LIFESTYLE - The African Mirror

Feb

23

2021

Not one more time: Dance music duo Daft Punk split

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

FRENCH electronic music band Daft Punk have announced they are splitting up, industry title Variety quoted their publicist as saying on Monday, ending a 28-year collaboration that spawned dance hits including "Around the World" and "One More Time." The group, known for performing while dressed as robots in metallic helmets, posted a video on YouTube entitled "Epilogue," with an image that flashed on screen bearing the dates 1993-2021. Variety quoted their publicist, Kathryn Frazier, as saying they had split, but without providing details. Frazier's firm did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Daft Punk were a duo of…

Jul

21

2021

By The African Mirror

Star Black designer Virgil Abloh gets bigger role at LVMH

BEAUTY AND FASHION

MIMOSA SPENCER VIRGIL Abloh, fashion's highest-profile Black designer, is getting a bigger role within French luxury group LVMH, which is taking a majority stake in his Off-White streetwear label. Abloh, 40, a U.S. national who also works as a DJ and visual artist, was hired by LVMH in March 2018 to create menswear collections for Louis Vuitton, the luxury giant's biggest revenue driver. He will continue in that role while also working with the group to launch new brands and partner with existing ones in a variety of sectors beyond fashion, the company said on Tuesday. His arrival at LVMH…

Feb

23

2021

By The African Mirror

The Elsa Majimbo, Valentino collaboration

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER SOCIAL Star Elsa Majimbo has secured another “bag”, this time with top Italian brand Valentino. Valentino announced on Twitter that they were to collaborate on a ‘special project’ with Majimbo and that the details on the collection would be released soon. “Valentino is proud to announce a special project with writer, actor and comedian Elsa Majimbo (@ElsaAngel19), culminating into a soon-to-be-released collaboration,” the fashion house announced on its social pages. The 19 year-old comedian took to her own social pages to announce the news. “I am SO proud and excited to announce my entry into high fashion…

Feb

22

2021

By The African Mirror

The South African play that’s tackling the scourge of the street drug whoonga

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

THE drug whoonga has plagued South African communities for at least a decade, yet only gained significant public attention when it appeared more visibly in the inner-city and surrounding suburbs of Durban, the major city in the country’s KwaZulu-Natal province. DYLAN MCGARRY, Senior Researcher in Educational Sociology at the Environmental Learning Research Centre, Rhodes University Also known as nyaope, whoonga is a street concoction of B-grade heroin, rat-poison (strychnine) and various other chemical components. It’s most commonly sprinkled into a hand-rolled cigarette and is easily accessible and sold more cheaply than other street drugs. Withdrawal, known as “arosta”, is reported…

Jul

17

2021

By The African Mirror

Celebrating African Comedians

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

IRENE WANJIRU THEY say 'laughter is the best medicine but if you laugh for no reason, then you need medicine!' Comedians in Africa have tickled millions with their jokes, building a niche for themselves, with some becoming overnight celebrity millionaires. Among them are a growing number of rib-cracking women... The face of comedy is changing in Africa. Populations in a majority of African countries are proud of their national comedians, whether they are on TV, radio or online. ore and more people are earning a living from it. Satirical puppet and cartoon shows have broken new ground and significantly, more…

Apr

05

2021

By The African Mirror

Beyoncé is a double denim queen

BEAUTY AND FASHION

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER BEYONCÉ is enjoying her time off from being a supreme performer, taking advantage of the Covid-19 pandemic by push her role as a fashion queen. The R&B singer’s social media presence has been a lot more visible since the USA went into its varied stages of lockdown with the promotion of her Ivy Park x Adidas collection being her most active presence. While off-duty as a performer, Beyoncé was captured by paparazzi leaving the popular Nobu restaurant in Los Angeles, where she had a mother-daughter lunch with her oldest child Blue-Ivy Carter. While dining at the Malibu…

Jul

15

2021

By The African Mirror

Who’s hot: Santrinos Raphaël, “gem of Togolese RnB”

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

AMET BAO THE darling of Togolese youth audiences may not be well known internationally but this artist is young enough that he can happily wait for that fame to come. Certainly, regional recognition has already come the way of the 21 years young West African. His name? Santrinos Raphaël. For Santrinos Raphaël, it all started with the 2018 hit, “Engagement” which allowed him to make a remarkable entry into the world of Togolese showbiz. With more than 905,000 views on YouTube, the song has been instrumental in the career of the young crooner. It won him a number of trophies…

Jul

15

2021

By The African Mirror

The book fair giving Egypt’s writers hope

LITERATURE

ONE of Africa's biggest book fairs has come not a moment too soon for authors like Noha Mahmud. The up-and-coming Egyptian author is one of many who struggled to earn a living during the COVID-19 pandemic which devastated Egypt's publishing and book sales industry. As difficult periods go for writers, the last one-and-a-half years have been as tough as they come, for Noha Mahmud, an Egyptian writer in her late 30's. "Publishers stopped buying the literary production of almost all writers," Mahmud said in an interview. "The publishing industry as a whole came to a standstill and with it the…

Apr

03

2021

By The African Mirror

Missy Elliott is longevity defined

BEAUTY AND FASHION

MPHO RANTAO IF longevity had a name, it would be Missy 'Misdemeanor’ Elliott. The American rapper has returned to the spotlight in recent years with appearances with the surprise release of her first EP after more than a decade, Iconology, which featured five songs that told fans that Misdeanour is still the rap fiend that dominated the music charts from the 90s until the late 2000s. Making a rare appearance, Elliott featured on the cover of Bottega Veneta’s (BV) first digital quarterly magazine as their muse for the upcoming season. In the issue she dons two of the brand's signature…

Apr

10

2021

By The African Mirror

Fashion group Tod’s puts Instagram star Chiara Ferragni on its board

BEAUTY AND FASHION

CLAUDIA CRISTOFERI ITALIAN fashion group Tod's said on Friday it appointed Instagram star and influencer Chiara Ferragni as a board member, stepping up its efforts to win over the younger shoppers fuelling the sector's growth. Shares in the luxury leather goods maker jumped more than 5% after the announcement about Ferragni, a 33-year-old Italian digital entrepreneur with over 23 million followers on her Instagram account where she shares fashion and style advice, as well as raising awareness on social issues. "We are sure that Chiara's knowledge of the world of young people, combined with the experience of the other board…