5 days, 1 Ghana! – Day 2: Chops, more chops, even more chops!

Day 2: History, Nature, Shax, Shake Bodi small…

• One day excursion to Cape Coast. Visiting the Cape coast castle and Kakum National Parks

Evening Options:

• Hit Reggae club/show @ Labadi Beach Hotel
• Drinks at The Honeysuckle (English style pub. Great food, great crowd)

Explore Alliance Françoise for events

Day 2: Chops, more chops, even more chops, shax, shake bodi small…

As expected, plans started to change a little bit. My itinerary was optimized for a solo trip but after having connected with some really cool Ghana peeps, I was now privy to some other local activities and had a lot more options. The day got off to a slow start and I got the 411 on a BBQ that was going down in Osu later that day. We decided to reschedule the History/Nature tour for the next day and I went over to my new friends place in Abelemkpe for an amazing breakfast of peanut soup and rice balls. I’m not entirely sure if that is a typical Ghanaian breakfast but it was certainly was the stuff  champions are made of! On the way to Abelemkpe, after roaming charges had eaten up all my MTN-Naija credit, I picked up a local SIM card for GH1.50 in the traffic on Olusegun Obasanjo Way. A well constructed dual carriage way going through the heart of Accra. Not sure what that story is with that, but I got nothing bad to say about the man. By now I was starting to form my initial impressions about Ghana. Extremely nice and pleasant people, oozing a sense of cultural pride and patriotism. Fairly solid infrastructure, good roads and the supply of electricity hadn’t even blinked once. Overall, things were looking very promising and I was feeling Ghana.

For some strange reason, it was all a blur after breakfast and the next thing I remember was departing for the BBQ. Upon arrival, the first thing I noticed was this ingenious mobile punch dispenser. (In case you were wondering what that was! Lol). That was a scream! I am not ashamed to say that I soon became his #1 customer. Very nice setup, plenty of food and drink, DJ spinning some nice reggae jams in one corner. We caught the remains of some animal that had been roasted whole. There seemed to be some sort of ceremony around that and someone was kind enough to educate me on the process.

Step 1: Roast a whole animal, set aside the head and the entrails.

Step 2: Consume the roasted animal.

Step 3: Use the entrails collected in step 1 to prepare pepper soup.

Step 4: Consume the pepper soup. (This usually performs a soft reset on your system, brings you back under the legal limit and kicks off the after party).

Step 5: Next morning, the head that was collected in step 1 is cooked and “consummated”. (Kindly note that this is for the survivors only!).

Overall, a very nice BBQ. Despite strutting around in a green and white t-shirt proudly proclaiming that I was NaijaMade, I was welcomed with open arms and lots and lots of punch. Several random conversations with random people revealed that we had some friends in common. It’s such a small world man! People, you for always try to do good o!

Since some of us didn’t make it past Step 2, we opted for the less hardcore version… A late night visit to Casa Muina for some fish peppersoup and some samosas while we were waiting. (Both heavenly, I might add!). The queen of the castle really could throw down!

Headed home shortly after to get some rest since we had a long day ahead of us and needed to get an early start.

Killer Day 2 overall and as my dear friend Spyda always says… “The owner of the something is the chopper and not the hungry man!”

5 days, 1 Ghana! – Day 1: Road trip, Hotel Check in, chop, baff and tins!

Road trip from Lagos to Accra with mid afternoon arrival. Checkin, relax. Quick taxi ride to La Palm Beach to hang out for the rest of the day. (Thai massage at La Palm Beach Hotel is said to be the best in Ghana!). One minute away from the hotel is the Artists Alliance for a variety of souvenirs & all types of art from paintings, sculptures, postcards, etc.

