LIFESTYLE - The African Mirror

May

11

2021

Lady Gaga, Glenn Close join Prince Harry and Oprah for mental health TV series

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

BRITAIN's Prince Harry and U.S. chat show queen Oprah Winfrey will premiere their television documentary series on mental health issues later this month, with singer Lady Gaga and actress Glenn Close among those contributing. "The Me You Can't See" series, co-created and produced by Harry and Winfrey, will feature stories from high-profile guests and others across the world about mental health and emotional well-being issues, Apple TV+, the streaming service which will air the programmes from May 21, said on Monday. Winfrey said the series aimed to spark a global conversation, and replace the shame surrounding mental health with wisdom…

Jun

23

2021

By The African Mirror

Senegal’s famed jazz festival returns after pandemic delay

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

COOPER INVEEN ON a small island where the Senegal River meets the sea, hundreds of mask-wearing jazz enthusiasts listened to French-Senegalese vocalist Awa Ly sing the blues for uncertain times. "Once you touched the sky and you went down," she crooned. "Use your inner senses and you'll figure it out, like a dream you can't remember." Last year COVID-19 halted Saint Louis' jazz festival for the first time in its 29-year history. This year it was back, bringing much needed life to the Island of Saint Louis, a UNESCO World Heritage site famed for its colonial architecture and pastel-coloured houses.…

Jun

23

2021

By The African Mirror

Usain Bolt and Kasi Bennett welcome twin boys

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

MPHO RANTAO OLYMPIC runner Usain Bolt and partner Kasi Bennett have welcomed two new members to the family, elevating their eldest daughter, Olympia Bolt’s, role to big sister. Bolt celebrated Father’s Day with a post on Instagram where he shared the news with a photo of his family from a photo shoot, including their one-year-old daughter, and first glimpses of their newborn twins named Saint Leo and Thunder. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Usain St.Leo Bolt (@usainbolt) His partner, Bennett, posted her own tribute to the Olympic sprinter, sharing more footage from their family photoshoot, calling…

Jun

23

2021

By The African Mirror

Telfar official designer for Liberia Olympic team

BEAUTY AND FASHION

MPHO RANTAO LIBERIA’S Emmanuel Matadi stands tall atop a hill as he waves a customised Liberian flag with the Telfar logo in blue, donning the official kit for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Telfar founder and designer Telfar Clemens announced that Telfar had collaborated as the official designer for the Olympic team heading to Tokyo in July, designing all the kits for the athletes in their various codes. The New York Times reported that the design on the unisex kits would feature a blue and white colourway, a star across the side of the chest and the Olympics logo on the…

May

08

2021

By The African Mirror

The #JerusalemaDanceChallenge showed how Pan African styles can be forged

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

A year has passed since an Angolan dance troupe called Fenómenos do Semba released a video of themselves dancing in a courtyard in Luanda to the South African hit song Jerusalema by Master KG. FRANCESCA NEGRO, Associate research scientist, Universidade de Lisboa With over 16 million YouTube clicks, the #JerusalemaDanceChallenge swept the planet as social media users posted their own versions of the dance. Its success has inspired me to offer some further reflections on the importance of the cultural meaning of this dance and its contribution to the creation of a Pan African aesthetic. How Angolans celebrate The dance…

Jun

19

2021

By The African Mirror

Victoria’s Secret says goodbye to its angels

BEAUTY AND FASHION

MPHO RANTAO VICTORIA’S Secret is shedding its wings and is getting a makeover. The popular lingerie brand announced in a statement that they would be rebranding through two new initiatives: The Victoria's Secret Global Fund for Women's Cancers and The VS Collective. The VS Collective will feature Indian actress Priyanka Chopra; models Adut Akech and Paloma Elsesser, and US footballer Megan Rapinoe as some of the spokespersons. Other figures included as spokespersons are Brazilian transgender model and activist Valentina Sampaio, Chinese skier Eileen Gu and photographer Amanda de Cadenet. They were chosen because they wanted to associate Victoria’s Secret with…

Jun

19

2021

By The African Mirror

The Late Night, Mogadishu

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

JAAMAC JAAMAC MOGADISHU was once known as The Pearl of the Indian Ocean, famous for its architecture, culture and nightlife. A civil war and more recently an Islamic insurgency interrupted that. Now, with elections looming, nightlife is returning to this former Indian Ocean entrepot. At the Late Night restaurant, there's a palpable sense of hope, served up, along with each plate of Jabaati, by the manager himself. It is almost midnight and along Mogadishu's central Maka-Al-Mukarama boulevard, late-night restaurant patrons are coming and going. Three-wheeled "tuk-tuks" throng the area, dropping off customers or waiting for new ones. Judging by their…

Jun

16

2021

By The African Mirror

Ferrari goes from fast cars to haute fashion

BEAUTY AND FASHION

MPHO RANTAO FERRARI, a dominant force in the motorsport world, have made their entry into the cutthroat world of fashion. Showcased below the factory’s production level, with the V12 assembly line enveloped in a red glow, the “Prancing Horse” launched their first ready-to-wear collection from its Maranello factory in Italy. The collection was created in the classic Ferrari colour palette of Ferrari red, black and Scuderia yellow in light sustainable fabrics. Unlike the conversative and understated clothing pieces that Ferrari’s loyal (and older) fanbase would normally wear, this new collection includes trench coats, bomber jackets, parkas and loose-fitting trousers —…

May

03

2021

By The African Mirror

South Africa’s romcom revolution and how it reimagines Joburg

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

NETFLIX went live in South Africa on 6 January 2016. The arrival of the subscription-based content streaming service was a game-changer for the country’s film and television industry, as it had been for other countries. PIER PAOLO FRASSINELLI, Professor, Communication and Media Studies, University of Johannesburg At about the same time – in 2015 and 2016 – there was another turning point for South Africa’s film industry: the arrival of a new, commercially successful genre, the black romantic comedy. For the first time, the country’s black filmmakers were able to make an impact at the box office – and go…

May

01

2021

By The African Mirror

SA’s Lukhanyo Mdingi is Lvmh Prize finalist

BEAUTY AND FASHION

MPHO RANTAO Lukhanyo Mdingi THE top nine finalists for fashion’s coveted LVMH Prize have been announced, and in a first for the award, the finalists are designers from across the world. USA, England, France, South Africa, China, Albania and Colombia are the countries represented by each finalist, with Albania and Colombia being featured for the first time in an LVMH Prize. The finalists were announced after LVMH held a public vote and, for the first time, a virtual showroom which was available to both the LVMH judging panel and the public. South Africa’s Lukhanyo Mdingi is included as a finalist…