Felabration, an annual cultural extravaganza, has been a fixture since its inception in 1998. Conceived by Yeni Anikulapo-Kuti, it’s a vibrant tribute to the renowned Nigerian musician and human rights activist, Fela Kuti, who is celebrated as the trailblazer of Afrobeat music. This celebration, which came to an end on Sunday, has earned its place Read More…
Culture & Arts
[video] Reggae Legend and Third World Co-Founder, Michael ‘Ibo’ Cooper, passes away at 71
Jamaica mourns the loss of Michael ‘Ibo’ Cooper, a founding member of the renowned reggae band Third World, who passed away on Thursday at the age of 71. The music icon had been courageously battling cancer for several years. The year 2023 has brought unimaginable sorrow to the Cooper family. Tragically, Ibo Cooper fell ill Read More…
Madonna’s epic career-spanning tour finally begins after delay
Madonna, the iconic pop superstar, is set to kick off her highly-anticipated tour, “Madonna: The Celebration Tour,” in London’s O2 Arena this Saturday. This tour, spanning her illustrious 40-year career, was initially slated to begin in Vancouver in July but had to be postponed due to the singer’s hospitalisation for a severe bacterial infection. With Read More…
An Airport for Achebe
There is a Chinua Achebe International Airport in Anambra State. It was a spectacular masterstroke from Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo when he renamed the Anambra Airport at Umueri after Chinua Achebe. The ovation that Soludo got when he made the announcement in his speech at the 63rd Nigerian Independence Anniversary, which took place at Dr Read More…
Beyond Borders: The Uncharted Odyssey of Noo Saro-Wiwa
The paraphrase of an interview by Olatoun Gabi-Williams Noo Saro-Wiwa, the daughter of the renowned activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, emerges as a distinctive figure whose life is interwoven with the cultural arras of Nigeria, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Her narrative unfolds against the backdrop of a remarkable familial legacy, a tale of struggle Read More…
Neighbours of the Soul: The Woman Next Door
Review by Olatoun Gabi-Williams The Woman Next Door is Yewande Omotoso’s comically dark second novel published in 2016 by Random House, South Africa and by Farafina in Nigeria. The story unfolds in what appears to be the first decade of the 21st century against a backdrop of a South Africa in the throes of being Read More…
The Meursault Investigation: A Bold Literary Response to Camus’ ‘L’Etranger
Review by Olatoun Gabi-Williams The Meursault Investigation” is the dark wonderland Kamel Daoud has created as a searing rejoinder to L’Etranger”, probably the most famous of Albert Camus’ novels. If Camus rejected the word “existentialism” to define his novels, Daoud surely does not. Dealing extravagantly in the currency of existentialism, “The Meursault Investigation” must be Read More…
Celebrities and Fans Join Candlelight Procession for Late Singer Mohbad as Investigation Continues
Nigerian music stars Davido, Zlatan, and Falz, along with a multitude of fans, joined a poignant candlelight procession in honour of the late singer Ilerioluwa Aloba, popularly known as Mohbad, on Thursday evening in Lekki, Lagos. The event also saw the participation of the Lagos State Commissioner for Youths and Social Development, Mobolaji Ogunlende. The Read More…
Bessie Head: A Literary Journey of Self-Discovery
Review by Olatoun Gabi-Williams Up until “A Woman Alone”, I had not read any of Bessie Head’s books. The image I carried of one of Africa’s finest writers was not of a producer of literary works but of a mixed-race woman in a black-and-white photograph. Her swarthy face would be matronly were it not for Read More…
Lagos Government shuts eight nightclubs for safety violations
The Lagos State Government has taken decisive action by sealing eight nightclubs and event centres in both Ikeja and Victoria Island. This move is a response to various safety violations and is in alignment with the government’s commitment to public safety, as articulated by Mr. Lanre Mojola, Director General of the Lagos State Safety Commission. Read More…