I set out at about 5:30am that morning. I had purchased a round trip ticket on the second bus to Accra for N12,900 and was scheduled to depart from the Amuwo Odofin Bus Terminal at 7:30am. For some strange reason, I thought our estimated arrival time in Ghana was at about 2:30pm but that was not the case at all. I should have known I was in for an interesting trip when we ended up in the middle of Festac after obtaining directions from some area boys. After we drove around in circles for about 15 minutes, we employed the use of a third world, turn-by-turn GPS Navigation system (Okada) to get us to the bus terminal. (Sidebar: I was surprised at the number of people jogging early that morning in Festac!). I finally arrived at the terminal and was instructed to go confirm my ticket and weigh my luggage before departure.

Oga, dis na virgin passport, you have to pay N400 for stamping.

What do you mean? I have used this passport many times before. See now…

Have you ever travelled to Ghana… by road?

Um.. No.

You have to pay for the stamping. It is N400.

Ok.

Oga, do you have yellow card?

No.

Oga, you need yellow card to enter Ghana but you can pay N400 for medical clearance.

Ok.

Shortly after, I completed my weigh in (yes, they charge for excess luggage on the bus o!), security and luggage search and boarded the bus. As we idled, a young well dressed man came onboard and introduced himself as Associate Pastor Humble. He was here to pray for safe travels and journey mercies. He led us in praise and worship, shared a quick sermon and then prayed. Some other passengers requested personalized prayers and for a small “gift” he would pray for them.  About 20 minutes later, we finally left the bus terminal two hours after the scheduled time.

Good morning passengers. My name is Euphemia and will be your hostess today. Our driver will be Mr Calistus. We also have an NDLEA officer on the bus who will accompany us to Seme Border. We shall be crossing three borders today: Seme Border between Nigeria and Bene Republic, the border between Bene Republic and Togo and the border between Togo and Ghana.

Please be advised that the toilet is for urinary purposes only. Please do not go there to defecate. Be mindful of what u consume on the way. If u are so pressed, please alert us and we will stop somewhere so you can defecate.

Shortly after we departed, we were each given an ABC Transport branded travel kit containing toothpaste, a toothbrush, a comb and some other stuff. An hour into the journey, we were served with “brunch” packs containing Jollof Rice and two pieces of fried chicken. I was starving at this point and quickly wolfed it down. I chased the meal with an Odeku and had some Imodium for dessert. By now, we were well on our way and Euphemia put on some Nollywood movies and we all settled down amidst the all the side commentary for the rest of the journey.

At the Seme border, we had to get off the bus and walk across the border to the Bene Republic side. As expected, there were lots of border hustlers trying to sell you all sorts of stuff. They had everything from cheap fabric, bootleg perfumes and CD’s, shoes and chewing gum to migrant brand condoms and cigars. I actually had quite a bit of fun at the border…

Dis one na fake!

No o!  Oga, I swear, this one na original Isi Miyach.

Ok. I believe you. What of dis moccasin? Na real Sebago?

We all boarded the coach and continued our journey through Bene Republic. I slept through most of this leg of the journey and didn’t wake up till we approached the Togolese border. We were given the usual instructions to disembark and walk across the border. MTN’s roaming service promptly announced our arrival into Togo… Y’ello! MTN Nigeria wishes you a safe and productive stay in Togo. TG-Togo-Cell.

Dear passengers, we have just 15 minutes at this border. Please make it snappy. If u take more than 15 minutes, kindly find your way to the next border. If you need to ease yourself, please don’t just do it anywhere to avoid custom embarrassment. Your vehicle number remains 567.

This border seemed to have a lot more going than the previous one. It had the usual border hustlers calling you names like “Scholar” and “Yellow”, money changers and even more bootleg stuff and lots and lots of Mark Ecko t-shirts. (BTW, I am far from yellow but I guess it’s all relative. Lol!). They also had quite a lot of food for sale and I got curious…

Fried chicken, fried yam, fried turkey wings and… and…

Madam… Wetin be dis? Na nyansh?

Oga, Na Nyansh o!

I passed up the turkey “nyansh” and negotiated for some wings instead. I ducked behind a wall to take a whiz and we got back on the coach and headed for Ghana. Overall, Togo seemed a bit dry but I did notice some really beautiful and undeveloped ocean front views as we drove through the country.

