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Get To Know: Tigist Selam
October 1st, 2010Actress, activist, writer: these just a few titles in Tigist Selam’s extensive list of careers. The Ethiopian-German by way of Nigeria, Argentina, and Germany made her way to New York City in 2004 turning it into her personal playground, as a host of Tadias Magazine, the founder of her own non-profit, and now a budding actress.
Ms. Selam most recently stepped out in her actress role, playing one of the Fort-Greene women, in Nelson George’s (Good Hair) Left Unsaid, a web series rapidly attracting a heavy following around the globe. AfriPOP! caught up with the Renaissance woman to discuss growing up black in Germany, working with Nelson George, and what comes next.
AfriPOP!: You grew up in Nigeria, Argentina, and Germany, could you identify the differences between growing up in each country?
Tigist Selam: When I was living in Nigeria, I was really young, so I don’t necessarily carry that experience, all I know is that my parents said they would never go back to Lagos, because they just had such a rough time over there, and their stories are insane. But when I was in Argentina for 3 years I was a little older, I definitely remember the warmth of the people and the Latin American way of life, even though Argentina physically is very European probably one of the most European cities in Latin America, you still have the “Fiestas” and the kind of “manana, manana” [“tomorrow, tomorrow”] kind of thinking and that Latin American flair. When I went to Germany it was very different. It wasn’t a warm welcome from my family, so all of a sudden I’m seeing, “oh ok, the whole world doesn’t really want the best for you,” and it does matter what you look like. So it was harsh, in Spanish I kept begging my mom to let me go back to Argentina, to Buenos Aires because my friends were there, and that’s the way of life that I knew. My mom was pregnant with my brother so it was really tough, perhaps tougher on my mom because she had to deal with all the racism. I just knew that I saw her crying, and saw her suffering; I just wanted to go home. My mom stuck to my father, because my father actually stood up for my mom. He said this is my family and this is my wife and these are my two kids, and we stayed. We ended up staying like 10 years, and during that initial transition not being welcoming, I always wanted to move to the states, when I was legal. As soon as I was, my mom let me go. When I was 16 and I moved to my aunt’s in California. Yeah Germany was never really home, but then again where was home? I’m mixed race, I speak different languages, I grew up quite bi-culturally, and multi-culturally and so there is not necessarily a place called home, but Germany was definitely not it. I think finally after living in California, and London, having lived here in New York its definitely become a home now, even though its exile in many ways, the whole world is exile and home at the same time for me, because I’ve travelled so much, and I’ve lived in so many different places.
With that being said would you ever go back to Germany?
I mean I always go back, and for a split second there was this whole movement going on in 2006 in the film industry, and the fine art industry it was really happening for them, so I actually considered moving back to Berlin, but then I was like yeah no, Berlin is still Germany. I just can’t deal. If I have the option of living in New York I would chose New York. I visit often; my family still lives there, my friends still live there, so it’s great… to visit.
Tell us about your role as an activist.
Through my mom, this whole philanthropic way of living is so deeply engrained within me, that having my own philanthropy was always on the radar for the last 10 years, and now I’m just in the process of co-founding my own non-profit which is called the Ethiopian Educational Project. What it basically does, is collect money and send it to Ethiopia for any kind of school supplies, any thing that supports education.
What else inspires that draw to helping Ethiopia in particular?
My mom is still very much afro-centric, she’s very Ethiopian (even if) she’s lived a lot longer outside of Ethiopia than inside. Even in Germany, because my German family was absent, I only had my Ethiopian family, and where I grew up in Bonn at that time it was the capital, I grew up with all these international kids from the UN, the embassy kids, but within the Ethiopian community itself. You always had to go back to Ethiopia. Even though my mom couldn’t go she would ask my dad to come with us, just to connect and look out for the family, and she still has a lot of family there.
