Essays Archives - Page 2 of 18

·September 15, 2024·13 min read

Mohbad: One Year After, Questions Remain – Toni Kan

MohBad stamped his foot firmly in the Nigerian musical firmament with the release of his song, Ponmo, a risqué and infectious ditty featuring Naira Marley and Lil Kesh. It opens with a reference to a woman’s vagina and then trundles downhill from there. The streets loved it. The salaciousness , the lewdness and the seeming panting of rabid dogs after Ponmo which is shorthand for you-know-what.

Essays

·August 25, 2024·4 min read

4 Verses for Tam Fiofori who did not come to this world to faff around – Deinbofa Ere

Tam lived in his soul; wholly, for the cackle at the end of his laughter. Those who heard it knew it. He lived for the sheer joy of his work and others. Oh his work, for which he suffered, for which he tortured himself. He did not quite believe in how f-cking good he was. He sought perfection that did not exist. He discarded what others would keep and he had a great fear of success; of the opulence and attention and grief it brought.

Literary Essays

·August 11, 2024·5 min read

Adulting as a wannabe writer – Aroh Anthonia Ifeoma

You will write long letters home, letters that will never make it home, because if your mom ever reads them, she’ll tell you “come back home, omo mi, at least there is food in your mother’s house ”. And she will nag you until you do, even though you do want to.

Essays

·August 4, 2024·3 min read

I remember the day Onyeka Onwenu lost her cool — Uzor Maxim Uzoatu

The sonorous songstress Onyeka Onwenu has just passed, but my duty here...

Literary Essays

·July 28, 2024·4 min read

In Things Fall Apart: Who is the hero between Okonkwo and Unoka? – James Eze

The profundity of these presumably simple words of consolation combines effectively with his wise saying about the sun to bestow the toga of an unsung philosopher on Unoka, thus setting the stage for endless dialogue on his character.

Essays

·July 21, 2024·4 min read

My Guru Tam Fiofori departs — Uzor Maxim Uzoatu

Sad news hit me hard on Tuesday, June 25, in this year of Our Lord – my inimitable guru Tam Fiofori passed away. Tam was in his lifetime celebrated as...

Essays Interviews/Profiles

·June 30, 2024·6 min read

Four deaths and no funeral – Toni Kan

Tam Fiofori, who hailed from Okrika was born in 1942 and would go on to distinguish himself as a polymath; photographer, writer, journalist, artist manager and raconteur who could hold you spell bound for hours with riveting tales of escapades and encounters around the world.

Essays

·June 30, 2024·5 min read

Tam Fiofori writes on Protest Music in Nigeria from Fela to Eedris

On the global music scene Protest Music is as old as music itself; a medium that lends itself as an easy and enjoyable means of mass communication. Most popular musicians have one or few songs that can be classified as Protest Music while some make a trademark of it.

Essays

·June 23, 2024·3 min read

Colonial “dependency syndrome” and the Case against Nigeria’s “new” anthem – Yinka Adetu

By clinging to this anachronistic anthem, Nigeria unveils a disconnect between its past and present, neglecting the opportunity to forge a unifying national identity that truly reflects its people's hopes, dreams, and realities.

Essays

·June 5, 2024·4 min read

My mourned soulmate Pita Okute — Uzor Maxim Uzoatu

I am in tears as I write the words here. It has...

Migration and the Writer

·May 12, 2024·11 min read

Dreams, Mistakes and Memories of my Father – Hymar David

My father left me everything: his library, his Christian Women Mirror magazines, his face and the memory of his disappointment the first time I told him I wanted to be a writer. I remember the evening well.

Migration and the Writer

·April 14, 2024·17 min read

Usain Bolting to Sylt Island – Nkiacha Atemnkeng

You had tried to picture what Sylt life would be like, but it seemed so different from what you knew that you could not summon a proper mental image of the island, nor island life. Even the googled images did not help

Wizkid’s Morayo: A Sonically Rich and Thematically Inconsistent Experience – Michael Kolawole

On adedamola, Fireboy returns to dazzling form – Michael Kolawole

Asake’s “Lungu Boy”: A bold but wonky attempt at reinvention – Michael Kolawole

Confronting menopause and aging: A review of Miranda July’s All Fours—Olukorede S. Yishau

Chimamanda elevates the quotidian into genius – Precious Nzeakor

Of dreams we hold dear and the weight of their loss – Olukorede S Yishau

Descent into the Underground World Of Baby Farming: A Review Of “Baby Farm” – Precious Nzeakor.

Omoni Oboli’s Love In Every Word delivers maximum thrills– Michael Kolawole

Ola Cardoso’s “Suky” evokes more déjà vu than excitement – Michael Kolawole

LAMDA’s production of James Baldwin’s “The Amen Corner” interrogates Christian charity – Toni Kan

Intriguing Insights into Reincarnation: A review of Cheta Igbokwe’s “Awele” — Nenye Okoye

With “Wedlock of the Gods,” professor brings Nigerian storytelling and culture to USC main stage — Chinyere Amobi

Time is Different in Toronto – Chidera Udochukwu-Nduka

Remembering Kole Omotoso — Uzor Maxim Uzoatu

FirstBank’s DecemberIssaVybe lights up Lagos with Davido concert — Farouk Mohammed

The Lagos Review: Best of 2024

I try to find that sweet spot between substance and form — Michael Afenfia

Toni Kan in Conversation with Nels Abbey who says – My favourite book would be The Coldest Winter Ever by Sister Souljah.

‘The Call’ is nondiscriminatory and everybody will enjoy it — Dr Bisi Adigun

KAP Film Village: Makinde promises road, electricity as Musawa hails creative industry

Poetry Fund opens call for 2025 grants to amplify diverse voices

11 Years Post-Chibok Abduction: Lasisi advocates for captives in new poetry video

Essays

Mohbad: One Year After, Questions Remain – Toni Kan

4 Verses for Tam Fiofori who did not come to this world to faff around – Deinbofa Ere

Adulting as a wannabe writer – Aroh Anthonia Ifeoma

I remember the day Onyeka Onwenu lost her cool — Uzor Maxim Uzoatu

In Things Fall Apart: Who is the hero between Okonkwo and Unoka? – James Eze

My Guru Tam Fiofori departs — Uzor Maxim Uzoatu

Four deaths and no funeral – Toni Kan

Tam Fiofori writes on Protest Music in Nigeria from Fela to Eedris

Colonial “dependency syndrome” and the Case against Nigeria’s “new” anthem – Yinka Adetu

My mourned soulmate Pita Okute — Uzor Maxim Uzoatu

Dreams, Mistakes and Memories of my Father – Hymar David

Usain Bolting to Sylt Island – Nkiacha Atemnkeng

‘Aso Ebi Diaries’ hits cinemas this Easter weekend

Ada Ehi, Frank Edwards & Limoblaze join forces in uplifting single ‘Otua’

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