I dozed off again, full of turkey wings and the last of the Odeku and woke up when we got to the Togo/Ghana border. We we required to take our luggage off the coach for a search by the Ghanaian customs. Once we had cleared customs and got back on the coach, I was shocked to find out that we were still about four hours from Accra! I promptly asked Euphemia about how to get a refund for the return leg of my trip because I quickly realized that this adventure would only be fun if it was a one way trip.

We finally made it into Accra around 8pm and I took a taxi to my hotel. A hot shower, massage and change of clothes and I was as good as new! Clearly, it was way too late to start looking for souvenirs as per my original plans but the night was still young. A friend picked me up from the hotel and we kicked off the night by having drinks at the African Regent Hotel (check). I ran into my brothers friend there and they were on their way to Bella Rosa to get something to eat so we decided to tag along. (I actually ran into another friend at Bella Rosa!). I overheard someone talking about going to “Efos” to get some chicken and rice and signed up for that instead. That was a meal that I won’t forget in a hurry. It was nice man!

Overall, a great Day 1 in Ghana… Check!

5 days, 1 Ghana! – Day 0

For many years, I have been thinking of visiting Ghana. I finally decided to make it happen as part of my last trip to Nigeria and put an itinerary together. A combination of Google, Timeout Accra and feedback from a very nice someborri produced the itinerary below. To make the trip even more interesting, I decided to travel by road (i.e. public transportation) to Ghana from Lagos. (Many thought I had lost it at this point!).

This is the first installment of a multi part series. Yeah, I had that much fun in Ghana!

Day 1: Road trip, Hotel Check in, chop, baff and tins!

Road trip from Lagos to Accra with mid afternoon arrival. Checkin, relax. Quick taxi ride to La Palm Beach to hang out for the rest of the day. (Thai massage at La Palm Beach Hotel is said to be the best in Ghana!). One minute away from the hotel is the Artists Alliance for a variety of souvenirs & all types of art from paintings, sculptures, postcards, etc.

Day 2: History, Nature, Shax, Shake Bodi small…

• One day excursion to Cape Coast. Visiting the Cape coast castle and Kakum National Parks

Evening Options:

• Hit Reggae club/show @ Labadi Beach Hotel
• Drinks at The Honeysuckle (English style pub. Great food, great crowd)
• Explore Alliance Françoise for events

Day 3: Brunch, Art, Explore Accra, New Years Eve…

Late Morning Options (Brunch):

• Venus
• Melting Moments (great food, décor)

Early Afternoon:

• Visit the Art Center for good prices and variety of souvenirs
• Pass by the famous Independence Square where Kwame Nkrumah gave Ghana’s independence speech
• Shopping, city sights, souvenirs

Late Lunch Options (Bukka Style):

• Country Kitchen
• Katawodieso

Evening/Night Options:

• Cocktails @ the African Regent Hotel
• Cocktails (take II) at Rhapsody’s
• Bless the Mike @ Baze Lounge

Day 4: New Years Day! Beach, swmming, chill and serious shake bodi!

Morning/Early afternoon:

• Labadi Beach Hotel (Good restaurant, ambience & swimming)

Afternoon:

• Lunch @ Buka Restaraunt (Good food, good crowd)

Early Evening:

• Cocktails/Dinner @ Monsoon. Great sushi bar, 90% Oyinbo joint

Late Night Options:

• Remas (Soul and motion night)
• Tantra
• XL (upscale)
• Citizen Kofi (4 different dance floors with a restaurant on the top floor)

Day 5: Depart for Lagos after a smashing time in Accra!

Naija State of Mind!

With all the attention our dear country has been getting of late; the attempted Christmas day bombing, our MIA Presido, enough is enough rallys and protests, the high profile talks hinting at a failed state, my recent trip home and my resulting profiling at Newark International airport upon my return, Naija has been weighing heavily on my mind. I was on my way out of the house this morning when I was suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of patriotism and went back upstairs to Naijarize my accessories so all should recognize that I’m also “Naija Outside”.

