Africa: Pianist Abdullah Ibrahim Crafted a Magnificent New Culture for South Africa

Adolph Johannes Brand was born on 9 October 1934 in Cape Town. He would become better known as Dollar Brand and then Abdullah Ibrahim, an artist of mixed ethnic descent who… Read more »

South Africa: How Traditional Music Helps the Elderly in a South African Care Centre

Being an elderly person in South Africa presents a range of challenges. Apartheid shaped diverse experiences of ageing and elderly care along racial and ethnic lines. In the… Read more »

Uganda: Uganda's Bobi Wine On the Books (And Songs) That Shape His Politics

Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, popularly known as Bobi Wine, is a Ugandan music star and political leader currently in exile. Framing his movement as a "people power" struggle by… Read more »

Zimbabwe: Rock Art, Dance and Ritual - What We Learned From Paintings in Zimbabwe

Rock paintings are found throughout Zimbabwe. They were made during the last 10,000 years by hunter gatherer groups and later by farming communities. Read more »

Mali: Mali's Maestro of African Salsa - How Boncana Maïga Shaped Dance Music

The passing of celebrated Malian flautist, composer and arranger Boncana Maïga at the age of 77 truly marks the end of an era in the music of west Africa. Read more »

Ghana: Ebo Taylor Took Highlife to the World and Changed Ghanaian Music Forever

The news of the passing of Ghanaian highlife star Ebo Taylor on 7 February 2026 felt less like the loss of a public musical figure and more like the closing of a living chapter of… Read more »

Africa: Dance Scenes in South African Rock Art - a Closer Look At Ritual, Music and Movement

Rock art is widespread across southern Africa and includes a wide range of depictions such as human figures, animals, dots, handprints, and other painted or engraved imagery on… Read more »

Nigeria: Revolutionary Rap - Nigerian Star Falz Has Kept Protest Music Alive

Nigerian rapper, actor and social media star Falz released his sixth studio album, The Feast, in 2025. Read more »

South Africa: Pops Mohamed Mixed Old and New to Reinvent South African Music

Ismail Mohamed-Jan - better known by South African jazz fans as Pops Mohamed - has passed away at the age of 75. His life in music represented a struggle against narrow, oppressive… Read more »

Nigeria: Fela and Food - How Lagos Restaurants Are Serving Up the Music Star's Legacy

In Lagos, Nigeria's commercial and creative capital, food is doing something unusual. It's keeping alive the spirit of a musician. Read more »

South Africa: Kippie Moeketsi's Global Influence - What Made the South African Saxophonist So Great

One of the most influential artists in South Africa's rich history of jazz is Kippie Moeketsi. He was born on 27 July 2025 and passed away at only 57. Read more »

South Africa: Kippie Moeketsi At 100 - the Soul-Stirring Story of a South African Jazz Legend

It's 100 years since the birth of reedman Jeremiah Morolong "Kippie" Moeketsi on 27 July 1925. He was one of the most influential saxophonists shaping South Africa's modern jazz… Read more »

South Africa: Feya Faku As I Knew Him - a Tribute to the Great South African Jazz Trumpeter

Lex Futshane, the South African bass player in the 1992 student band NU Jazz Connection, was the first to tell me that the great South African jazz trumpeter Feya Faku had died… Read more »

Nigeria: Detty December Started As a Nigerian Cultural Moment. Now It's Spreading Across the Continent - and Minting Money

Every December in Nigeria and Ghana a giant party takes place, unfolding in a whirlwind of concerts, festivals, weddings, art shows, dress-ups, meet-ups and travel. Locals and… Read more »

Africa: Why Hip-Hop Needs to Be Taken More Seriously in Academic Circles

Jazz's current generation of stars grew up in these genre-fluid times with hip-hop. Concurrently, a significant number of hip-hop artists have been integrating jazz into their… Read more »