Even here in New York I’m very much tied into the Ethiopian community, and I’m a host of an Ethiopian lifestyle magazine, which is the leading Ethiopian lifestyle magazine in the world. So I’m very much plugged in and very connected. Also why education is so important to me, its just who I am. I went to a private school for the gifted in Germany, and when I got to America I skipped 11th grade. I got my BA when I was 20 I got by MA at 22. I got accepted to the school of oriental and African studies to do my PHD when I was 25, so at heart I’m very much a nerd. I love to read and to write, and to learn things everyday, and I know every time I learn something new my mind expands, and just without education as in systematic schooling, but just even a book, or through travelling, or a conversation I know through personal experience how empowering that could be. My first year in New York I was teaching my own curriculum all over the South Bronx, for an afterschool program. That was great too because I had no idea about Dominican or Puerto Rican culture. All I knew was hip-hop, and all of the sudden, was confronted with child prostitution, and drugs, and just violence on so many different levels and I learned so much from these kids, and it’s just something I encourage people to do, to stick to school.
How did Left Unsaid happen?
That was a complete organic experience, I left to LA for a year, and went running back to NY, I was completely not inspired, and I had a really rough time figuring out those people, for the first time. So when I came back to NY I was so full of ideas, and wanted to do all these different things. One of the first few days of being back in NY I had an audition, in DC and I booked that, and Nelson George had a book reading of his book city kids, so I came to the city for that, and at that time I lived in fort Greene. I knew Nelson George when I was at Goldsmiths University. When I was in London for my MA, I used to write about hip-hop and music and stuff I would use him as a reference. I met him and we talked about all kinds of things. He asked where I lived in Fort Greene, and he said that’s my block, so we basically live right across the street from each other, and that’s how we just started talking about different projects. Then he started telling me all these different stories of different women that he knew, and he grew up around a lot of women. He wanted to create a platform to tell these stories. He had a thought about like a Jim Jarmusch Coffee and Cigarettes, urban version, of women coming together from all different kinds of places telling their story. It was very interesting. It started off with a story of five different women and just grew up to be a story about 15 different women, and it was just great to be part of that process because it was the first thing that I did like that. From being immersed in pre-production, to post-production, and even now I’m the official rep of the whole film. Even now being in Miami for the premiere was just insane, and to see that on the big screen. It was an unbelievable experience, but it was very organic.
How was working with Nelson George as a director?
Because we connected on so many different levels, it was the best experience ever as an actor, because we did so much. Some directors are kind of selfish, and they just give you the script, and then they leave you alone, but nelson was so generous with his time, it was a life changing experience, and I don’t use that term lightly. He kept on giving and giving and giving. He really took my input, and allowed me to add my touch to the whole thing. He was very open and I like that. Not a lot of men can pull that off, and also to be able to write for women. It sounded like he knew where we were coming from, and it wasn’t misogynistic or male structured views. It made me see that a men can also write for a woman, and very accurately so. I learned a lot, it was exactly what I needed then.
How has it been received as a web series?
We’ve had 40, 000 hits on the Leftunsaidseries.com website and we just put it on YouTube just last week, and for us not having any PR, no official premiere, it just played at the [American Black Film] festival, I think its doing incredibly well. I’ve gotten so much unconditional support from the African and specifically the Ethiopian community, because they see for the first time somebody that is Ethiopian, and they can identify with that, and its been incredible, and I’ve gotten so many directors to read other scripts. So for me it has been incredible and life changing just in terms of career. The thing that its online its so new, because independent films you don’t ever see them, and now the availability is great, and it’s the future because people can watch it on their own time, people and watch it in parts. People can watch it all over the world. This girl I got my MA with who lives in Hong Kong, contacted me and said I’ve been watching Left Unsaid, and I’m just like “Holy Moly!” that’s so crazy to me. Even my family in Ethiopia can watch it. It’s such a blessing. Sometimes I say it takes away from the cinematic experience to watch it on the computer, but still its great. I hope to see more of that.
At what point did you decide to go into acting?
