#beninese history

[queerasfact]

Today is Independence Day in Benin, so we'd like to share a little piece of Beninese history with you!

The people is this photo are Agojie - often called Dahomey Amazons by Europeans.

The Agojie were regiments of soldiers who served in the army of Dahomey - now Benin - in West Africa in the 18th and 19th centuries. Numbering around 8000 at their height in the 1840, they were renowned for their fearlessness in battle, and considered the backbone of the Dahomean army.

The Agojie were all assigned female at birth but they expressed their gender in a variety of ways. Some renounced womanhood, and identified themselves as men. At other times, the group embraced womanhood in their war songs, comparing themselves to lionesses, and linking womanhood to their superiority over male regiments.

Learn more

[Image: photo of a group of Agojie, some pose with weapons including guns and large knives]

#benin #beninese history #queer history #agojie #african history #black history #lgbt history #lgbtq #queer #benin independence day

[mostlysignssomeportents]

This day in history

I'm on tour with my new, nationally bestselling novel The Bezzle! Catch me WEDNESDAY (Mar 13) in SAN FRANCISCO with ROBIN SLOAN, then Anaheim, and more!

#20yrsago Everquest widows tell all https://eqdailygrind.blogspot.com

#15yrsago Warner Music attacks babies https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/03/fair-use-massacre-continues-now-warner-s-going-aft

#15yrsago Net Neutrality gave us the Web and saved us from gopher https://www.vice.com/en/article/xywdqk/what-the-first-website-ever-says-about-the-world-wide-webs-that-might-have-been

#15yrsago China’s mondegreen war on net-censorship http://radar.oreilly.com/2009/03/etech-liveblogging-lessons-fro.html

#15yrsago Influences on the Laugh-Out-Loud Cats https://www.neatorama.com/2009/03/10/the-influences-behind-the-laugh-out-loud-cats-by-adam-koford/

#15yrsago IT versus users: a war that everyone loses https://web.archive.org/web/20090312222459/http://blogs.harvardbusiness.org/now-new-next/2009/03/the-high-priests-of-it.html

#15yrsago Billy Bragg and a coalition of UK rock stars speak up for downloaders https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/it-s-not-a-crime-to-download-say-musicians-1643217.html

#10yrsago Free to Be…You and Me is 40 https://www.cnn.com/2014/03/11/living/free-to-be-you-and-me-40-years/index.html

#10yrsago Security as a public health discipline, not an engineering one https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/mar/11/gchq-national-security-technology

#10yrsago How the NSA plans to automatically infect “millions” of computers with spyware https://theintercept.com/2014/03/12/nsa-plans-infect-millions-computers-malware/

#10yrsago Thoughts on teaching calculus to five-year-olds https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/03/5-year-olds-can-learn-calculus/284124/

#10yrsago Tim Berners-Lee calls for Web “Magna Carta” – does the “Web we want” have DRM in it? https://memex.craphound.com/2014/03/12/tim-berners-lee-calls-for-web-magna-carta-does-the-web-we-want-have-drm-in-it/

#5yrsago Trump’s FCC relies on telcos to self-police anti-robocall measures and they’re planning on gutting existing regs, so John Oliver is robocalling the whole FCC every 90 minutes https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2019/03/john-oliver-fights-robocalls-by-robocalling-ajit-pai-and-the-fcc/

#5yrsago Beninese musician/activist/genius Angélique Kidjo has released a tribute to Talking Heads’ Remain in Light and IT. IS. FUCKING. AMAZING. https://www.kidjo.com/remain-in-light

#5yrsago Offshore illegal GOP campaign megadonors receive record FEC fines after The Intercept reveals their crimes https://theintercept.com/2019/03/11/intercept-investigation-leads-to-record-fines-over-foreign-campaign-contributions/

#5yrsago What ephemeral messaging is good for https://memex.craphound.com/2019/03/12/what-ephemeral-messaging-is-good-for/

#5yrsago One company bought all the retail outlets for glasses, used that to force sales of all the eyewear companies and jacked up prices by as much as 1000% https://www.latimes.com/business/lazarus/la-fi-lazarus-glasses-lenscrafters-luxottica-monopoly-20190305-story.html

#1yrsago Spirit warned investors that merging with Jetblue would be illegal https://pluralistic.net/2023/03/12/they-put-it-in-writing/#that-was-then

Name your price for 18 of my DRM-free ebooks and support the Electronic Frontier Foundation with the Humble Cory Doctorow Bundle.

#pluralistic

[burlveneer-music]

Frankosun and the Family - Small Talk Big Problem - Franck Komolou and his Finnish Afrobeat band

Hailing from the Voodoo backwoods of Benin, Oladele Franck Komolou, founded the band Frankosun And The Family in Helsinki 2013. Since then, the band has conquered peoples hearts with their amazing music, shows and energy. Heavily influenced by the rhythms and history of the Nago.

The word "Nago" derives from the word "Anago", a term Fon-speaking people use to describe Nago - Yoruba speaking people residing in Benin. The Nago–Yoruba community is characterized by the masked dance called Guèlèdè – a special dance rich in songs, music, epic and lyrical poems under the rhythms, and sounds of tam-tams.

The band excellently combines 70's and 80's style beninese and nigerian afrobeat with afrofunk and afrorock.

