Ep. 41: Musician Ebo Taylor; 1-54 Founder & Curator Touria El Glaoui; Artist Hassan Hajjaj; Zimbabwean film Cook Off; #EndSARS; NYC: Hopes and Fears

Legendary Ghanian musician Ebo Taylor and his son Kweku sat down with us to speak on his prolific 60 year plus career as a musician and composer. Having gained widespread international acclaim for his music, Ebo has pioneered the genres of Highlife and Afrobeat. We hear of his celebrated and storied career, and discuss his influence on the continent and globally in shaping West African music.

Founder of 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair, Touria El Glaoui shares her insights into the growing African contemporary art market, and discusses her role as founder of 1-54, highlighting African art internationally and how she made the leap from the world of finance to curating the world's largest contemporary African art fair. We also asked her to share some of her favourite North African artists.

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Contemporary Morrocan artist Hassan Hajjaj, known for his colourful and contrasting photography, merges North African Culture with Western aesthetics to create vibrant, powerful North African narrative based imagery. A versatile creative, Hassan Hajjaj encapsulates his areas of interest and influences through his multi-medium works. We discuss his creative ethos, process and work over the years.

Hassan Hajjaj, Cardi B. NY, 2017 © Hassan Hajjaj, 2017/1438. Courtesy of Taymour Grahne Art, London, UK

Tendie Chitima, who plays Anesu, on the set of Cook Off Image by Anel Wessels

Zimbabwean feature film Cook Off made on a budget of only $8,000 has since gained widespread acclaim, having also been featured on Netflix this year. It presents the storyline of the struggles and triumphs of a single mother who gets a shot at success through competing in a reality TV cooking show. Produced amidst a period of great economic and political turmoil in Zimbabwe, the rom-com explores themes of familial relationships and everyday Zimbabwean life. We spoke with the lead actors Jesesi Mungoshi and Tendaiishe Chitima and producer Joe Njagu to discuss their work and the current Zimbabwean film and cultural scene.

Highlighting the critical End SARS social movement and protests currently ongoing in Nigeria, we speak with filmmaker, director and producer Ifeoma Chukwuogo. Based in the country, Ifeoma discusses protester demands, the current mood and police brutality as it unfolds.

We dropped into a local polling station in New York City to speak with voters as they waited to cast their vote for the upcoming Presidential election. A range of voters spoke of their respective intentions behind voting, the current political climate during COVID-19, as well their musings of the repercussions of their votes.

Ebo Taylor music used throughout the programme

Ebo Taylor - Abebrese

Ebo Taylor - African Woman

Ebo Taylor - Heaven

Ebo Taylor & Pat Thomas - Oye Oye

Ebo Taylor - Love & Death

Ebo Taylor - Palaver

Ebo Taylor - Papa Kwame

Huge thanks to Barely Breaking Even, Strut Records and Mr Bongo

Cultural Shoutouts:

Music:

Can You by Park Hye Jin