As you know, my parents are upper middle class, my father had the same job forever, and my mom is a trained nurse. My parents in a way are very solid people and never were into the arts. The only person in my family that was into the arts was my grandmother who was a painter and passed away when I was 12. Even in Buenos Aires I always wanted to be an entertainer, I was on stage when I was 3. When I was in Germany I started classical training at the school for the gifted in theater and voice, in Germany the training was intertwined. You train in all three so it was voice, theater and dance, and I continued to take a couple of classes even in undergrad. So it was always there, it was just not something I wanted to do professionally, because first of all my parents were really against it, so that was always in the back of my mind. And I wasn’t quite sure if it was something I wanted to do. Then when I came to New York, it was just so clear to me that I was going into the arts. But I just wasn’t quite sure what medium. I wasn’t sure if I just wanted to write, then I realized words weren’t enough, and I wanted to be able to express myself physically. So I started to audition for schools and classes, until I got accepted into this private theater group. It was just mind-blowing. Also because I came from such an intellectual background, all of a sudden I was thrown into the performing arts where it was not thinking but feeling, it took me a while to get used to it. It was something I was pushed to do professionally because of my parents; even though it was from a protective standpoint and they said, “Oh Tigist, you’re too smart.” But now they are more ok with it, even though they still don’t understand the art. I know that I couldn’t just do the arts, I need something to ground me, which is why I do the activism, and I need to write. I can’t just do one thing; I need to do all of these things to maintain a balance.
So what’s next for you?
I’m writing my own script about the immigrant experience in New York. It talks about New York, and how it’s very much conflicted on many issues, even just being on the subways you have to deal with people; you have to engage; you have to acknowledge. There are so many different people and we all have different stories, but let’s celebrate each other. I remember seeing the Haile Gerima film Teza, it was the first film shot in Ethiopia and Germany, and it depicted that entire immigrant experience in Germany very accurately. I remember how validated I felt, it was my story, and I was crying and crying. It was the first time someone actually took the initiative to do something like that. Whether that was his intention or not, but it was something that was done for me and I want to do it for others. It’s going to be funny and its going to be dramatic, and there’s going to be sex, it’s going to be good. Also I’ve been reading a lot of scripts, and (am being ) more selective of projects I’m taking on right now. I just want to do whatever I want to do, and hopefully I’ll make a decent living out of it.
Be sure to check out Left Unsaid at any laptop near you. You can also keep up with her at twitter.com/tigistselam, and on her Tumblr .
Photographer: Hannan Saleh
AfriPOP! interview: Les Nubians + new single Liberte
September 22nd, 2010Before Hip-hop dominated the VMAs and pop-culture in general, there was a time where it was considered the alternative. To be involved in Hip-hop was to be different, it was to be a pioneer of a new movement. A couple of these pioneers were birthed, outside of the Hip-hop epicenters of NY or La, making them even more of an anomaly. Going by the name Les Nubians, a Paris-born/ Chad-raised duo broke out onto the hip-hop scene in a furry. With the release of Les Princesses Nubiennes in 1998, the duo quickly became one of the most successful French-Language groups in the US, bagging a Soul Train Lady of Soul Award for best new artist in 1999. The sisters continued to churn out gold with their next project, One Step Forward released in 2003, which landed them a Grammy nomination, along with two NAACP Image Award nominations.
Five years later, the Nubian princesses turned queens are back, dropping Nu Revolution this month, an album inspired by life, as they currently know it, and kicking off a preview tour on the 20th of this month. We caught up with Celia Faussart, one-half of the sister duo, discussing the new album, the internet, and what it means for their African fans.
AfriPOP!: What have you been up to since you put out One Step Forward?
Les Nubians: We’ve been doing some master classes; we’ve been raising our kids. We’ve been organizing to be independent. You have to organize in a different way when you’re independent; you have to fortify your company.
How was working on the album?
Les Nubians: It was very exciting, it was empowering, it was fun. It was the first time we recorded so much in America. It was the first time that we worked so much with American people. It was lovely.
Since you debuted in 1998, do you think there has been a change in receptiveness to your music?