Composer, Lyricist, Lead Vocals: Oladele Franck Koumolou Bass Guitar, Mixer, Sound Engineer: Lauri Kallio Backing Vocals: Ayla Brinkmann Backing Vocals: Tiina Heikkinen Backing Vocals: Outi Kaltiokumpu Vocals, Backing Vocals: Charlotta Kerbs Arranger: Oladele Franck Koumolou and the Family Electric Guitar: Ville Sirviö Drums: Keijo Koskenharju Keyboards, Alto Saxophone: Johannes Sarjasto Baritone Saxophone: Joose Kyyrö Congas: Janne Auvinen Percussion: Arwi Lind Percussion: Mikko Koivisto Tenor Saxophone: Jimi Tenor Trombone: Panu Luukkonen Trumpet: Eero Savela

#Frankosun and the Family #franck komolou #finland #benin #afrobeat #funk #2023 #Youtube

[hardynwa]

Davido’s ‘Timeless’ becomes first African album to top US iTunes chart

Nigerian Afrobeats superstar, David Adeleke, aka Davido, has broken an African record on the US iTunes Albums Chart with his new album ‘Timeless’. This is as the album topped the chart on Wednesday, April 5, 2023, making history in the process as the first African album to reach Number 1 in the world’s biggest music market. Recall that Davido dropped his fourth studio album ‘Timeless’ on March 31, 2023, with guest appearances from Nigerian artists such as Asake, Fave, The Cavemen, DMW’s latest additions, Morravey and Logos Olori as well as Grammy-award-winning Beninese singer Angelique Kidjo, British rapper Skepta, South African music producer/DJ Musa Keys, Jamaican dancehall/reggae singer Dexta Daps, and South African rapper, Focalistic. DAILY POST reported that despite an initial partial leak, Davido’s ‘Timeless’ album broke several records, including the highest charting album by an African artist on the US Apple Music (peaked at Number 2) and the biggest album first-day streams in the history of Audiomack. The 17-track album also became the first and only afrobeats album to debut all tracks in the top 100 of the United Kingdom Apple Music top songs chart. Following the release of the album, global streaming giant, Spotify, said Davido’s music is most streamed in the United Kingdom, Canada, France and Nigeria. Read the full article

[sartorialadventure]

#dahomey #benin #beninese fashion #dahomey fashion #african fashion #women in uniform #military uniform #african history

[songsofprotestpeacerevolution]

Biko | Peter Gabriel | Playing For Change | Song Around The World “You can blow out a candle, but you can't blow out a fire. Once the flames begin to catch, the wind will blow it higher.” – Peter Gabriel, Biko  In honor of Black History Month, we are proud to bring the message of Peter Gabriel’s “Biko” back to the forefront, 40 years after its initial release. Inspired by the death of anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko while in police custody, this song’s relevance still holds true with the unfortunate police brutality that continues to take place in the USA, Nigeria and many places around the world. More than 25 musicians from seven countries join Gabriel for this global rendition to share a message of unity, peace, and hope, including Beninese vocalist and activist Angélique Kidjo, Silkroad’s Yo-Yo Ma, and bass legend Meshell Ndegeocello. The eyes of the world are watching… Let each of us lead with love and let that love ripple throughout the universe.

[hannahlhnd2021]

Djimon with Octopus, Hollywood (B), 1989 by Herb Ritts

I chose to analyse one photograph with good composition from Herb Ritts as his work is super interesting. (29/10/20)

Visual: Lots of organic shapes here, there’s really nothing rigid about the image, it flows quite naturally in a three dimensional way. In terms of depth there is sort of no background to the image so it is quite shallow. Texture... wet?

Definitely a range of tone from the brightest parts of the studio lights hitting the man’s body to the darker parts of the shadows inside the octopus legs.

Contextual: We know that Ritts studied art history in New York in 1975. He would have been taught about composition there. His mum was also an interior designer which would give him a window into that realm of fashion. Ritts primarily photographed celebrities in the height of his career, including David Bowie and Britney Spears. In this particular image we have Beninese–American actor and model, Djimon Hounsou.

Technical: As the man’s eyes are shut we cannot see any catchlights so couldn’t get the most reliable idea of what kind of lights they used. However given the height of the contrast between light and dark in the image I’d say they used hard studio lights, perhaps one on each side, or one on the left hand side with some kind of reflector on the right.

[tasksweekly]

[TASK 132: ANGOLA]

In celebration of Black History Month, here’s a masterlist below compiled of over 170+ Angolan faceclaims categorised by gender with their occupation and ethnicity denoted if there was a reliable source. If you want an extra challenge use random.org to pick a random number! Of course everything listed below are just suggestions and you can pick whichever character or whichever project you desire.

Any questions can be sent here and all tutorials have been linked below the cut for ease of access! REMEMBER to tag your resources with #TASKSWEEKLY and we will reblog them onto the main! This task can be tagged with whatever you want but if you want us to see it please be sure that our tag is the first five tags, @ mention us or send us a messaging linking us to your post!

THE TASK - scroll down for FC’s!

STEP 1: Decide on a FC you wish to create resources for! You can always do more than one but who are you starting with? There are links to masterlists you can use in order to find them and if you want help, just send us a message and we can pick one for you at random!

STEP 2: Pick what you want to create! You can obviously do more than one thing, but what do you want to start off with? Screencaps, RP icons, GIF packs, masterlists, PNG’s, fancasts, alternative FC’s - LITERALLY anything you desire!

STEP 3: Look back on tasks that we have created previously for tutorials on the thing you are creating unless you have whatever it is you are doing mastered - then of course feel free to just get on and do it. :)

STEP 4: Upload and tag with #TASKSWEEKLY! If you didn’t use your own screencaps/images make sure to credit where you got them from as we will not reblog packs which do not credit caps or original gifs from the original maker.

THINGS YOU CAN MAKE FOR THIS TASK -  examples are linked!

Stumped for ideas? Maybe make a masterlist or graphic of your favourite faceclaims. A masterlist of names. Plot ideas or screencaps from a music video preformed by an artist. Masterlist of quotes and lyrics that can be used for starters, thread titles or tags. Guides on culture and customs.

Screencaps

RP icons [of all sizes]

Gif Pack [maybe gif icons if you wish]

PNG packs

Manips

Dash Icons

Character Aesthetics

PSD’s

XCF’s

Graphic Templates - can be chara header, promo, border or background PSD’s!

FC Masterlists - underused, with resources, without resources!

FC Help - could be related, family templates, alternatives.

Written Guides.

and whatever else you can think of / make!

MASTERLIST!

F:

Anna Deavere Smith (1950) African-American [including Angolan, Cameroonian, Congolese, Ghanaian, Igbo Nigerian, Ivorian, Senegalese], British, remote Scandinavian, Finnish, Russian, Italian, Greek - actress and playwright.