So I got into the car and started my early morning commute to work. The Alicia Keys CD I had bought just before I left for Naija was still in heavy rotation in my CD player. One of my favorite songs on the CD, “Empire State of Mind” came on and I was merrily singing along when I suddenly realized that there was something about the song that sounded so familiar. Could she be singing about… Lagos?

You self listen well…

Famous as a place of movie Nollywood scenes…

Noise is always loud, there are sirens all around and the streets are mean…

If I can make it here, I can make it anywhere that’s what they say…

Even if it ain’t all it seems I’ve got a pocket full of dreams, baby I’m from New York Lagos…

Concrete jungle where dreams are made of, there’s nothing you can’t do…

Now you are in New York Lagos… These streets will make you feel brand new, big no light will inspire you (Just ask someone how much they spend on diesel every month to run their generators and you’ll certainly be inspired!)…

Hear it for New York Lagos…

On the Avenue Sanusi Fafunwa, there ain’t never a curfew, ladies work so hard…

Hail an gypsy cab okada… takes me from Harlem Obalende to the Brooklyn Bridge Ebutte Meta.

Speaking of which… Where is Banky? I beg, come and “Ebutte metta” this one for us too! (I have since been informed that Banky did not disappoint and already has the Lagos remix in circulation. I beg, who get am?)

I’ve thought about this one hundred and one ways and there is no one I would rather be than a Nigerian. Being Naija is what makes it possible for me to speak big grammar in front of  executive management and also tear broken while negotiating with the dude selling bootleg CDs in Lagos traffic. (Ol boy, whish wan you dey naaa?). It is what allows me to travel from Lagos to Accra by PT (big up ABC Transport Company) and then check into one of the best hotels in Ghana for the night. It’s what taught me how to confidently rock a double Windsor at work and then totally rock some old school guinea brocade or Ankara at the owambe later that night. It is what makes me close my office door at lunch time so I can destroy my jollof rice, moin-moin, dodo and fowl with my hands in peace and then Kung-Fu some some sushi, sashimi and other mede mede at dinner time armed with a pair of bamboo chopsticks. It is what makes me… NaijaMan!

One hand in the air for the big city, streets lights, big dreams all looking pretty (In case you didn’t see the Christmas lights on Ajose Adeogun courtesy of Zenith bank), no place in the world that can compare… Put your lighters in the air everybody say yeah…

The danger of a single story

Every now and then, I can be found cruising the TED website for some random inspiration. Their tagline “Riveting talks by remarkable people, free to the world” is spot on and really does feature some pretty remarkable people and their equally remarkable points of view and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is certainly no exception.

I was somewhat familiar with her novel, Half of a Yellow Sun which caused a stir of excitement when it came out a few years ago. I recall seeing so many Nigerians proudly displaying their copies and talking about how great it was. Despite the fact that I consider myself an avid reader, (I consume at least 4 books a month and bits and pieces of many more) I refused to read Half of A Yellow Sun simply because “I don’t read fiction”. However, after gleaning some information from Chimamanda’s website in preparation for this post, I realized that in my ignorance I had fallen into the very trap Chimamanda warned of by assuming a single story of fiction!

So what is this book really about?  The quote below from her website says it way better than I ever can.

“Epic, ambitious, and triumphantly realized, Half of a Yellow Sun is a remarkable novel about moral responsibility, about the end of colonialism, about ethnic allegiances, about class and race—and the ways in which love can complicate them all.”

Needless to say, my copy should be here as soon as Amazon can get it to me and who knows, there might be a book review on here someday!

60 minutes with the man…

Happy Independence Day all…

I was having a casual phone conversation with my boy Charlie when he mentioned that the man was in town for the UN Summit and asked if I was interested in having a meeting with him. Not knowing what to think, I started making all sorts of excuses and quite frankly, I just didn’t want to take him seriously because  I was somewhat apprehensive about the whole thing. I was quickly jolted back to reality when he asked me to hold on because the man was calling him on the other line. I patiently held on and the next thing I heard was his unmistakable voice asking how I was doing…

“I’m fine sah! How are you sah?”