In America, since 1998 there’s a change in the reception. I think that American people, if I can compare between 1998 when we first came out and now, I can say that for example now most of the journalists and radio people we were meeting had no idea who people like Fela were. So it’s changed a lot, I think compilations like Red, Hot, and Riot, the tribute to Fela helped, even the Fela show, to open up the door, and I think African artists in between did a lot of work, and continue to do a lot of work to expose people to their music. I think people are also getting better in discovering the new Africa. It’s not even the new Africa; it’s the Africa of “nowadays” that’s what is crazy. You know what they call world music is all the traditional Africa music, which is great, but it’s not really necessarily what young African’s listen too. Now, people have the Internet, and the whole record industry really has changed. People think more and research more for music, so they discover more interesting things to listen to, it’s a great time!
Working in the US did you work with a lot of American artists?
We worked with many artists; we worked with Piranha Head from Detroit, coming from the house scene there. Then in New York we recorded with Mr. Brian Jackson, who composed the music to The Bottle from Gil Scott Heron. We worked with Mr. Eric Roberson that we love dearly. We recorded with Carol Riddick of Philadelphia. We worked also with J. Period. We worked with Blitz the Ambassador, our African American brother. That’s the return of real MCs, hallelujah!
Do you think other MCs are lacking?
It’s hard to criticize. I think that they’re lacking culture. I don’t think that they’re lacking skills. You know they can rap fast, you know they sometimes can rhyme. It’s just that they are lacking culture; they’re lacking vision. They’re lacking hip-hop culture. So it’s missing a lot of vision. It’s just the way it is. It’s OK.
Blast from the past: Les Nubians hit single Makeda
Do you feel that this album could be geared to win over a US following?
I don’t know about that, because the geared thing has a lot of premeditation, but what I can say is that it has more English, but that our English, it’s English as a French girl, or Afropean girls. It’s English as we speak it. It has more English because we are speaking more English, that’s it. It’s not trying to charm more Americans, because I think we would even charm them more in French. I don’t know, I have no theory about it. Its just because we speak more English, so we feel more what we speak and what we say. As we worked more in America, or in this album, sometimes the songs were coming in English, so we decided instead of trying to translate or whatever, lets keep it the way it is, and that’s how for example Nu Revolution the song is in English.
We’ve talked about the US market. What about African market?
I think South Africa’s going to have the album because they already have a system of industry there. That’s when as an artist you take your feet and you go there. We’ll be in Africa in December. Voila! When you play there you find a distributor, and also there’s the freedom people have nowadays, they have with Internet. The Internet is a blessing for Africa, because we have Internet access at every corner, so it gives less of a delay between Africa and the rest of the world. I love how the youth is running to bridge the gap in their own way. Aaah, that is so cool! I know we’ll be in Cameroon there’s going to be Kenya. Senegal’s on the list, Ivory Coast wants to jump in.
What do you think of the African artists emerging like K’naan, Asa, Nneka?
I’m proud, I’m happy, that’s what we worked for. So we’re happy the word came to pass. We met Asa in France, when she played with us. That’s where she met the record label that signed her. So it’s a story, not a family story, but kinda. We’re so happy. We’re part of the symbol that shows that, hey, it’s possible. People in America can listen to your music; especially for the African European. I met Nneka at the beginning. She gave me her first album, back in the day in Berlin. She’s a lovely artist, so I’m super happy and proud.
What can your fans expect from Nu Revolution?
