Kuduro pioneer Sebem (fresh out of prison; he was in for repeated traffic violations, from what I understand) has a new video out (above); the clip’s rural setting is surprising, given kuduro’s over-all urban flow. Next, a Senegalese collaboration between Djibril Diop and Aida Samb:

Kenyan Jeraw draws inspiration and images from local blockbuster film ‘Nairobi Half Life’:

A new video for Belgian-Congolese (but mostly Bruxellois) rapper Pitcho — taken from his new album Rendez-Vous avec le Futur:

Earl Sweatshirt wrote a “letter” to his South African dad Keorapetse Kgositsile:

From Lesotho, a new video (shot in Mozambique) for Kommanda Obbs:

London-based, Douala-born “one-man band” Muntu Valdo has a new video — not sure why YouTube won’t allow you to embed it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FaM1_CmxjXk

Swiss-Ghanaian singer/improvisational musician Joy Frempong “Oy”; you already know we’ve been following her work:

And two acoustic sessions to wind down. Guinea-Conakry-born, Canada-residing Alpha Yaya Diallo:

And Cape Town-based Beatenberg (whose debut record ‘Farm Photos’ you should give a listen as well):

Et voilà, back on Monday!

Further Reading

Slow death by food

Illegal gold mining is poisoning Ghana’s soil and rivers, seeping into its crops and seafood, and turning the national food system into a long-term public health crisis.

A sick health system

The suspension of three doctors following the death of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s son has renewed scrutiny of a health-care system plagued by impunity, underfunding, and a mass exodus of medical professionals.

Afrobeats after Fela

Wizkid’s dispute with Seun Kuti and the release of his latest EP with Asake highlight the widening gap between Afrobeats’ commercial triumph and Fela Kuti’s political inheritance

Progress is exhausting

Pedro Pinho’s latest film follows a Portuguese engineer in Guinea-Bissau, exposing how empire survives through bureaucracy, intimacy, and the language of “development.”

The rubble of empire

Built by Italian Fascists in 1928, Mogadishu Cathedral was meant to symbolize “peaceful conquest.” Today its ruins force Somalis to confront the uneasy afterlife of colonial power and religious authority.