ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT - The African Mirror

Apr

05

2023

By GARHE OSIEBE, Research Fellow, Rhodes University

Timeless review: Nigerian star Davido’s new album is mostly form over substance

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

NIGERIAN Afrobeats star Davido (David Adeleke) has demonstrated himself to be a master of showboating. He is able to milk every situation to the maximum. And he did not disappoint with the recent trailer for his fourth studio album, Timeless, released on 31 March. It’s drenched with signifiers of the tragic loss of his three-year-old son in a drowning accident last year. The trailer is clear as to his resolve to get over grief and dance again, and it leaves no one in doubt about his battle readiness: If dem wan turn Goliath, I be David for life! Davido Music…

Apr

05

2023

By EDITH MAGAK, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Goodbye Beethoven: Compose Yourself Lab is putting the rhythm of Africa in Nature documentaries

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

WHILE the ingredients to a great nature documentary may vary, some key elements include stunning cinematography, great storytelling - and a soundtrack that complements the visuals. For Pragna Parsotam-Kok, a South African storyteller and a National Geographic Explorer, that means the soundtrack must perfectly match the film's setting. "There are all these beautiful African wildlife and nature documentaries that we watch, but all the music that you hear is Beethoven and 15-piece orchestras playing in the background, and it doesn't resonate with the lion that's chasing the buck across the African plain," said Parsotam-Kok. NEWF cofounder and National Geographic Explorer…

Apr

05

2023

By The African Mirror

Photo Feature: The drawings of Nigerian artist Joshua Akugbe

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

NIGERIAN charcoal artist Joshua Osariemen Akugbe shares his journey as an artist and his creative process. Joshua Osariemen Akugbe, also known as JJOSH_ARTZ, is a 23 years old artist based in Benin City, Edo state, Nigeria. "I've been drawing since I was little. I found myself drawing on my school books and any scrap of paper that I could find. I can say I've been drawing since birth." He primarily renders his portraits with charcoal, occasionally incorporating other media like pen and sometimes pencil. "I've been disabled from birth, which positively and negatively influences my work. Negatively because I can't…

Apr

04

2023

By The African Mirror

Amapiano Awards: South Africa’s dance music scene spreads its joy across the world

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

IN 2019 amapiano began to dominate South Africa’s dance floors to such an extent that, by 2021, the first South African Amapiano Awards were held to mark the rise of the country’s most infectious new music export. In 2022, the South African dance music genre continued to expand its galloping worldwide reach. The annual awards are now an established event in South Africa’s music calendar. Author SANYA OSHA, Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Humanities in Africa, University of Cape Town Amapiano is a soulful mix of grooves, sonic textures and moods that can be by turns hectic, smooth, melodic or…

Mar

30

2023

By The African Mirror

The astonishing life and music of Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou, the Ethiopian nun who’s died at 99

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

AS the Ethiopian pianist Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou approached the age of 100, fans and music critics from the US to Ethiopia, Israel to Europe have been eagerly rediscovering her work. But the Addis Ababa-born pianist, who has died at the age of 99, has been a source of fascination to connoisseurs. Especially after a disc in the iconic Ethiopiques series (issued by Buda Musique) was dedicated to her work in 2006. Author ILANA WEBSTER-KOGEN, Reader, SOAS, University of London The classically trained musician was associated with the jazz genre and spent her life in a convent. She will remain in…

Mar

29

2023

By The African Mirror

Africa music revenues record over 30% growth

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

BIRD STORY AGENCY THE viral nature of African tunes is not only creating a broader audience for African artists but also unleashing an unprecedented revenue boom. The fastest-growing market region in 2022 was Sub-Saharan Africa, according to a new report. Growth in the region, which recorded a 34.7% rise in music sales, was largely driven by a booming music market in South Africa, where sales were up by more than 30% year-on-year. This is according to a report by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), which represents over 8000 record company members worldwide, including all three major labels,…

Mar

24

2023

By The African Mirror

Bowscapes review: album celebrates new traditions in South Africa’s ancient bow music

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

MUSICAL bows are among the oldest instruments in southern Africa. Musicologists think the “ping” a bowstring makes when an arrow is released inspired early hunters (as far back as the Khoi and San nations) to use it for music-making in ritual and, later, other contexts. Author GWEN ANSELL, Associate of the Gordon Institute for Business Science, University of Pretoria The passing, in 2022, of South Africa’s bow virtuoso Latozi “Madosini” Mpahleni reminded South Africans of traditional bow music’s significance in the region’s intangible cultural heritage. When you pluck, strike or stroke the string of a musical bow, you get not…

Mar

29

2023

By The African Mirror

Ghana’s plan for a grand new national cathedral is controversial – but will it attract pilgrims and tourists?

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

FREDERICK DAYOUR and FRANCIS KOFI ESSEL THE building of Ghana’s spectacular $400 million national cathedral designed by famed architect David Adjaye has stalled amid an economic crisis. The plan has drawn sharp public criticism but the president says it will be a significant tourist attraction and should go ahead. We asked two experts: Frederick Dayour heads his university’s department of tourism and hospitality where Francis Kofi Essel lectures in tourism. Essel is also a registered tour guide with intimate knowledge of Ghana’s religious sites and their tourism potential. What will be on the proposed new site and who will visit…

Mar

29

2023

By The African Mirror

The world’s first Islamic art biennale shines a light on African artists

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

THE inaugural Islamic Arts Biennale is underway in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. (Biennales are large and prestigious international art exhibitions held every two years.) This important new event for the Muslim world features numerous African artists. And the biennale’s artistic director is Sumayya Vally, a South African architecture professor and principal of Counterspace design studio. A rising star in the art and architecture worlds, Vally was intent on creating the biennale to connect with the diverse experiences of being Muslim through ritual, practices and philosophies. The Conversation Africa asked her five questions about the biennale. Author SUMAYYA VALLY, Honorary Professor of…

Mar

28

2023

By The African Mirror

Gloria Bosman: a personal reflection on the loss of a South African jazz great

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

WE have no idea what we have just lost. None. Prolific singer, composer and educator Gloria Bosman, who passed away on 14 March 2023, was someone I could only describe as South Africa’s most interactive artistic archive. Interactive not because she housed so much knowledge about the unique relationship between music and South Africans as a people, but also because she transmitted this knowledge to others at every opportunity. If you ever found yourself in the same room with Gloria, you were in for a lesson of a lifetime. Author NOMFUNDO XALUVA, Senior Lecturer, South African College of Music, University…