We have a sunny song, can you believe that?! It’s to show you our mood. They can expect the Nubians – the Nubians in 2010, in both languages. They’ll find hope, prayers, and blessings for now and in the future. They’ll find strength, I hope. I believe in inspiration, because if you ask me precisely which genre (it is) it’s a Les Nubians album. It’s still a mix as we always do, and it’s really difficult to tell. I can’t wait for it to be out. It’s a very world citizen’s album, which implies responsibility, awareness, and action. It also talks about travelling, because we’re travelers. It’s also talking about womanhood. It’s called Nu Revolution. In French “rêve” means dream. It’s the evolution of a dream. We’re entering another step of the dream that’s what the album is about. It’s a new revolution. Its not the revolution, “take your weapon we’re going to kill them.” Oh, no. That’s not the time we live in. But there is a revolution, a change happening. Going towards evolution. And even Eve- volution: the evolution of women. Women are evolving they have to evolve, I mean they are anyway, not that they were retarded, just that they have been shut down for so long, they need to take their power back. They just have to continue doing it, because they have been doing it already. So those 3 three things are very important on this album. The dream, the evolution, and the woman, who are we in the evolution, as human beings, as citizens, as women as mother, as black women and so on, because all those circles, are all those circles constitute my identity. It’s about action, and energy. It’s talking about love, and many levels of love, but love.
What inspires your music?
Life inspires my music, I look around and that inspires my music. Life is the main inspiration. Books, music itself. So when you say the inspiration has changed through out the years, yes and no. Because some influences are really rooted deep, and don’t move. Influences like Fela, and people like Bob Marley, and Edith Piaf, all those influences that we have since the beginning are still there, and are there as strongly as when we first began. Then in between of course we listen to some compositions that we find very interesting, like I was telling you we have Eric Roberson, we’re so happy Eric is on the album. You know sometimes people they tell us why don’t you call big names. No you call on whom your heart and your life path bring, and that are totally meaningful, we really listen to his music. We think he’s a great songwriter, he writes songs of love in a different way with a different meaning. I love the sound of his voice, he plays in New York, he’s doing the soul night, once a month at SOBs, he was there so I was like yeah let’s see if we can try to do something. I like these kinds of encounters, its really meaningful. I’ve been listening to a lot of Brazilian music, which is still part of my influence. I like the way they mixed the roots with the now, while protecting the future, I think they are very brilliant. I listen to a lot of house music too. There’s one song on this album, that’s sort of THE ballad of the album, this song was written at the end of the first album and we kept the song for more than 10 years with us, and now it’s out. It wasn’t good timing for the song. It’s a song about a couple each person in the couple; depending on the verse it’s the person who stays in the home, or the person who travels to accomplish a mission to build this palace of love and peace for both. That was a song that we wrote in the first album when we were thinking about being women artists and what we’re going to do with our boyfriends, how to explain to them that we’re going to be gone for months, “stand by me, I need you to stand by me strong, as I would stand strong for you.”
And how has that worked in real life?
It doesn’t work. I mean there’s no such thing. Maybe that’s why we didn’t put it in the first album. Now that we’re putting it in this album now, maybe it’s going to manifest, because I said it, so maybe it will help manifest it.
It’s interesting to see women on the road, not shifting back to typical family life.
It’s a balance you have to do, and the two are very important. And also it’s a process of non-guiltiness facing the society. Because everyday people want to put their guilt on you, like “How could you? You’re the mother?” But you have to have that part of the fulfillment of life. That’s what allows me to be happy at home.
Do you feel more of that guilt as an African woman?
I felt that guilt in beginning, but I brought myself to refuse to carry that guilt because I felt my mission was bigger than that. I’m not saying bigger than being a mother, but bigger than that. For me the kids are also the kids of their father, the children of my clan, and the children of his clan. It takes a village to raise a child. All of that is very important. Like the music is part of me, and they always know that. I toured with the babies, but I’m home too and when I’m home I’m home.
I feel like you should write a book.
Les Nubians: I have to think about it.
Click below to hear Les Nubians new single Liberte
Wozela: A Post-World Cup Revival of the Vuvuzela
August 25th, 2010If you’re like us you’re probably just about getting over your post-World Cup blues. Your now useless vuvuzela laying in the corner serving as a constant reminder of the good times, and tears shed during the epic WC2010.
There may not be a fix for your blues until 2014, however some brilliant minds from South Africa have come up with a way to keep your Vuvuzela relevant beyond deafening your neighbor during a soccer match. Wozela is an ingenious campaign, accepting submission (until September 30th, 2010) from Vuvuzela lovers around the world, on crafty ways to revamp the horn and make it useful in an effort to curb waste.