Angela Bassett (1958) African-American [including Bantu Angolan, Beninese, Cameroonian, Congolese, Ghanaian, Ivorian, Malian, Nigerian, Senegalese, Togolese] - actress.

Ana Magalhães (1960) Angolan - artist.

Ana Clara Guerra Marques (1962) Angolan - dancer.

Patricia Miranda Pacheco (1972) Angolan - tv host.

Nayma Mingas (1974) Angolan - model.

Manuela Paulo (1978) Angolan - actress.

Tânia Burity (1978) Angolan - presenter and radio announcer.

Yola Semedo (1978) Angolan - singer.

Bruna Tatiana (1978) Angolan - singer and composer.

Mina Andala (1979) Angolan - actress.

Yola Araújo (1979) Angolan - singer.

Dicla Burity (1980) Angolan - actress and television host.

Patrícia Faria (1981) Angolan - singer and broadcaster.

Tatiana Durao (1981) Angolan - actress, singer, model, and tv personality.

Celma Ribas (1982) Angolan - singer, songwriter and businesswoman.

Zenilde Josias (1982 or 1983) Angolan - Miss Angola 2005.

Pearl / Jandira Sassingui Neto (1983) Angolan - singer-songwriter.

Silvia João de Deus (1983 or 1984) Angolan - Miss Angola World 2004.

Mel Gambôa (1984) Angolan / Romanian - actress, tv presenter, radio presenter, and producer.

Heloísa Jorge (1984) Angolan - actress.

Ciomara Morais (1984) Angolan, Macanese, Portuguese - actress, model, and director.

Jurema Ferraz (1985) Angolan - model and Miss Angola 2010.

Isménia Júnior (1985) Angolan - model and Miss Angola Universe 2006.

Leila Lopes (1986) Angolan - actress, model, tv host, and Miss Universe 2011.

Ary / Diva Ary / Ariovalda Eulália Gabriel (1986) Angolan - singer, dancer and choreographer.

Neide / Neide Van-Dúnem (1986) Angolan - actress and singer-songwriter.

Ivanita Jones / Ivaniltan de Fatima Lorenco Paulo Jones (1986 or 1987) Angolan - Miss Angola World 2010.

Nelsa Alves (1987) Angolan - model and Miss Angola 2009.

Lesliana Pereira (1987) Angolan - actress, model, and Miss Angola 2007.

Titica (1987) Angolan - singer and dancer. - Trans!

Érica Chissapa (1987) Angolan - actress, reporter, and presenter.

Leslie Pereira (1987) Angolan  - television presenter and actress.

Anna Joyce (1987) Angolan - singer.

Micaela Reis (1988) Angolan / Portuguese - actress, model, tv host, and Miss Angola 2007.

Nádia Silva (1988) Angolan - actress, presenter and model.

Aline Frazão (1988) Angolan - singer.

Selda / Guiselda Tainara Salgueira Portelinha (1989) Angolan - singer.

Helena Moreno / Helena Morena (1989) Angolan - actress.

KeyLiza / Kisita Elisabeth Massamba (1989) Angolan, Dominican - singer, dancer, DJ, composer, beatmaker and record producer.

Stiviandra Oliveira (1989) Angolan - model and Miss Angola World 2006.

Maria Castelo (1989 or 1990) Angolan - Miss Angola World 2013.

Canicia Rodrigues (1990) Angolan - singer and tv personality.

Marcelina Vahekeni (1990) Angolan - model and Miss Angola 2011.

Birgite dos Santos (1990) Angolan - model and Miss Angola World 2008.

Halona Vog / Halona Vouge (1990) Angolan - porn actress.

Imanni Da Silva (1990 or 1991) Angolan / Spanish, Portuguese - actress, model, Super Sireyna Worldwide Angola 2018, Miss International Queen Angola 2012, artist, and writer. - Trans!

Edmilza Santos (1990 or 1991) Angolan - Miss Angola World 2012.

Sharam Diniz (1991) 3/4 Angolan, 1/4 Portuguese - model and businesswoman.

Vaumara Rebelo (1991) Angolan - model and Miss Angola 2013.

Maria Borges (1992) Angolan - model.

Zuleica Wilson (1993) Angolan - model and Miss Angola 2014.

Rose Bertram / Stephanie Bertram-Rose (1994) Angolan, Senegalese, Portuguese / Belgian [possibly Flemish] - model.

Ana Liliana Avião (1994) Angolan - model and Miss Angola 2018.

Deolinda Kinzimba (1995) Angolan - singer.

Luísa Baptista (1995) Angolan - model and Miss Angola 2016.

Whitney Shikongo (1995) Angolan - model and Miss Angola 2015.

Lia Tchissola (1997) Angolan - actress, reality tv personality, and model.

Nelma Ferreira (1997 or 1998) Angolan - Miss Angola World 2018.

Lauriela Martins (1998) Angolan - model and Miss Angola 2017.

Blésnya Minher (1998) Angolan - model.

Katiana Bonifacio (1998) Angolan - instagrammer (kxtbonifacio).

Judelsia Bache (1998 or 1999) Angolan - Miss Angola World 2017.

Amilna Estêvão (1999) Angolan - model.

Catarina Matos (?) Angolan - actress.

Luiana Bonfim (?) Angolan - actress.

Catarina Sousa (?) Angolan / Portuguese - actress.

Luisa José (?) Angolan, Cape Verdean, Cuban - model (Instagram: luizellajose).

Dinamene Cruz (?) Angolan - television host (Instagram: dinamenecruz).

Lauriane Almeda (?) Angolan - Miss Global Angola 2019 (Instagram: laurianeofficial).

Shanty Franco (?) Angolan - model (Instagram: shantyfranco).

Tifeny Moreira (?) Angolan - model (Instagram: tifenymoreira).

Cleide Afonso (?) Angolan - model (Instagram: cleide_afonso1).