A brief discussion ensued, we agreed on a time and he gave me the address of his hotel and his room number. The next morning, I found myself outside his hotel at 8:30am sharp and thirty minutes later, I called his room… “Good Morning Sah!”. Apparently, he had just woken up and asked me to come up in another thirty minutes. At 9am on the dot, I knocked on his door and and he opened the door and invited me in. I half prostrated, half walked into the room and sat down in the lounge and waited for him to finish sending a text.

We spent the next hour talking about everything from my background to the state of our dear nation. Our conversation settled on a single question that had more answers and generated many more questions than we had time to explore. How do we position ourselves to take advantage of our potential as a nation? There are so many forward looking reports (N-11, Vision 2020, NEEDS etc) that tell us what we already know… If we do the right things, we can be greater than some of the countries we currently look up to today.

He offered the following advice for folks in the Diaspora thinking of moving back home and the benefits of the private sector and being a risk taking entrepreneur. There are so many people coming to the realization that there are much more opportunities to make considerable impact back in Naija and they are trying to figure out how to effect a “reverse” Andrew. (Not sure if you remember that Andrew commercial… Some dude at the airport in Naija speaking phone… “Men, I’m checking out. No good roads, no light, no water. Men, you can’t even get a common bottle of soft drink!”. I think the only thing that has changed since 1984 is that you can now get a common bottle of soft drink. Quite sad!).

Some of the key points:

1) Demonstrate entrepreneurship/risk taking capacity

He strongly advised getting a few people with diverse expertise together to start something rather than taking up employment. He said it’s important that at least two of them aren’t carrying “trailers” around. i.e. Excess baggage of family responsibility. Wife, Kids etc. He said basically, we have to identify the people will be sent out to be on the ground, bear the risks and prepare the way for the other folks. He stressed the importance of being “on ground”.

2) Sort out personal accommodation/living arrangements.

The deciding factors in figuring out where you decide to live should be location and decency. It’s very important to be close to the “movers and shakers”. He gave a few banded options:

Ilupeju
, Ojodu
, Ikeja, 
Ogba

Surulere, 
Apapa (not Ajegunle O!)

Lagos Island (Not Isale Eko O!), 
Ikoyi, 
Victoria Island
, Lekki, 
Banana Island

3) Sort out office/business location

As quickly as possible, you should set up an office. It could be your house (as defined in #1) initially but not for too long. Similarly, location and decency are the key deciding factors. The size is not that important. This is very important. People start to take you seriously when you are “on ground”, have a pitch/idea and a decent, well located office.

4) Have a Pitch Ready

Ultimately, you should be able to deliver a  well put together and orchestrated overview of what you/your organization does. This is something that will come in handy for various audiences. Potential investors, partners, door openers etc. Take advantage of every opportunity to sell it to anyone who will listen.

5) Be visible

You need to make sure you are visible to the folks that can make a difference. That means that the people who are important to your success know who you are and what you are capable of. Position and Market yourself in such a way that it is clear to everyone what you do. One day someone might have a need and think of you. That’s how opportunities are born.

6) Connect with the “Door Openers”

It’s not enough to have a group of experts, lots of intellect and a nice office. You need to find what he calls “Door Openers”. These are people who have the ability to create opportunity and even finance your vision. He said to be wary of people who have the sole intention of taking over once things are set up. There are also some door openers who will actually connect you for a fee. Others will put their money and reputation on the line for you and hence will demand something significant to show for it.

7) Be prepared for the high cost of doing business

Three main things that he feels we lack in Naija that contribute to the unnecessarily high cost of doing business.

1. Lack of constant supply of electricity

2. Lack of good transportation infrastructure

3. Lack of discipline. (I took this to mean personal Indiscipline. Remember W.A.I.?)

It’s essential to be prepared for all these things and account for them in your planning process. It will cost several multiples of what you thought it would and take many times longer than you ever imagined.

