LIFESTYLE - The African Mirror

Apr

04

2025

Tunisia’s rap revolution: 5 women who are redefining hip-hop

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

WOMEN rappers were not really a feature of Tunisia’s typically masculine and chauvinist hip-hop scene until the revolution that overthrew Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali in 2011. Now there are several politically conscious female voices rising in the rap scene. Gender studies scholar Jyhene Kebsi has published a research paper on how their lyrics highlight the multiple inequalities that women in Tunisia – and the world – must overcome. How have male Tunisian rappers generally treated women in their songs and videos? The gender politics of Tunisian men’s rap is complex, but we can talk about one of its tendencies. Although…

Mar

26

2025

By SETH ONYANGO, BIRD STORY AGENCY

Recorded music revenue in Africa swells more than 22% on strong digital demand

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

MUSIC revenue across Africa surged over 22% in 2024, surpassing the $100 million threshold, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). Earnings were fuelled by subscription streaming, making Africa one of the fastest-growing music markets globally. The report's Africa figures exclude North Africa, the addition of which would have boosted the continent’s reported total revenues well beyond the US$110 million highlighted in the IFPI's Global Music Report 2025. Global Music Report 2025 numbers show Africa’s revenue growth considerably outpaced the global average of 4.8%. Streaming accounted for most of the continent's revenue growth as mobile internet penetration…

Mar

24

2025

By TINASHE MUSHAKAVANHU

African safaris and colonial nightmares: a visit to artist Roger Ballen’s latest show

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

BORN in the US, Roger Ballen, the internationally renowned photographer, has lived in South Africa since the 1970s. He gained a cult following for his grotesque, surreal images of white poverty, captured on the rural fringes during apartheid. His work exposed not only the exploitation and marginalisation of his subjects but also the reality of apartheid’s failure to uplift even its privileged white minority. Over time, Ballen’s practice has expanded beyond photography into a hybrid realm of exhibition, installation and performance. His new Johannesburg space, the Inside Out Centre for the Arts, serves as a theatre for this experimentation. The…

Mar

22

2025

By The African Mirror

MultiChoice integrates podcast content into TV programming, reversing viewership decline

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

MULTICHOICESA has launched a strategic initiative to incorporate popular South African podcasts into its television programming, successfully attracting younger viewers and reversing subscription cancellations. The media company identified an 18% decline in viewership among the under-35 demographic, prompting an innovation to bring established digital voices to traditional television platforms. The initiative features prominent South African podcast creators including MacG's "Podcast and Chill" and several others who have built substantial digital followings without traditional media infrastructure. Industry reaction was initially mixed. Some veterans dismissed it as desperate, while digital content creators debated whether joining television would compromise their independence.." MultiChoice adapted…

Mar

22

2025

By XOLISA GUZULA and ATHAMBILE MASOLA

What is apartheid? New book for young readers explains South Africa’s racist system

LITERATURE

A new book, Together Apart: The Story of Living in Apartheid, has just been published in South Africa. Intended for young people but speaking to readers of all ages, the book explores what it was like living through this dark and racist period of segregation. It’s laden with graphics, illustrations and comic book-styled information. We asked its authors – literacies scholar Xolisa Guzula and historian Athambile Masola – more about their project. What is apartheid and how did it fit into the country’s history? Apartheid (an Afrikaans word which means “setting apart”) was a set of laws introduced by a…

Mar

21

2025

By JESSICA FALCONI

Mozambique’s long struggle to build a nation – four novels that tell the story

LITERATURE

MOZAMBIQUE’S long history of nation-building is still unfinished. The country is still pursuing a cohesive national identity, stable institutions, and economic foundations that would unify diverse groups. This is crucial to foster harmony and political stability. Nation-building in Mozambique dates back to the last decades of Portuguese colonial rule, in the 1960s. At this time, it was mainly driven by resistance movements and anti-colonial struggles. As nationalist groups emerged, they aimed to unify diverse ethnic groups and overthrow colonial powers. A sense of shared identity was fostered through the fight for independence. But after independence in 1975, new challenges to…

Mar

12

2025

By DARIA TUNCA

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s new book Dream Count explores love in all its complicated messiness

LITERATURE

AWARD-WINNING Nigerian novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s new novel Dream Count has landed. It’s been over a decade since Adichie published her previous novel, Americanah, following on global successes for Half of a Yellow Sun and Purple Hibiscus. Adichie’s work is widely studied by academics, not least African literature scholar Daria Tunca. She told us what Dream Count is about and whether it’s worth reading. What’s the story about? Dream Count tells the intersecting stories of four African women. The novel recounts the characters’ hopes, dreams and struggles, interweaving flashbacks from their childhood and earlier adulthood with episodes set in the…

Mar

11

2025

By LINDSAY O'NEILL

The incredible journey of two princes from Mozambique whose lives were upended by the slave trade

LITERATURE

A new book called The Two Princes of Mpfumo tells the fascinating story of a pair of royals from Mozambique in southern Africa whose lives were thrown into chaos by the transatlantic slave trade. We asked historian Lindsay O'Neill three questions about her book. What is the story of the princes? Prince James and Prince John came from Mpfumo, one kingdom among many that dotted the shores of modern-day Maputo Bay, where the capital of Mozambique now stands. Here, in the 1700s, no Europeans held sway. African kingdoms did, and those kingdoms fought constantly. Mpfumo had once been a power…

Mar

04

2025

By HARRIETTE RICHARDS; ARI MATTES; GREGORY CAMP; STUART RICHARDS and TOM CLARK

From the fashion to the speeches to the music, this was an Oscars of few surprises. 5 experts break it down

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

IN a year with few surprises in the awards categories, there was also a dearth of surprises on the red carpet. The sartorial themes included sparkling metallics, coloured menswear and bows, bows and more bows. Metallic gowns that resemble the Oscar statue are a familiar sight at the Academy Awards and this year was no different. Some of the standouts included best actress nominee Demi Moore in a magnificently glittering silver Armani Privé gown, Selena Gomez in a custom Ralph Lauren encrusted with 16,000 individual blush-toned jewel teardrops, and Emma Stone in a minimalist Louis Vuitton sheath covered in iridescent…

Mar

04

2025

By DICKSON ADOM

What are the origins of the Asante’s famous kente cloth? I traced its history to find out`

BEAUTY AND FASHION

KENTE is a prestigious royal cloth of Ghana’s Asante people, part of their historical and cultural heritage. But there’s a debate about where it originated: the Bonwire community or the Adanwomase community in the Ashanti Region. The Conversation Africa spoke to African art and culture researcher Dickson Adom about the origins of this world-famous textile. What is Asante kente and why is it unique? Asante kente is a cloth that embodies the cultural heritage and history of the Asante people. The Asantes are a major ethnic group in Ghana with a history dating back centuries. The cloth is known for…