Jurelma Zau (?) Angolan - model (Instagram: jurelma_zau).

Irina France (?) Angolan - singer.

Sónia António (?) Angolan - singer and tv presenter.

Eli Cruz (?) Angolan, Portuguese - model (Instagram: elizty).

Tati Mussendi (?) Angolan - model.

Ermelinda de Matos (?) Angolan - Miss Angola Earth 2017.

Sompa António (?) Angolan - model.

Eliane de Sousa (?) Angolan, Portuguese - model and Miss Globe Portugal 2017 (instagram: eliane.de.sousa).

Lukenny Shazad (?) Angolan - model.

Sandra Paula Mainsel (?) Angolan - tv presenter.

Telma de Jesus Sonhi (?) Angolan - Miss Angola 2004.

Ana José Sebastião (?) Angolan - Miss Angola 2003.

Celma Antunes Carlos (?) Angolan - Miss Angola World 2003.

Geovana Pinto Leite (?) Angolan - Miss Angola 2002.

Rosa Mujinga Muxito (?) Angolan - Miss Angola World 2002.

Hidianeth Luisa Cussema (?) Angolan - Miss Angola 2001.

Alexandra Da Rocha (?) Angolan - Miss Angola World 2001.

Eunice da Cunha Manita (?) Angolan - Miss Angola 2000.

Deolinda Manuel Vilela (?) Angolan - Miss Angola World 2000.

Egídia Torres (?) Angolan - Miss Angola 1999.

Lorena Silva (?) Angolan - Miss Angola World 1999.

Emília Guardado (?) Angolan - Miss Angola 1998.

Maria Cortez de Lemos (?) Angolan - Miss Angola World 1998.

M:

Master Kamosso (1927) Angolan - musician.

Ruy Mingas (1939) Angolan - singer.

Bonga / José Adelino Barceló de Carvalho (1942) Angolan - singer.

Eduardo Nascimento (1944) Angolan - singer.

Filipe Zau (1950) Angolan / Cape Verdean - composer.

Sam Mangwana (1945) Angolan / Zimbabwean - musician.

Filipe Mukenga (1949) Angolan - singer.

Waldemar Bastos (1954) Angolan - musician and singer.

José Neto (1955) Angolan - actor.

Jorge Melício (1957) Angolan - sculptor.

Nelo Carvalho (1959) Angolan - singer and guitarist.

Orlando Sérgio (1960) Angolan - actor.

Arnold Vosloo (1962) South Africa Afrikaner [Dutch, some German, Swiss, distant Danish, remote Angolan, Malagasy, Indonesian, Indian, French, Norwegian] - actor.

Don Cheadle (1964) African-American [including Angolan, Bamileke Nigerian, Ewondo Nigerian, Tikar Beninese, Masa Beninese, Guinean, Liberian, Senegalese] - actor, producer, director, and writer.

Eduardo Paím (1964) Angolan - musician.

Fidel Nadal (1965) Angolan, Argentinian - musician and songwriter.

Domingos Ferreira (1967) Angolan - actor and poet.

Dalton Borralho (1968) Angolan - actor.

Big Nelo / Emanuel de Carvalho Nguenohame (1970) Angolan - singer.

Chris Tucker (1971) African-American [including Basa Nigerian, Bamileke Cameroonian, Biaka Central African, Ewondo Cameroonian, Chwabo Mozambican, Mbenzele Central African, Mbundu Angolan] - actor and comedian.

Paulo Flores (1972) Angolan - musician.

Eric Santos (1972) Angolan - actor.

Gutto / Bantú / Augusto Armada (1972) Angolan - singer and rapper.

Sérgio Tavares / Antonio Sérgio Tavares Campo (1972) Brazilian [Angolan, French] - reality tv personality.

Hoji Fortuna (1974) Angolan - actor.

Don Kikas (1974) Angolan - singer.

Celso Roberto (1977) Angolan - actor.

Dog Murras / Murthala Fançony Bravo de Oliveira (1977) Angolan - singer.

Valter Carvalho (1978) Brazilian [Angolan] - model.

Elizio / Mister ODC (1979) Angolan, Cape Verdean - singer.

Diamondog / Edgar Capacassa Feijó (1980) Angolan - rapper.

Fredy Costa (1980) Angolan - actor and model.

Yuri da Cunha (1980) Angolan - singer.

Anselmo Ralph (1981) Angolan - singer.

NGA / Edson Wildbrand Silva (1982) Angolan - rapper.

Matias Damásio (1982) Angolan - musician, singer and songwriter.

C4 Pedro / Pedro Henriques Lisboa Santos (1983) Angolan - musician.

Maru Lukama (1984) Angolan - actor.

Kid Mc / Kid Sebastião Manuel (1986) Angolan - rapper and composer.

airesNObeat / Aires Walter Francisco (1987) Angolan - singer.

Landrick / Lando Samuel / Lando Ndombel (1989) Angolan - singer.

Claudimar Neto (1989) Angolan - dancer.

Daco Junior / Sebastian Da Costa (1990) Angolan - rapper.

Reis Fernando (1993) Angolan - youtuber and choreographer.

Done Lema (1994) Angolan - actor.

Mylson / Edmilson de Carvalho (1994) Angolan - singer.

Yxng Bane / Larry Kiala (1996) Angolan / Congolese - rapper.

Josivênio Canga (1996 or 1997) Angolan - model and Mister Angola 2019.

Jorge Antunes (?) Angolan - actor and tv host.

James R. Baylis (?) Angolan - actor.

Miguel Francisco (?) Angolan, German - actor.

Coréon Dú (?) Angolan - creative director, producer and singer.

Biura (?) Angolan - singer (Instagram: biurazona5)

Paul G / Paulo George Marques Joao (?) Angolan - singer, producer and dancer.

Abel Dueré (?) Angolan - singer.

Hamilton Cunha (?) Angolan - model and Mister Angola 2018.

Liceu Vieira Dias (?) Angolan - musician.

Elton Neto (?) Angolan - model (Instagram: mister.elton).

