (Cameroonian Peoples Union), was shot dead on September 13, 1958, in the early afternoon, by French troops dispatched to put an end to a rebellion sweeping the Sanaga-Maritime region since 1955 – a rebellion fomented by the CPU. His death came seconds only […]
Damballah
Audio/visuals from AfroSonics-sis, Harmony Holiday, originally produced for Fence Books‘ podcast series. “Loose Tracklist” Weldon Irvine Nancy Dupree Fred Moten Wu-tang John Coltrane Gil Scott Heron J Dilla Dexter Gordon Moodyman Amiri Baraka Ras Baraka L Boogie Michael Harper Theo Parrish Sarah Webster Fabio Actress Bill Gunn David Henderson Percy Johnson Frank O’Hara Nico Brother Ah With thanks […]
Dance of the Infidels presents: Nollywood Confidential
starring: Zeb Ejiro, Ajoke Jacobs, Tunde Kelani, and Aquila Njamah Andy learned it the hard way—selling your soul to the devil stinks. He didn’t mean for his wife to be killed in a satanic sacrifice. He just wanted to live the high life—get a girlfriend, a nice house, and a car (or two—a Mercedes and […]
Authority Stealing: The business of crime writing in Kenya, India and Nigeria
Kenya In pursuit of some scriptwriter talent, Billy Kahora discovers that academic mantras, conservative world views and hand-me down observations stunt a rendering of the true grit that must be lived to be imagined in a Nairobi noir. ‘The cinema like the detective story, makes it possible to experience without danger all the […]
10 Questions For Mukoma Wa Ngugi
A Beautiful Blonde is Dead. This image is the spark that ignites the international crime drama Nairobi Heat, the debut novel by acclaimed Kenyan writer Mukoma wa Ngugi. From the evocative title of the first chapter to the last line readers are forced to grapple with the touchy subjects of race, class, and the sometimes […]