Culture & Society
How October 1 Became a National Treasure
Ten years since its release, Kunle Afolayan’s October 1 remains a brilliant cinematic exercise at using Nigeria’s independence story to investigate deeper, systemic issues rooted in our country’s colonial experience. Read More...
7 Books to Help You Understand Nigeria Today as the Country Turns 64
In our latest book recommendation, we have compiled a list of books that will help you understand Nigeria today as the country turns 64. From Chinua Achebe’s timeless critique of leadership failures to Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀’s nuanced exploration of modern Nigerian life, these books provide insightful perspectives on Nigeria’s past, present, and future. Read More...
7 Nigerian Writers and the Topics They Like Reading About
In our past First Draft interviews, we asked Nigerian writers such as ’Pemi Aguda, Wardah Abbas, and Dami Ajayi about the topics they like reading about. Here’s what they told us. Read More...
Listening to Five Years of Burna Boy’s ‘African Giant’
Five years after its release, Burna Boy’s fourth studio album, African Giant, continues to resonate with listeners. Has it earned its place as a modern classic? Read More...
The Artist Archiving Igbo Life and Spirituality through Indigenous Aesthetics
How Chiagoziem Nneamaka Orji is making Igbo culture and spirituality more accessible through digital art. Read More...
7 Wole Soyinka Plays That Feel Like They Were Written Today
In our latest book recommendation, we have compiled a list of seven Wole Soyinka plays that feel as though they were written today. Whether first performed in 1960 or focused on specific issues like war or military dictatorship, the plays on this list feel eerily relevant to our present time and circumstances. Read More...
‘Gossip Is at the Heart of Any Good Story’ Carey Baraka’s First Draft
Author of ‘Remembering Kampala’, Carey Baraka, says the most common misconception about East African literature is that South Sudanese author and critic, Taban Lo Liyong, called the region a literary desert: ‘It is funny that East African writers continue to write against Lo Liyong, insisting that he is wrong, when what people are fighting doesn’t actually exist.’ Read More...
Filming the Prolonged Pain of Colonial Violence
For decades, families in Tanzania have been demanding the return of their ancestors’ human remains from Germany. These ancestors, executed leaders of resistance efforts against German colonial rule, were exhumed from their graves and taken to Germany. Cece Mlay discusses co-producing a new documentary on how their descendants are seeking justice and closure today. Read More...
The Last Time I Saw My Father
In the fading light of my father’s life, I watched helplessly as the man I once knew as vibrant and full of life slowly withered away. Though I loved him fiercely as a son, I did not realize how great my father was until years after his death. Read More...
A Poet’s Lament of a World on the Precipice
In her debut collection, Cadaver of Red Roses, Zaynab Iliyasu Bobi renders an evocative and poetic journey through past tragedies, protesting against war and poor leadership. Read More...