Submissions have included Vuvu inspired gardening tools, bangle stands, and a Mel Gibson Vuvu Muzzle …yes, really.
The most innovative (and realistically usable) models are submitted to local craftsmen who get to keep the proceeds made from the contraptions. Sounds like a double win.
So check out the site, if not to submit your own idea, for some of the laughable concepts like the Vuvu-Tinkle-Sprinkle-Protector.
Get to Know: The Very Best
June 21st, 2010You know that feeling you get when you hear a song for the first time, you’re not sure what it is exactly, but it hits your soul, setting your hips to a sway, and your head bobbing. This was the feeling at the Roots Picnic a few weeks ago when The Very Best took the stage. Their brand of electronica infused Afropop ceasing the attention of the inebriated crowd, and initiating a slower imitation of the fervent rhythm of the gyrating back up dancers . AfriPOP! caught up with Esau Mwamwaya and Johan Karlberg after their high energy performance to chat about the upcoming mixtape, their love for Malawi, and their thoughts on giving away free music…
African Fashion Goes Global
May 31st, 2010Anisa Mpungwe gives you Loin Cloth and Ashes
May 21st, 2010
In February Loin Cloth and Ashes joined the list of fashion labels to receive a coveted spot in the Arise African Collective Fashion Show at New York fashion week. Meet the face behind the label, Tanzania’s own Anisa Mpungwe. Ever since she won Elle South Africa’s New Talent Competition in 2008, Ms. Mpungwe has become a force to be reckoned with in the Fashion world, at home and on the international stage. We caught up with the style maven, to get a little more insight on the designer.
AfriPOP: Could you tell us a little about yourself? Life growing up, and winding up in Fashion?
Anisa: I’ve had a really blessed life if I was compared to an average African child. I went to a good school, had respectable friends and an excellent behavior was what was expected of me as I was an Ambassador’s (Tanzania to South Africa) child. School life back then was well scheduled and I had plenty after school activities. But in my heart of heart I was a rebel with a cause. I wanted to be different and not follow the expected footsteps of being a Doctor, Lawyer etc. Fashion chose me at the right time and has been with me ever since. When I realized that I could make what I drew, well nothing could stop me from then onwards. I did everything possible to learn its language.
AfriPOP: Why are you a designer, i.e. what draws you to create fashion?
Anisa: I think the need to for freshness in ideas is what drives me to create and invent. I’m a true Gemini I need to be inspired at all times otherwise I’m left useless like a flat battery. So I do a lot of traveling and speak to all sorts of people and try many new things (except snails…mm still working on that one). Like I remember when I was 14 I saw kids going to horse riding lessons. I’d never done it before nor owed a pair of boots and jodhpurs but I wanted to do it just to know. I did it, broke a few bones; I would never ride again but I explicitly describe the excruciating pain you feel the first time you ride a horse.
AfriPOP: What has the journey been like since you won the Elle New Talent competition?
Anisa: After winning Elle New Talent I didn’t realize that I was about to enter a world of wonder, amazement and frustration. I got crash courses on thinking like businesswoman, how to create a garment for a specific type of client, how to be creative in my own way but still be profitable. I learnt how to handle stress before, during and after a show, How to conduct a working environment and educate my tailors and seamstresses, and how to market myself.
Wande Coal Hits NYC For His US Debut.
March 18th, 2010
Its a stormy saturday night in an industrial, unfrequently ventured nook of Brooklyn. In a warehouse-turned-club, thousands await the arrival of Nigeria’s golden boy: Wande Coal. The sold out show would be part of Coal’s US debut since the release of critically acclaimed and widely bootlegged “Mushin to Mo Hits,” an album considered a classic in Nigerian households worldwide.
