Category: Pop Culture
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Keeping E-Sir Alive
For a brief moment in 2003, my favourite musician, E-Sir, would come back from the dead. It had been a few months since the news had reached us through the smuggled Palito Scan radio sets we hid from the pervading eyes of the teachers on duty. The news had broken me because I had loved…
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A Reminiscence Of P-Unit In 11 Parts
I “Wahenga walidedi, wakaacha watoi. Watoi hao hawangeitwa wahenga, so wakaitwa wagenge.” — Bon’Eye, 2008 I received the news of Sauti Sol’s impending breakup with joy. I was hosting some friends for lunch when someone, glancing at her phone, gasped. “Sauti Sol have announced that they are taking a break.” Around the room, there were…
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Polite Society, A Review
One of the best depictions of Muslim women I’ve come across in the media is the show “We Are Lady Parts” by Nida Manzoor. So, after a friend recommended that I watch the movie “Polite Society” which was written and directed by Manzoor as well, I was sure I’d love it right away. The 2023…
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Loving Vincent, A Review
If there ever was a film that was truly a labour of love it would be “Loving Vincent”. A biographical drama about the life and death of the person considered to be the father of modern art, Vincent Van Gogh. To put this into perspective, the film is an experimental adult animation with each of…
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Nine and a Half Short Notes on Faustin Munishi (A Brief History of Gospel Music in Kenya)
1 My mother’s answer leaves me disappointed when I ask her about the musician whose cassettes we listened to every Saturday morning. I want her to say Pastor Faustin Munishi because that is the story I have in my head: my mother, the weekend, chores, laughter, music, Munishi. But she says, blankly, as she goes…
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12 Angry Men. A Review.
The Breakfast Club. Murder on the Orient Express. Speed. I’ve always loved bottle movies – those that take place in one location for their entire duration, or most of it. I feel like it’s such a significant challenge for the cast and crew to make it work – to get and hold my attention from…
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Diary Of A DJ: The WhineDown
“Aki mum, it wasn’t even that short…” This is how I found myself being my own defense lawyer, on a Sunday afternoon phone call with my mother. You see, my mother doesn’t watch her WhatsApp stories, but my father does. And in a good marriage, there are no secrets. As my father swiped through the…
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The Legacy of X FM in a Post-Streaming World
For my formative years, my scope of music was defined by, and limited to, the risquè conversations of 88.4 KISS 100, the faint English accents of Capital FM, the smooth jams of Easy FM, the throwbacks of Classic FM, not to forget the urban dancefloor hits of Channel O and MTV Base. This was the…
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My Boiler Room Blues
I’ve been watching Boiler Room since I was a teenager. Through the wormhole of Youtube, I would be transported to the glistening dancefloors of Paris, London, New York, and Berlin, among other far flung locales. Vicariously sampling their underground music scenes. Boiler Room is an online music broadcast which hosts dance music events, with a…
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A Santuri and Nyama Fest At Jimmy Rugami’s
It was the fifth year in a row that Jimmy Rugami, Nairobi’s famous record man, was hosting vinyl buffs at his store at Kenyatta Market. It was Record Store Day (RSD), a global event that is the equivalent of Christmas Day for vinyl lovers, celebrated on Saturday 22 April this year. It was a feast…