🔅 Music: Why Kenya Struggles While South Africa & Nigeria Dominate
Plus, Achieng Agutu Shines in SI Swimsuit & Burkina Faso Mourns a Tragic Loss
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Brief & Bright: Africa's Top Five
African Music: Why Does South Africa and Nigeria Take Only the Stage, and Kenya Misses the Beat?
In the grand musical chairs of the Grammy Awards, when the music stopped for the inaugural Best African Music Performance category in November 2023, only South Africa and Nigeria found seats. Amapiano and Afrobeats are the continent's chart-topping genres, consistently leaving the rest of Africa's 54 countries in a curious silence. This was especially a plot twist for Kenya, a cultural Goliath that somehow can't seem to get its groove on the global dance floor.
Kenya, despite boasting bands like Sauti Sol, which has somewhat broken into the continental scene through collaborations, still plays catch-up to its South African and Nigerian counterparts. Even on home turf, Kenyan airwaves are serenaded by the sweet sounds of Amapiano, Afrobeats, and Tanzania's Bongo Flava, yet leave Kenya's own tunes in the dust.
The music industry's big guns—Universal Music Group, Warner Music, and Sony Music—have pitched their tents in Nigeria and South Africa, promising a pan-African talent hunt. Yet, again, Kenyan artists seem to be missing from their lineup.Â
The diagnosis?Â
A crisis of musical identity, according to Nairobi's music sage Tabu Osusa. Click here to read more on why Kenya has been unable to break onto the global music scene.
Achieng Agutu: Dazzling in the Spotlight as SI Swimsuit's Newest Gem
Achieng Agutu, better known as the radiance royalty or the "confidence queen," is the latest sensation to grace the SI Swimsuit edition, marking its 60th anniversary with a splash. At 27, Agutu has been announced as a co-winner of the 2023 Swim Search, catapulting her to a dreamy photoshoot in Mexico.Â
There, amidst the scenic beauty, Kenya-born Agutu opened up about her rookie feature, the essence of beauty, and much more.
Burkina Faso's Tragedy: 170 Killed
Burkina Faso was shaken to its core when insurgents unleashed terror on the unsuspecting villages of Komsilga, Nordin, and Soro, leaving a devastating toll of 170 lives lost, with women and children among the primary victims. This macabre act, shrouded in mystery with the perpetrators still at large, has cast a dark shadow over the nation.
Aly Benjamin Coulibaly, the public prosecutor, is appealing for witnesses to come forward in a bid to unmask the villains behind these acts. The backdrop to this tragedy is a country caught in a relentless grip of violence despite the military's coup in 2022 under the banner of restoring peace and order. Their mission, however, seems to be floundering, as more than a third of Burkina Faso remains under the control of rebels, painting a grim picture of a battle far from won.
Amidst this chaos, the humanitarian crisis escalates, with the UN spotlighting the dire situation of children under five, a quarter of whom suffer from stunted growth due to malnutrition.
Kenya-Haiti Deal Signed
Kenya's latest export to Haiti won't be tea or coffee, but a battalion of 1,000 police officers bound for its streets. This plan has been marinating in controversy, and legal skirmishes from the word go. Prime Minister Ariel Henry of Haiti landed in Kenya on Friday to dot the i's and cross the t's on this daring initiative. Despite Kenya's High Court throwing a judicial spanner in the works by branding the plan unconstitutional back in January, the legal deadlock was seemingly resolved with a "reciprocal agreement" handshake.
President William Ruto of Kenya, playing the role of the global peacekeeper, announced the signing of this agreement, painting it as a "historic duty." The timeline for this police parade is still up in the air, but the gears are evidently in motion for a deployment aimed at bringing peace to the chaos in Haiti, where 80% of the streets are run by gangs.
However, not everyone's breaking out the welcome banners. Kenyan critics, armed with a laundry list of grievances against their own police force's track record, are raising eyebrows over exporting such expertise. The force's resume, dotted with human rights question marks and a less-than-stellar performance against crime, has many wondering if they're the right fit for the job.
Adding another layer of complexity is the question of legitimacy, with some pointing out that Haiti's Prime Minister Henry, stepping into leadership unelected following President Jovenel Moïse's assassination, might not have the constitutional standing to ink such deals.
Food for Thought
“The young bird does not crow until it hears the old ones."
— Tswana Proverb