Pedro Armada (?) Angolan - model (Instagram: pedroarmadaofficial).

Mauro Lopes (?) Angolan - model (Instagram: mauroolopes).

Nsuka Bula (?) Angolan - model (Instagram: nsuka_bula).

Ze Augusto Pedro (?) Angolan, Portuguese, Ukrainian  - model (ze_augusht).

Bráulio Henriques (?) Angolan - model and Mister Angola 2017.

Maurício Eusébio (?) Angolan - model and Mister Angola 2016.

José Arnaldo (?) Angolan - model and Mister Angola 2015.

Jorge Martins (?) Angolan - model and Mister Angola 2010.

Marlon Pacheco (?) Angolan - beauty pageant contestant.

Jose Marta (?) Angolan - beauty pageant contestant.

Idalecio de Oliveira (?) Angolan - beauty pageant contestant.

Boventura Jose Maria (?) Angolan - beauty pageant contestant.

Armando Alexandre (?) Angolan - beauty pageant contestant.

Almeida Mussapana (?) Angolan - beauty pageant contestant.

Isaias Cassenda (?) Angolan - beauty pageant contestant.

Pitchu / Pedro Pereira (?) Angolan - bodybuilder.

Problematic:

Morgan Freeman (1937) 7/8 African-American [including Angolan, Congolese, Igbo Nigerian, Shong Guinean, Tuareg Guinean], 1/8 English - actor, producer, and narrator - Accused of 8 counts of sexual harassment and said that racism doesn’t exist today (plus that people can “look at him” as an example to show that).

Chris Rock (1965) African-American [including Angolan, Beninese, Congolese, Guinean, Liberian, Nigerian, Senegalese], some English - actor, comedian, producer, director, and writer. - Anti-East Asian “jokes”, sexist “jokes”, and used the word “r****d*d”.

Candice Swanepoel (1988) South Africa Afrikaner [Belgian (Flemish and Walloonian), Dutch, French, German, very distant Angolan, Ethiopian, Indian, Indonesian, Norwegian, English] - model. - Cultural appropriation.

Behati Prinsloo (1988) Namibia Afrikaner [Dutch, Frisian, French, German, distant Kenyan, Latvian, Finnish, remote Angolan, Malagasy, Other Unspecified African, Indonesian, Indian, Chinese, Swedish, Danish, Swiss, Belgian (Flemish and Walloonian), Norwegian, Portuguese] - model. - Cultural appropriation.

#angolan fc #black fc #poc fc #fc list #rph #task: 132 #task: angola

[hell-yeahfilm]

SHE RAISED HER VOICE!

Each of the 50 biographical sketches is five to six paragraphs long, covers the entire life span of the subject, and includes an epigraphic quote attributed to the singer in question. The revelatory and uplifting narratives span many musical genres, including soul, jazz, hip-hop, rap, reggae, punk rock, electronic music, and more. Altogether, they cover 87 years of music history—the singers’ birth dates range from 1894 to 1981—and illuminate the profound impact Black women have made on social, political, and spiritual life through the power of their voices. While most of the women profiled are African American, a few—like Jamaican reggae chanteuse Rita Marley and Beninese singer/songwriter Angélique Kidjo—represent the wider African diaspora. Signature songs and classic, empowering anthems are analyzed, and Elizabeth provides insight into the personal struggles and societal barriers these divas and doyennes of sound overcame on their journeys to success and self-fulfillment. The brightly hued, minimalist digital illustrations feature bold, three-quarter portraits of the melodists that capture their distinct fashion styles and personalities. The backmatter includes a glossary of music terminology and an index.

from Kirkus Reviews https://ift.tt/3EDnyBX

[queerasfact]

Queer as Fact Episodes by Time Period

To go with our list of episodes by location, here’s a list of all our episodes by century. I will include a link on our main page to this one too. Note that people are listed chronologically in the century they were born, which may not be the century during which they lived most of their life.

This list doesn’t include our Queer as Fiction episodes on queer media, which can be found here.

19th Century BCE-2nd Century CE

Achilles and Patroclus (figures from Greek myth)

The Sacred Band of Thebes (military unit made up of male-male couples, 300s BCE)

Queer Love in Early Chinese History 

The Warren Cup (ancient Roman cup depicting male-male sex) 

Male Sexuality in Ancient Rome

Relationships between women in ancient Rome

Julius Caesar (c.100BCE-44BCE, Roman leader)

Nero (37CE-68CE, Roman emperor)

Sexuality in Pompeii (79CE)

Hadrian and Antinous (Roman emperor 76CE-138CE and his lover c.111CE-130CE)

2nd Century-9th Century

Moche sex pots (erotic ceramics from Peru)

St Brigid (c.450-525, Irish abbess)

Han Zigao (538-567 Chinese general)

Abu Nuwas (c.750-c.814 Arabic poet)

Pope Joan (purported 9th-century female pope)

10th Century-15th Century

Queer Women in Medieval Arab Literature

Hildegard of Bingen (c.1098-1179, German nun and polymath)

Edward II (1284-1327, king of England)

Kapaemahu (monument to four Hawai’ian māhūhealers, erected c.1500s)

16th Century

Shah Hussayn (1538-1599, Punjabi poet)

Njinga of Ndongo (1582-1663, Mbundu monarch)

17th Century

Christina of Sweden (1626-1689, Swedish monarch)

Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz (c.1648-1695, Mexican nun, writer and polymath)

Queerness in the Golden Age of Piracy (c.1650s-c.1730s)

Julie D’Aubigny (c.1670-1707, French opera singer and duellist)

18th Century

The Agojie (1700s-1894, Dahomean (Beninese) regiments of soldiers assigned female at birth)

Frederick the Great (1712-1786, Prussian monarch and general)

Horace Walpole (1717-1797, English antiquarian and man of letters)

Chevalière d’Éon (1728-1810, French spy and diplomat)

Baron von Steuben (1730-1794, Prussian-born Inspector General of the US Army)

Charity Bryant and Sylvia Drake (1777-1851, 1784-1868, lived as a married couple in the early USA)