Other random discussions were around the state of education in Naija. I asked him some specific questions about his university and what models one could employ to ensure that the youth are well prepared to support N-11/Vision 2020 and other forward looking projections. I asked about the CIDA City Campus free education model in South Africa and if he thought that could work in Naija. I asked about government programs that could enable folks in the Diaspora to give back. I pitched an NYSC credit system. Did he think we could set up a program that awards Nigerians who graduated outside the country completion “points” towards the NYSC service year based on volunteer initiatives over the traditional NYSC structure? E.g. Giving a presentation to secondary school students in Naija is worth x points, teaching a class over the summer is worth y points which adds up to reduce or even eliminate the post camp service obligations.

In summary, while none of the advice he gave was news to me, it was very helpful putting some structure around it. There was something about hearing it from someone who had held the top job not once but twice that gave it some sort of official credibility. One thing was pretty clear to me from the discussions, you are either all in (or at least mostly in) or you are out. Being “in” clearly has its challenges and if you go in there with the assumptions and mindset that have made you successful in other parts of the world, you might be in for a rude awakening.

Aluta Continua!

Enter the KoKo (Pt. 1): No Long Thing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I first heard of D’Banj in the spring of 2006 during my first trip back to Naija in almost 10 years. My dads driver noticed my general interest in Naija jams and asked if I had heard of D’Banj. I said no and he promptly inserted a copy of D’Banj’s debut album, No Long Thing. A quick scan and I could immediately tell that this was something different and original. The skits also cracked me up and I promptly bought a copy somewhere in Lagos traffic.

 The Intro skit features D’Banj trying out different genres of music; R&B, Rap, jungle/garage and Don Jazzy telling him “I don tell you say your voice no coagulate with this kind music…”.

Tongolo introduces the very element and originality of D’Banj as yarns us “De Koko” and shares his magic/secret word for catching babes with us. Very catchy beat and chorus, guaranteed to keep you bopping. We also hear “No Long Ting” for the first time in this song. He also shows his versatility in the tight Yoruba verses he drops to emphasize the power of the magic.

Mo wa talented… Yes mo wa gifted!

Seri kini mi? Oma gbe e lifted.

Seri hips e? Maa file shifted.

Igo oju e? maa file tinted.

Boyfriend e gan, o wa evicted.

Se o mo pe D’Banj is addicted?

T’eba sope no, ma wa persistent.

Mo ni iyawo nile, don’t get it twisted.

In Socor, he brings a new style of dance with a nice mellow and inspiring flow to go with it. The Ph.D holder in Womanology teaches us the importance of knowing how to do the socor rather than just going to a club to pose and dance rubbish. I don’t know how I missed the “J’un kan”, “Le mo” and “Te nkan” movement! There needs to be a remix/part II of this song man! Let me get my Socor on! If none of this is making sense to you, check out the video here. 

In case you missed it, D’Banj actually plays the harmonica quite well and it shows through in the next couple of songs on the album. I thought the Pastor skit was hilarious! In All the way, D’banj talks about his commitment to music despite being pulled in a different direction by his parents and mentors. “I try, try, try.. book no enter my head, So I come start this music”.

Iya Mi is a beautiful rendition to his parents. Sung primarily in Yoruba with a nice and rich “Yoruba” beat to it, he also uses this as a tribute to all the mothers that have made a difference to him. I thought that was a really cool song.

In Mr Olopa sings about Naija police brutality as he pleads with the police to let him go after some heavy brushing. An okay song overall but I agree with Don Jazzy, your voice no coagulate with that kind song! Leave am, I beg. Lol!

Mobolowowon comes after a skit that sounds like a bunch of Witches in a Naija movie scheming to run him down. In Ika O Da, he sings against acts of wickedness and selfishness.

Ask me is one of my favorite songs on the album. In very correct Afrobeat style, D’Banj sings about Suzie; An efizy loving, allegedly independent omoge who is all about what she can get from him. He calls her up to see if they can “fire” and she starts to yarn…

Suzie: D’banj, I wan buy moto…

D’Banj: Se baba e ti fun mi lowo moto ni?

