
Nakhane’s ‘New Brighton’ targets colonial relics
Pop music is the strongest vehicle for change, says the singer-songwriter from Port Elizabeth, who tells stories within stories disguised as metaphors.
27 Feb 2019
Pop music is the strongest vehicle for change, says the singer-songwriter from Port Elizabeth, who tells stories within stories disguised as metaphors.
Others could benefit from the critical line JAG curator Khwezi Gule has taken in exhibiting artwork created in the colonial and apartheid eras.
Sungura superstar Simon Chimbetu’s ‘Survival’ came out in 1997 when, to borrow and misuse the words of Yeats, “all changed, changed utterly, and a terrible ugliness was born”.
Tiisetso Mashifane wa Noni’s play goes behind the veil of secrecy at all-boys schools to interrogate the way masculinity is cultivated.
George W Bush is a ‘war criminal’ says punk rocker Billie Joe Armstrong, but he’s still ‘scratching the surface’ when it comes to Donald Trump.
Mao Zedong’s words from Bastille Day in 1956 may prove helpful in fending off imperialist oppression in Venezuela as the US attempts to pick up where Spain left off.
The Nigerian rapper’s fifth album reflects not only on the state of hip-hop but also on the self.
The singer-songwriter returns to Joburg in spirit for a production of ‘Nina Simone: Four Women’ at the Market Theatre, reworked for South African audiences.
Sarah Jones’s feminist takedown of misogynistic rap songs quoted other hip-hop artists’ lyrics and got banned. The irony was lost on the censors.
JD Salinger was a prolific writer though much of his work remains unpublished. But as with Harper Lee, the literary world has not been content to accept the status quo.
When the Malopoets were invited to play in Europe, the band thought they were leaving behind the rules and restrictions of arbitrary authorities. The reality proved different.
It’s almost 40 years since the Malopoets’ debut album disappeared, as apartheid and the music industry tried to erase their radicalism. Now we may finally have a chance to hear it.
Serge Gainsbourg subverted the French national anthem with reggae rhythms on ‘Aux Armes Et Cætera’, stirring up the nation and making a mint in the process.
The poet who became a gqom artist reveals her many names, what it is like to inhabit her musical persona and how she feels about South Africa’s poetry scene.
In a time when refugees are largely unwanted and unwelcome, asylum seeker Behrouz Boochani winning Australia’s top literary prize is an exquisite piece of social justice.
The new generation of hip-hop artists globally are opening up in their lyrics about their depression, addictions and suicidal thoughts.
An extract from Mabogo More’s new memoir, which reflects on the life of the mind of a black philosopher during and after apartheid.
Lesego Semenya strips his recipes of artisanal phrases and snobbery to bring food back to the people.
Kamasi Washington’s jazz is a salve for the political animal’s soul.
Lenin’s views on banks and imperialism could have inspired some out-of-the-box thinking at two recent colloquiums to ‘form the basis of economic policy proposals’ for the future.
Debates about African writing are ongoing but how about a question that’s seldom asked: what about the money?