Dr. James Barry (1789-1865, Irish surgeon)

Anne Lister and follow-up Christmas special (1791-1840, English landowner and diarist)

Mary Shelley (1797-1851, English author)

Wú Zǎo (c.1799-1862, Chinese poet and playwright)

19th Century

General

Queer as Fact meets History is Gay (a conversation about queer slang in Australia and the USA)

Golden Orchid Societies (19th-20th century communities of women rejecting traditional marriage in southern China)

1800s

Bíawacheeitchish aka Woman Chief (c.1806-1854, Crow warrior and leader)

1810s

1820s

Rosa Bonheur (1822-1899, French artist)

1830s

Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888, US author of Little Women and other works)

1840s

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893, Russian composer)

Captain Moonlite parts one and two (1845-1880, Australian bushranger)

Fanny Park and Stella Boulton (1846-1881, 1847-1904, English transfeminine people tried for homosexuality)

We’wha (c.1849-1896, Zuni craftsperson, ambassador, and two-spirit lhamana)

1850s

Osh-Tisch (1854-1929, Crow warrior, craftsperson, and two-spirit batée)

Oscar Wilde (1854-1900, Irish poet and playwright)

1860s

1870s

Hijra is 19th-century India

Harry Crawford (1875-1938, Italian-Australian trans man tried for murder)

Isadora Duncan (1877-1927, American dancer)

1880s

Harry Allen (1882-1922, American trans man)

The Secret Sex Spreadsheets of John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946, English economist)

Did Queen Victoria believe in lesbians?

Sofya Parnok (1885-1933, Russian poet)

Ma Rainey (1886-1939, American blues singer)

Lucy Hicks Anderson (1886-1954, American cook, socialite and brothel-owner)

Sylvia Beach (1887-1962, American-French publisher and bookseller)

Vaslav Nijinsky (1889-1950, Russian ballet dancer and choreographer)

William Dobell (1889-1970, Australian artist)

1890s

Lesbia Harford (1891-1927, Australian poet and activist)

Willem Arondeus (1894-1943, Dutch artist and WWII resistance member)

Yoshiya Nobuko (1896-1973, Japanese author)

Alice Anderson (1897-1926, owner of Australia’s first all-female garage)

Federico García Lorca (1898-1936, Spanish playwright and poet)

Ruth Ellis (1899-2000, American lesbian centenarian)

20th Century

General

Queer as Fact meets History is Gay (a conversation about queer slang in Australia and the USA)

Golden Orchid Societies (19th-20th century communities of women rejecting traditional marriage in southern China)

1900s

Henrietta Bingham (1901-1968, American jazz-age socialite)

Josephine Baker (1906-1975, American-French singer, actress, civil rights activist and spy)

Frida Kahlo (1907-1954, Mexican artist) and Frida Kahlo’s lost archive

Gladys Bentley (1907-1960, American blues performer)

Yoshiko Kawashima (1907-1948 Chinese-Japanese public figure and spy)

Samuel Steward (1909-1993, American professor of English, tattoo artist and sex researcher)

1910s

Pauli Murray parts one and two (1910-1985, American lawyer, civil rights activist, priest and poet)

Elke Mackenzie (1911-1990, English lichenologist and polar explorer)

Ewan Forbes (1912-1991, Scottish doctor and farmer)

Tove Jansson (1914-2001, Finnish author and artist)

Billy Tipton (1914-1989, American jazz musician)

Rosetta Tharpe (1915-1973, American gospel singer)

Michael Dillon (1915-1962, British doctor, monk, and first trans man to undergo a phalloplasty)

Roberta Cowell (1918-2011, British WWII fighter pilot, race-car driver and trans pioneer)

Chavela Vargas (1919-2012, Costa Rican-born Mexican singer)

1920s

Stormé DeLarverie (1920-2014, American drag performer and bouncer)

Gad Beck (1923-2012, German-Jewish activist, WWII resistance member, and Holocaust survivor)

1930s

Harvey Milk (1930-1978, San Francisco politician)

Audre Lorde (1934-1992, American activist and writer)

1940s

Yona Wallach (1944-1985, Israeli poet) 

Marsha P. Johnson (1945-1992, American drag queen and activist)

Freddie Mercury (1946-1991, the frontman of British rock band, Queen)

1950s

Maryam Khatoon Molkara (1950-2012, Iranian trans activist)

Sally Ride (1951-2012, American astronaut) 

Simon Nkoli (1959-1998, South African activist)

1960s

Beki (Philippine queer language originating in the 1960s or 70s)

Qiu Miaojin (1969-1995, Taiwanese writer)

Stonewall (1969 New York riots)

1970s

Shelly’s Leg (1970s Seattle gay club)

Asexuals have problems too (1971 Village Voice article, USA)

The Asexual Manifesto (1972 American political document)

Gilbert Baker and the Rainbow Flag (first flown in San Francisco in 1975)

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (begun 1978)

Did Swedish people call in gay to work?

1980s

HIV/AIDS in Australia (1982 onwards)

Friends of Dorothy (gay men in the 1980s US Navy) 

Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners (1984-85, UK activist group)

2000s

The Gay and Lesbian Kingdom of the Coral Sea Islands (2004-2017, Australian micronation)

#queer history #lgbt history #lgbtq #gay history #lesbian history #bi history #trans history

[fuzzysparrow]

Porto-Novo is the capital of Benin. It is a port on an inlet of the Gulf of Guinea, in the southeastern portion of the country. Although it is the capital, it is Benin's second-largest city.

In 1730, the Portuguese named the city "Porto-Novo", meaning "New Port" due to its resemblance to the city of Porto, the second largest city in Portugal. The city has a tropical savanna climate with two wet seasons: March to July and September to October.

The residents of Porto-Novo are mostly Yoruba and Gun people, although some people have moved to the city from other parts of the country, and from neighbouring country of Nigeria. The city was originally called "Ajashe" by the Yorubas, and "Hogbonu" by the Gun. In 2013, Porto-Novo had an estimated population of 264,320.