Suzie: D’banj, I wan buy Gucci…

D’Banj: See your mouth like Gucci o!

Suzie: D’banj, I wan buy Prada, I say I wan wear Burberry, se you go make my life betta?

D’Banj: Make you no ask me wetin I go do for you. Wetin you go do for me wey go make my body stand well, well!

The album closes with Na Lie which is a wake up call to all the liars and woman beaters out there.

Overall, I would rate this album 5 Opekes! If I had to classify D’Banj’s music, I would call it Nu-Afrobeat. He takes the popular combination of “Yoruba music” fused with percussion and vocal styles and makes it his own by bringing that D’Banj truth, attitude and his harmonica. He also sings in English, Yoruba and broken (English) in his open embrace to all Naijas. Props to D’Banj & Don Jazzy for their originality and for bringing us a new style and standard in Naija music!

Album Details:

Label: Mo Hits Records

Producer: Don Jazzy, D’Banj

Running Time: 42:56

Released: 2005

 Track Listing:

1. Intro
2. Tongolo
3. Socor
4. Pastor (Skit)
5. All the Way
6. Iya Mi
7. Mr. Olopa
8. Witches (Skit)
9. Mobolowowon
10. Ika O Da
11. Ask Me” ft. Kween
12. Na Lie ft. Nova & Raga Remi

Miss Virginity… Only In Naija.

So I stumbled on this article a few days ago. Someone decided to have a “Miss Virginity” pageant in Lagos! To ensure that each of the contestants was really a virgin, Dr Ekemode, a Lagos based consultant gynaecologist examined every one of them. Only 43 of the 60 registrants were “certified” to be virgins.

Link to original article below:

http://www.vanguardngr.com/content/view/28624/154/

All photo credits to Vanguard Nigeria online edition.

NaijaMade… Coming to a store near you!

I finally attended the 2008 Nigerian day parade in NYC and despite the rain, there was a pretty good turnout. I had a great time helping a friend publicize her new social networking website. It was nice to see all the Naija’s in full effect strutting their green and whites all day.

I took advantage of the celebrations to launch NaijaMade: NaijaMan’s T-Shirt line. Many thanks to everyone who bought a t-shirt that day and encouraged me to take this dream to the next level. Send me a message if you’d like to preorder.

Update: 04/28/09. The NaijaMade.com v1.0 launched today. Currently carrying just the Naija Day parade selection. We are working on the summer line and will update the online offering shortly!

I be Africa Man Original!

Fela, the true Africa Man, challenges those of us who are so quick to adopt a “Colonial Mentality” and warns us about the dangers of not staying true to our African culture and mannerisms. He uses the most obvious adoption of western clothing despite its unsuitability to the tropical African weather as the basis for this song. This assimilation clearly extends beyond the clothing and is addressed over and over again in several other Fela songs.

While there is nothing wrong with adopting the western culture, I think the key is in how we adapt these elements to our everyday lives while staying true to our Africanism. One can argue that Fela started off playing Jazz with western musical instruments however; he demonstrated his ability to make it work for him when he gave the world Afrobeat.

The irony of all this is that Afrobeat (in particular) seems to have been more widely adopted by non Africans! I recall the very first time I saw Antibalas perform in Brooklyn (sometime in 2000), I was shocked to see that the only other black person at the venue apart from my boy and I was Amayo, the token lead singer. I haven’t been to an Antibalas show in a while but judging from the Jump ‘n Funk crowd that used to show up at SOB’s before they shut it down, things might be different these days. I’ll certainly check it out and let y’all know!

I leave you with these words from “I no be Gentleman”:

Africa hot, I like am so… I know what to wear but my friends don’t know.

E put im socks, e put im shoe, e put im pant, e put im singlet, e put im trouser, e put im shirt, e put im tie, e put im coat, e come cover all with him hat!

E be gentle man… E go sweat all over. E go faint right down. E go smell like sh*t. E go piss for body, e no go know.

I no be gentleman like that!

Full Lyrics below: