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• “Black Gold”, African coffee documentary, to air on PBS.
• African countries ready themselves for the roll out of One Laptop Per Child initiative.
• Africa tops Mideast as US crude oil source.
• Akon teams up with Verizon for TV campaign.
• PRODUCT RED – In the black?
Whatever happened to Jay-Z’s Water For Life campaign? I thought there was supposed to be a documentary airing on MTV. Always the business-MAN, Jay seemed to have squeezed in a new ad campaign for Rocawear while he was in South Africa. You can’t miss the campaign which is splashed all over the first 20 or so pages of Vibe’s new issue. Here are some scans from the campaign. More scans at Stylemix. Trend Alert: Animal print is in.
I mentioned before that Vh1 in conjunction with the United Nations was producing a documentary on the bling and blood diamonds relationship. The documentary, “Bling’d: Blood, Diamonds, and Hip Hop”, “takes a look at the illegal diamond trade in Sierra Leone, West Africa and its connection with the hip hop culture, particularly how ‘bling’ played a role in the nation’s 11-year civil war.” While we’ve seen quite a few film projects about blood diamonds and Sierra Leone, it’s a wonder that the hip-hop angle has never really been explored in depth by a major film/television company; or did I just miss it? Either way the documentary features interviews with Paul Wall, Raekwon, Tego Caldron, Jadakiss, Big Daddy Kane, and Kanye West among others. Hopefully the documentary will expand beyond the war in Sierra Leone and show how the diamond trade exploits both the Africans who mine the diamonds and the African-Americans who aspire to own one. As Sierra Leonean rapper Chosan said “Don’t give up and keep shining, your heart’s worth more than a diamond”. The documentary premieres Thursday, Feb. 22. at 8pm on Vh1.
When I heard Al Gore’s announcement that he will be producing Live Earth, a 24-hour concert held simultaneously across all 7 continents, I got to thinking about what part if any Africa(ns) play in the enormous eco-conscious global trend. With “An Inconvenient Truh” nominated for an Oscar, eco-trend features in both business and fashion magazines, and eco news and blog sites popping up everywhere, surely the trend seems to be here to stay. But as we Africans go about trying to deal with our societal issues, I can’t help but think that maybe we need to think about this issue as well.
I spent a good deal of my senior year in high-school in the Environmental Society (yeah, yeah, I’ve had many lives and some a bit nerdy), where myself and a group of students learned and taught about the necessity of caring for your environment. I remember some programs we ran seeming boring and redundant to me but I couldn’t pin-point why. While others became passionate about the whole “save mother earth” movement I started to wonder why I wasn’t so gung-ho about it. I certainly agreed with the efforts but i just didn’t understand why some people seem to take it soooo seriously. Later in life I came to understand that growing up in an African household we never saw the earth as something or someone separate from ourselves. It was part of our culture to respect your surroundings and live within the parameters of the environment you were in. You somewhat understood the need and uses of certain natural resources and you respected their place in your life. But I think we’ve gotten comfortable as time has gone by, and are now part of Africa’s environmental problem.
When my father visited Ghana recently after many years, he was shocked about how rampant littering was. He described how easily people threw plastic products on the ground, even when there was a trash receptacle available. In discussions we often chalked it up to lawlessness, but there might be a deeper concern. As Africans we’ve begun to assume that we innately subscribe to old cultural norms when our actions prove otherwise. Try to talk to an African about environmentalism and many times you’ll get a blank stare or a “whatever” response. But one thing that Silas Siakor proved is that our actions are causing our situation to get worse. Yes, we have big problems like corruption, famine, and drought, but those problems are also tied to how we treat our environment. It’s true we’re not any worse than any other communities, but the effects on our “problems” are worse. When we allow large corporations to drill for oil without any concern about environmental hazards we make things worse for ourselves, What’s the revenue from exports worth when it leaves us with more problems to spend the money on.
The Africa portion of the Live Earth concert will be held in…..wait for it……South Africa. Surprised? Anyway, here’s more information about the event:
LIVE EARTH
Live Earth – The Concert for a Climate in Crisis
July 7, 2007
“The global audience gathered for Live Earth, its ongoing actions, and the proceeds from the concerts, will form the foundation for a new, multi-year international initiative to combat the climate crisis led by The Alliance for Climate Protection and its Chair, Al Gore.
Concerts on all 7 continents:
• Shanghai
• Sydney
• Johannesburg
• London
• Brazil – TBD
• Japan – TBD
• United States – TBD
• Antarctica – TBD
100+ artists: Current and legendary artists across all genres performing multiple hits.
Confirmed performers:
• Pharrell
• Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Foo Fighters
• Snoop Dogg
• Lenny Kravitz
• Bon Jovi
• Paolo Nutini
• Sheryl Crow
• AFI
• Melissa Etheridge
• John Mayer
• Damien Rice
• Corinne Bailey Rae
• Duran Duran
• Snow Patrol
• John Legend
• Black Eyed Peas
• Akon
• Enrique Iglesias
• Fall Out Boy
• Maná
• Keane
• Kelly Clarkson
• Korn
• Faith Hill w/ Tim McGraw
• Bloc Party
For all those in LA this week make sure you check out the Pan African Film Festival which opened on February 8th and will run unil February 19th. In it’s 15th year, the festival is the largest international black film festival in the United States. While you’re getting in all your African films make sure to check out two of my partners Saba Saba aka Krazy Native (Uganda), and Wanlov the Kubolor (Ghana) as they bring their versions of African hip-hop to the event. Check out the flyer:
Back in 2004 I organized a party to celebrate the launch my Spring/Summer 2004 collection. The collection was based around the Nigerian singer/Afro-beat originator Fela Kuti, an innovative musician who dared to re-invent African song. My launch party, called “Redefining African Style”, featured some upcoming African musicians who I felt were creating a new sound which also re-defined what African music was today. One of those artists was a fellow Ghanaian Wanlov The Kubolor. While I hadn’t seem him perform before, I was a fan of his music and was honored to have him perform as a special guest. Wanlov’s performance was one of the highlights of the Redefining African Style party and still stands out in the minds of many attendees. Wanlov’s “Never Die”(produced by Kweku Ananse of Pidgen Music) is now a finalist in the International Songwriting Competition finals. The finalists were chosen out of almost 15,000 submissions from 88 countries worldwide. Read Wanlov’s recent interview in The African magazine and watch the video below to see him performing his song “In Ghana” wearing his “Bling is Dead” t-shirt at last years “Bling & Blood” concert. You’ll agree that the guy’s got skills. Vote for Wanlov, one of Africa’s upcoming young innovators.