Porto-Novo has a few buildings of cultural note, including King Toffa's Palace, which is now a museum that shows what life was like for African royalty. Other museums include the Porto-Novo Museum of Ethnography, which contains a large collection of Yoruba masks, and the Da Silva Museum of Beninese history.

#Porto-Novo #Trivia

[xtruss]

They Were the World’s Only All-Female Army. Their Descendants are Fighting to Recapture Their Humanity.

Women fighters in Dahomey in 1897. The Kingdom of Dahomey was a West African power that drew comparisons to Sparta. European visitors praised its women fighters: She-soldiers. Medusas. Spinster warriors. Or Amazons, as they were called in Benin. (Chris Hellier/Corbis via Getty Images)

— By Danielle Paquette

— August 26, 2021

ABOMEY, Benin — Her step-grandmother could remove a man’s head with a curved blade. She could scale a wall of thorns. She devoted her life to defending the king.

These details — all true, the elderly woman said — landed in the notes of foreign explorers. But they failed to capture the whole story.

Nanlèhoundé Houédanou wants people to know more about the Amazons of Dahomey, the only documented female army in modern history. Researchers have spent decades combing through European and West African archives to craft a portrait from the jottings of French officers, British traders and Italian missionaries.

Yet a crucial piece of the Amazon legacy has been lost to the eraser of time and colonial rule: Their humanity.

“My Amazon was gentle,” said Houédanou, who, at 85, is one of the last people on Earth to have grown up with one. “She was known for protecting children.”

History is often told through the lens of conquerors. Generations of American schoolchildren learned more about the 15th century “discoveries” of Christopher Columbus than his record of enslaving Indigenous people. Britain framed its 1897 takeover of a storied West African kingdom as a “punitive mission,” glossing over the mass theft of priceless bronzes.

After France seized what is now southern Benin in 1894, colonial officers disbanded the territory’s unique force of women warriors, opened new classrooms and made no mention in the curriculum of the Amazons. Even today, many in the country of 12 million know little about their foremother.

“The French made sure this history wasn’t known,” said the Beninese economist Leonard Wantchekon, a professor of international affairs at Princeton University. “They said we were backward, that they needed to ‘civilize us,’ but they destroyed opportunities for women that existed nowhere else in the world.”

Now a team of Beninese researchers is working to reshape the narrative. For the last three years, historians at the African School of Economics, a private university that Wantchekon founded near Cotonou, the capital, have been tracking down descendants of Amazons across the nation.

They aim to glean local memories for a book that can be taught in schools — to present a three-dimensional view of the real Amazons. Only 50 of the women are thought to have survived the two-year war with France. The last died in the 1970s.

Finding their grandchildren has proved increasingly difficult as time slips away. Unlike the letter-writing Europeans of yesteryear, West Africans preferred the oral tradition, passing down stories from generation to generation. Not much has been documented about the Amazons after the war.

“These stories are dying with people,” said Serge Ouitona, a researcher on the project. “The Amazons were powerful. They had influence. But everyone stopped talking about them after the colonial conquest.”

‘A Novelty in Modern History’

Paint is chipping off the stone statue of an Amazon in a village near Abomey, Benin. Visitors must wade through chest-high brush to reach her. (Danielle Paquette/The Washington Post)

For at least three centuries, the Kingdom of Dahomey was a West African power that drew comparisons to Sparta. European visitors gushed about its women fighters: She-soldiers. Medusas. Spinster warriors.

The name that stuck in modern Benin: Amazons.

“Whatever might have been the prowess of the Amazons among the ancients, this is a novelty in modern history,” Archibald Dalzel, a British administrator in the region, wrote in 1793.

A French official later called Dahomey “assuredly the only country in the world that offers the singular spectacle of an organization of women as soldiers,” according to the American journalist Stanley Alpern. The French publishing house Larousse declared the women “the only historical Amazons known.”

Their origin is murky, but historians say the Amazons probably rooted under Queen Hangbè, who reigned alongside her twin brother in the early 1700s and kept an entourage of female bodyguards.

By the mid-1800s, Dahomey boasted thousands of female troops as it sought to outmuscle rival kingdoms. When clashes erupted, victors were known to force their enemies into labor or sell them in the slave trade.

Amazons began training in girlhood: swinging blades, loading Flintlock muskets, climbing thorny barricades. They drank imported brandy and belted out war songs.

The tradition ended when France invaded. In the face of defeat, a French general wrote, the women “gave proof of very great bravery,” Alpern found.

Nearly 2,000 Amazons died in the slaughter, historians estimate, and the 50 survivors faded into a nation transformed. Little trace of them is left in Abomey, the kingdom’s former capital.

A pair of artisans at the reconstructed palace of King Glele — each of Dahomey’s 12 kings built their own palace — stitch banners of Amazons toting rifles, brawling with men and clutching severed heads.

A rusty sign across town informs onlookers that a Catholic church now occupies the grounds of a former Amazon camp.

And paint is chipping off the statue of a female warrior in a neighboring village. Visitors must wade through chest-high brush to reach her.

Nafivovo

Nanlèhoundé Houédanou, 85, speaks at village meetings about her step-grandmother, Nafivovo. “It’s my job to keep her alive,” she said. (Danielle Paquette/The Washington Post)

Houédanou speaks at community meetings of her step-grandmother: Nafivovo, the warrior who fixed okra soup for hungry children.

Tall and wiry, she landed in the village of Nangahoué after the war and harvested palm oil for money before marrying Houédanou’s grandfather. The couple shared a clay-brick house, where her relatives live today and neighbors blast hip-hop on the radio.

“It’s my job to keep her alive,” said Houédanou, sitting in the doorway of that home. “I’m one of the oldest people in this village, so it’s up to me to teach the young people their history.”

Seniority gives her the floor when people gather to discuss big issues — elections, drought, the pandemic — and she shares stories about Nafivovo. It’s hard to get the teenagers to care, she said, so she tries to keep it entertaining.

