Arts + Culture
Nok terracottas: the ancient Nigerian sculptures found by tin miners
The Nok culture of central Nigeria produced some of the oldest known figurative sculpture in sub-Saharan Africa, terracotta…
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Arts + Culture
Asafo flags: the Fante war banners that turned proverbs into appliqué art
Fante Asafo companies, traditional military groups of Ghana's Central Region, carry bold appliqué flags that illustrate proverbs and…
Music
Hailu Mergia: the Ethiopian keyboard star who became a Washington taxi driver
Hailu Mergia played keyboards with Ethiopia's Walias Band in the 1970s. After a 1981 US tour, he stayed…
Music
S.E. Rogie: the Sierra Leone tailor whose palm wine guitar reached the world
S.E. Rogie, born in 1926 in Sierra Leone, was a self-taught guitarist who ran a tailor's shop before…
Music
Zaïko Langa Langa: the 1969 Kinshasa student band that reshaped Congolese rumba
Zaïko Langa Langa was founded in Kinshasa in December 1969 by young musicians who gave Congolese rumba a…
Arts + Culture
Benga: the Kenyan guitar sound built on the Luo nyatiti, and its champion D.O. Misiani
Benga, Kenya's best-known popular music, grew from Luo musicians adapting the rhythms of the nyatiti lyre to electric…
Music
Simphiwe Dana: the Transkei singer hailed as the new Miriam Makeba
Simphiwe Dana, born in 1980 in the former Transkei, released her debut Zandisile in 2004. Its mix of…
Music
Haruna Ishola: the father of apala who kept Western instruments out of his music
Haruna Ishola, widely regarded as the father of apala, began recording around 1955 and became one of Nigeria's…
Music
I.K. Dairo: the juju star who brought the accordion to Yoruba music and got an MBE
I.K. Dairo, born around 1930, is often called the father of juju. He introduced the accordion and harmonica…
Music
Jewel Ackah: the Prince of Highlife from Axim who wrote “Arise, Arise”
Jewel Ackah, born in Axim in the Western Region, sang with C.K. Mann's Carousel Seven and the Sweet…