Culture & Society

In a world where women are told all the things they can or cannot do, Chigozie Obi’s art creates a world where women exist in unbounded freedom. Bleeding, smoking, staring into space: we are ushered into a world where women can just be.

For decades, Nigeria has served as a talent pool for international basketball leagues but has failed to capitalize on its youth potential. The advent of a new administration provides an opportunity for a renewed and revised policy approach.

The story of Lagos, or at least a major section of it, would be incomplete without a chapter on those who provide the fuel needed to keep the people of this megacity constantly moving: street food. Consider Iya Eba restaurant, which, for more than 50 years, has contributed to the history of Lagos one plate at a time.

In addition to the rise in collaboration between Afrobeats artists and western musicians, there has been increased ‘Pan-African’ collaborations with older, more traditional African artists. Are these collaborations motivated by pursuit of international accolades or genuine creative expression?

In response to the violence Black people around the world routinely face, Nigerian photographer, Isabel Okoro has been situating her work in what she terms ‘normatopia’. A normatopia is normal, not perfect; a middle ground between the harshness of reality and the dreaminess of utopias.

Zlatan Ibile dreamed of football, wealth, and escaping Ikorodu, with no thought for music. Today, music is his key to global fame and fortune. From Ikorodu’s concrete, a flower blooms against all odds.