Somali-Canadian R&B Singer A’maal Nuux wants to be Mufasa.  The description of the song on Youtube says, “This song touches on the devastation and upheavals afflicting Somalia… offers a message of hope calling on the people that a devastated nation can actually rise from the ashes of war!” A little Somali pride in your radio R&B. I can’t be mad.  I appreciate that more and more artists aspiring to the mainstream in the Americas are able to foreground their African heritage. Not too long ago it would have been a detriment. And although not necessarily a direct reference to the Lion King, just like the American President she flips the stereotype. Nice one!

Further Reading

No one should be surprised we exist

The documentary film, ‘Rolé—Histórias dos Rolezinhos’ by Afro-Brazilian filmmaker Vladimir Seixas uses sharp commentary to expose social, political, and cultural inequalities within Brazilian society.

Kenya’s stalemate

A fundamental contest between two orders is taking place in Kenya. Will its progressives seize the moment to catalyze a vision for social, economic, and political change?

More than a building

The film ‘No Place But Here’ uses VR or 360 media to immerse a viewer inside a housing occupation in Cape Town. In the process, it wants to challenge gentrification and the capitalist logic of home ownership.