Popular
Rufaro Samanga
Apr. 10, 2019 06:48AM EST

South Africans are Remembering Anti-Apartheid Veteran Chris Hani

Today marks the 26th anniversary of his assassination.

Chris Hani will forever be remembered in the minds and hearts of South Africans for his contribution to South Africa's democracy and the liberation of Black people. His death remains a sore point for South Africans who believe that the struggle hero may have eventually become the president of the country.

After joining the African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) in the 1950s, Hani, who was a fervent believer in Marxist philosophy, spent most of his time involved with the underground South African Communist Party (SACP) as well as the armed wing of the ANC known as Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK).

After the unbanning of both the ANC and SACP in 1990, Hani returned from exile and began to speak in the townships. He was described as an incredibly charismatic leader who drew many towards him. After taking over from Joe Slovo as the General-Secretary of the SACP, he campaigned for the organization to be recognized as a political party.

Read more about Hani here.

However, all that came to an end when he was assassinated in his driveway on April 10th in 1993 by Januz Walus and Clive Derby-Lewis who were linked to anti-Communist right wing parties. The pair were arrested and sentenced to life in prison.

More recently, Januz Walus, who is still alive and sitting in jail, applied for parole on the basis of certain psychological reports. However, his application was denied by Judge Michael Masutha, much to the satisfaction of the SACP and Hani's widow.

Several political parties, the likes of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), the SACP and ANC as well as the South African public in general, have been commemorating Hani's life and his invaluable contribution to South Africa.









Music

Listen to Femi Kuti's New Song 'As We Struggle Everyday'

Femi explains: "'As We Struggle Everyday' is about how hard people work everyday to make ends meet and still go to vote corrupt politicians into power who are meant to be in jail."

Femi Kuti shares his new single, "As We Struggle Everyday," the latest drop from the upcoming double album Legacy +, a joint endeavor with his son Made Kuti.

"As We Struggle Everyday" is a politically-charged afrobeat tune about people having the voting power to hold their 'leaders' accountable, but often failing to do so. Throughout the song, Femi sings "As we struggle everyday We try to find a better way See these leaders wey suppose jail Na him my people dem dey hail."

Femi explains: "'As We Struggle Everyday' is about how hard people work everyday to make ends meet and still go to vote corrupt politicians into power who are meant to be in jail."

Legacy +, which is due out February 5 from Partisan Records, includes a full album by Femi titled Stop The Hate and an album by his son, Made, titled For(e)ward. The pair have previously shared the singles "Pà Pá Pà" and "Your Enemy" off the upcoming release.

Listen to Femi Kuti's "As We Struggle Everyday" below.

Keep reading... Show less
Music

The Sounds of Somali Supergroup 4 Mars

A seminal anthology of 4 Mars, a 40-member Somali supergroup formed in 1977, is coming out via Ostinato Records.

In 2019, Ostinato Records became the first label granted access to the grand Archives of Radiodiffusion-Télévision de Djibouti (RTD), a vault of secrets and stories from East Africa. Below, Ostinato Records founder Vik Sohonie writes about their new release, Djibouti Archives Vol. 1: Super Somali Sounds from the Gulf of Tadjoura.

In 1977, on the eve of independence of the Republic of Djibouti, a small country on the Red Sea in East Africa, a densely packed archive was pieced together in a quiet corner of the national radio. Over the years, it became a premier but largely unknown African archive housing thousands of master reels and cassettes of the finest East African sounds.

It has endured fires and theft of invaluable recordings. Those scars linger on the delicate films of quarter-inch reels and cassette tapes. It remains one of the most expansive, well-maintained archives in Africa—but also one of the most restrictive. For decades, the archive remained off-limits to foreign entities of any kind.

In 2019, after negotiations spanning many years, Ostinato Records became the first label granted access to the grand Archives of Radiodiffusion-Télévision de Djibouti (RTD), a vault of secrets and stories—from East Africa, Somalia, Ethiopia, and of course Djibouti itself.

Keep reading... Show less
Popular

21 Amapiano Songs By Artists From Outside South Africa To Stream Right Now

21 amapiano songs from Nigeria, the UK, Mozambique, Namibia, Kenya and Tanzania to stream right now.

By now, it's an open secret that amapiano is being produced outside of South Africa where it originates. Nigerian producers and artists, mostly, have embraced the sound and are creating and releasing their own interpretations of amapiano and amapiano-inspired songs.

The songs have resulted in cross-cultural sounds and collaborations that, in their own way, serve to unite, celebrate and foster an exchange of the electrifying music scenes that exist throughout the continent. As a result, these fusions have seen a number people casually refer to them as "Afropiano, Afro-amapiano etc" or "gengepiano" (gengetone with amapiano).

Keep reading... Show less

get okayafrica in your inbox

popular.

President Joe Biden Ends Trump's Muslim Travel Ban

President Joe Biden has done away with the 2017 Muslim travel ban enforced by the former Trump administration. The travel ban included several African and Middle Eastern countries.