Following a series of yet to be recognized artists, feet began to shuffle with a restlessness that accompanies a five-hour wait. With a subtle presentation, but an explosive entry the man of the hour took the stage, making the wait was a thing of the past. Wande Coal moved swiftly from one end to another, with an energy appearing to be fueled by the screams spilling out from a sea of fans. Performing hits from “Taboo” to “Kiss Your Hand,” Coal gripped the audiences attention, the pulsating energy in the room would soon spike to new heights…
With the bass line of “Bumper 2 Bumper” emerged the current Pop King of Nigeria, Kokomaster a.k.a. D’banj. If you’re paying attention to the clip above you’ll notice the shakiness comes not from a trembling hand, but from a stampede of crazed fans vying for proximity to the superstar.The duo closed out the set with crowd favorite “You Bad,” soliciting a call and response in the last moments before exiting the stage, leaving the crowd begging for an encore that would not occur.
AfriPOP! interview: Dawn Okoro
March 9th, 2010A lady outfitted in a costume suited for the finest dandy. A girl carefully crops out her face as she snaps her nude body with her camera phone. A dewy-faced, wet-lipped American Apparel model. These are the images that have inspired Ms. Dawn Okoro. Vibrant, sensual, and human are the oil on canvas paintings interpreting glossy fashion ads. With her recent move to New York, the part-Nigerian law student turned contemporary fine artist, is swiftly gaining recognition in these mean streets, having recently closed an exhibition at Harlem’s Renaissance Fine Arts Gallery. We previously featured Dawn Okoro’s work on the site, but we decided to catch up with her, in an attempt to gain entry into the mind of the gifted painter.
Afripopmag: When did you decide to pursue the art of painting?
Dawn Okoro: In law school, I painted, and during that time and it helped me pay my rent. I did commissions and sold original pieces that I made. After that, I knew that life wasn’t for me. I just couldn’t see myself being in a courtroom everyday. So from then on I just had to pursue the art. I went to law school in Houston Texas, and that’s where I met an artist named William Cordova. He introduced me to a lot of different options that I didn’t know about for being an artist so that was really encouraging. I guess that was something I got out of going to law school.
Why did you move to New York?
I moved to pursue art, and I thought it would be a faster pace than Texas and more result-oriented. I thought I could accelerate things by moving out here.
So, why do you paint?
I grew up drawing a lot so I think painting was a natural progression from that. I was able to make the work more expressive through the paint. I love bright, saturated colors. I like to paint because it can be so grand if I want it to be.
What inspires you?
I’m inspired by fashion a lot, by fashion advertising, by popular culture, and human interactions, body language.
5 African-culture blogs you oughta know
February 23rd, 2010
With everyone’s interest suddenly peaking on our continent, we figure you’re probably out there Googling like crazy, trying to step up your cool with Africa knowledge. Well we’re here to curb your appetite with five blogs you need in your life. These guys do the dirty work so you don’t have to, bringing you everything from technology, to fashion, to mixtures only cratediggers could get their hands on. Check out our regimen of essential blogs to get you started,
Afrigadget: Innovation! Innovation! Innovation! Afrigadget is your guide to new ideas and the ingenuity of African inventors. The site is an ode to Africa’s creators using the little they have to come up with technological advancements and solutions to deal with everyday problems.
Fashion Africa: Like African fashion? Love FashionAfrica.com. An extension of Haute Magazine’s, the blog provides an extensive list of established and up and coming designers of African descent, and interviews with some of the most promising talent…
Ermenegildo Zegna to open store in Nigeria
February 16th, 2010Last year the the New York Times announced “Suddenly Africa is Everywhere!”. Africa was in movies, on the catwalks and on our newstands. The realization that Africa is being rebranded from an international charity case, into a rapidly emerging market, is sending some brands running to stake a claim in the once ignored continent.
Joining the list of luxury brands opening up storefronts in Africa, is Ermenildo Zegna. The Italian luxury brand will be exploring uncharted waters, as it prepares to open a store in Nigeria. With a 2010 date yet to be announced, the opening comes from, chief executive, Gildo Zegna’s resolve to explore markets in Nigeria and Angola.