Today is February 1st and the beginning of Black History month here in the US. In the past I haven’t really followed the events which take place for Black History month because it had turned into just a part of big business’ marketing calendar. But this year Black History Month might turn out to be worth noting for both Africans and African-Americans. Vh1 is leading the pack with it’s debut of a 30-seond spot directed by director Spike Lee encouraging African-Americans to scientifically determine their African lineage.
The spot which debuts today (February 1st) on the VH1 soul channel will feature several African-Americans initially mentioning the American cities that they are from. The people are then featured again, holding swabs and naming the African region that their ancestors are from. The spot then encourages viewers to “take pride in their original homes during Black History Month”. The campaign feature DNA-based ancestry tests performed by African Ancestry, Inc., a company that uses swabbed DNA to genetically determine where in Africa a person’s African ancestors came from. DNA ancestry tests have gained mainstream popularity particularly through the efforts of Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr’s four-part PBS series “African American Lives,†which used DNA to trace the roots of Oprah Winfrey, Chris Tucker and other prominent African Americans all the way from slave plantations to the shores of Africa. Dr. Gates, a professor who heads Harvard’s Afro-American Studies program, also hosted another recent PBS special centered around tracing Oprah Winfrey’s genealogy and is releasing a book and DVD “Finding Oprah’s Roots — Finding Your Own”.
VH1 will also be launching a new music video show “One Planet. One Soul” beginning Sunday, February 4 showcasing soul artists from the U.K., Africa, Canada, Australia, including Akon, K’Naan, and Rhian Benson. “One Planet. One Soul” will air every Sunday at 10:00 am, 6:00 pm and 2:00 am.
A collectors item?
via Fashion Cult
I recently picked up the 10-year anniversary issue for one of the most consistently inspiring magazines, Trace Magazine. For as long as I can remember, the editors at Trace have been putting out quality , insightful product, while reporting on unconventional people and places. One of Trace’s strongest points is in it’s ability to highlight style as it exists in different parts of the world. The magazine was one of the first publications which I found that represented Africa in a modern, stylish manner. It might have to do with the founder/editor Claude Grunitzky’s Togolese background or his understanding of what he calls “transculturalism”. He says, “Modern transculturalists are people who can move and learn and function by discovering and influencing cultures that are not their own”, and that has been the focus which has enamored the magazine to progressive people all over the world. They’ve been able to stay relevant for 10 years now and still keep their edge. In the publishing industry, that’s an enormous feat. The 10-year anniversary issue includes an interview with supermodel/entrepreneur Iman where she expands on her feelings about the “I Am African” campaign controversey. Congratulations guys on another inspiring issue.
On Friday I picked up the February 2007 issue of Inc. Magazine and began reading the cover article on Philip Rosendale, CEO of Linden Lab and creator of Second Life. Though my initial experience with Second Life some months ago was not the best, I have been quite intrigued by it’s possibilities as a business platform. Reading stories about American Apparels successful store opening and concerts and chats by artists such as Talib Kweli, all in taking place in Second Life, has had me trying to get my head around this virtual world. I must admit that one of the reasons I abandoned my Second Life persona was I (the second life me that is) ran into a brick wall, literally, and couldn’t get around it. Funny as it may sound, that’s exactly what happened. Reading Mr. Rosendale’s explanation of Second Life the ability it gives you to create a whole new identity and/or brand extension, has got me thinking about getting over that wall.
What does this have to do with Africa you ask? Well one of the things that drew me to Second Life in the first place, besides the business opportunities, was the ability to create your perfect world as an extension of your real world. From a development perspective I see Second Life as a tool which can allow African’s to extend and re-invent ourselves in a world where anything goes. I know that sounds all Matrix-like but bear with me for a second. If Second Life can allow you to create an ideal personality, visit anywhere, and communicate with anyone without the restrictions of geography, government, or language, then it can certainly level the playing field for re-branding Africa. This is not a far fetched notion as Sweden has already announced it’s opening of a Second Life embassy. In a recent article, Mutumwa Mawere, a Zimbabwean born South African businessman, wrote “I am acutely aware that it is difficult to take nationalism out of many Africans but the Second Life offers us an opportunity to go beyond the confines of where one is born to the reality that through others a better Africa is a not a pipe dream.” This statement I guess is key in exploring the possibilities of Second Life. While I’m not one to take on a non-African personality, I think that involvement in Second Life could possibly allow Africans to realistically compete with anyone else without the limitations of the real world, and ,as Mr. Mawere, notes, possibly create a new African identity. Of course I’m saying all this from an office space in NY City with a T-1 connection, but as the global tide changes I think we all need to think outside the box and look to new ways of creating a second reality.