“With war songs,” Houédanou said. She broke into a tune: We are proud children of the kingdom. We will defend it.

Houédanou was a teenager when the Amazon died. Memories surge when she smells a certain mustard spice. Navifovo cooked for neighborhood kids. They ran to the house when they were in trouble.

“Their parents couldn’t beat them here,” Houédanou said, grinning. “Even before we started talking about ‘human rights,’ Navifovo wouldn’t allow it.”

She laughed.

“Everyone knew the old lady would win the fight.”

Adana

Ayebeleyi Dahoui, 72, says her grandmother loved battle. Adana preferred fighting with her hands, she told her grandchildren. The musket took too long to load. (Danielle Paquette/The Washington Post)

Adana yearned for the battlefield. Housework was not for her, she told her grandchildren. She’d rather be ambushing an enemy. Tussling with her bare hands, her preferred weapons. The musket took too long to load.

“She told me how she used to strangle people,” said her granddaughter, 72-year-old Ayebeleyi Dahoui. “She used her long nails.”

She curled her fingers into claws.

“Like this.”

Dahoui was about 12 when she first heard the war stories. Her grandmother urged her to join the military someday if she could. Adana thought battle imparted life lessons: Be patient. Stay calm. Act deliberately.

The Amazon taught her grandchildren self-defense as they hit puberty. Dahoui never used the choke move, but she internalized a sense of readiness.

One day after she’d had children of her own, she took them to a market and got into an argument with a woman over who would buy the last ears of corn. The woman attacked Dahoui. Her babies were screaming. So she bashed the foe with a ceramic bowl.

“I might have run away,” Dahoui said, “but Grandma taught me to stand up for myself.”

Yaketou

Dah Djika Dégbo, 73, holds tobacco in the southern Benin village of Detohou. His step-grandmother, Yaketou, was a former Amazon who brought the crop there after surviving the Second Franco-Dahomean War in 1894. (Danielle Paquette/The Washington Post)

The village of Detohou had no tobacco before the Amazon showed up.

After surviving the battle with France, Yaketou rejected gender roles. She spurned domestic chores that women normally shouldered to build a crop empire.

Yaketou knew where to find the plant for smoking — Dahomey had sacked her town years earlier and then made her into a warrior. Her old neighbors had it. So off she walked.

“She was very enterprising,” said her step-grandson, 73-year-old Dah Djika Dégbo.

Dégbo was young when she died — perhaps 5 — so his memories of Yaketou are fuzzy. But he recalls growing up with pride: His grandfather had married an Amazon. Her sack of tobacco seeds turned into a business that employed other women.

Dégbo’s granddaughter-in-law works in the trade.

“This is her legacy,” he said.

Yaketou struggled to get pregnant, so the family built her a concrete fertility temple on the outskirts of town. When this offering to the gods did not produce a baby, Yakouto shifted her focus to mentoring girls.

These days, the younger women in Dégbo’s orbit have left the village for the capital, seeking better work.

He credits the Amazon’s influence.

Yaketou's family built her a fertility temple near the village of Detohou. She never had children of her own, so she focused on mentoring young women. (Danielle Paquette/The Washington Post)

— The Washington Post

[gospelmusic]

Court Demands 24 Sureties For Igboho's Associates' Bail, Afenifere Kicks

The bail perfection of 12 detained aides of Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo, aka Sunday Igboho, has suffered a setback as the Federal High Court in Abuja demanded 24 sureties. Saturday PUNCH learnt that the development was in contrast to four sureties earlier demanded by the court. A member of Igboho’s legal team, Pelumi Olajengbesi, expressed dissatisfaction at the development. According to the lawyer, the legal team is only aware that the presiding judge, Justice Obiora Egwuatu, granted the detainees bail with four sureties. Justice Egwuatu, last Wednesday, admitted the 12 applicants to bail after spending five weeks in the custody of the Department of State Services, following their arrest on July 1, 2021 at Igboho’s Ibadan residence raided by the DSS operatives around 1am. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); The secret police had also said it killed two other associates of the activist in a gun duel and subsequently declared Igboho wanted for allegedly stockpiling arms to destabilise Nigeria under the pretext of Yoruba Nation. But the activist, who is now in a Beninese detention facility, had denied the allegation. According to Olajengbesi, Justice Egwuatu granted bail to eight of the detained aides in the sum of N5m, two sureties resident in Abuja, with evidence of two years’ tax payment. The lawyer said the bail terms for the remaining four were N10m in the like sum, two sureties resident in Abuja with one of them being a civil servant in a Federal Government ministry or any of its agencies with grade level not less than 12. In addition, the four applicants will report to the DSS office every first Monday of the month effective from September. The DSS lawyer, Idowu Awo, had told the court that he was not opposing the bail of eight of the applicants as their investigations revealed that the levels of their involvement in the offence of arms stockpiling and other criminal activities were minimal. But the DSS lawyer argued that four others, Babatunde, Shittu, Oyetunji and Sunday, should not be granted bail in the interest of justice and national security. Olajengbesi, however, prayed the court to discountenance the argument of the DSS as it was unknown to the Nigerian law. Justice Egwuatu disregarded Awo’s argument and granted the 12 detainees bail. But speaking to Saturday PUNCH on Friday, Olajengbesi expressed surprise at the “clarification” of the court. The lawyer said he was at the bail office of the court on Friday to start the vetting and assessment of the sureties when he was told that two sureties resident in Abuja were needed for each of the detainees. He said, “Having got the four sureties and in the process of perfecting the bail conditions, the court clarified that the two sureties there were for each of the detainees, so the court is asking for 24 sureties. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); “The bail office clarified from the judge today (Friday). The difference now is that two sureties resident in Abuja per person are needed.” He appealed to the Yoruba to assist the detainees in meeting their bail conditions. “When the court granted the bail, we wanted them to be remanded in a correctional centre here in Abuja because the complaint from the applicants is that DSS officials maltreat and beat them every day,” he stated. Meanwhile, the leader of Afenifere, a Pan Yoruba socio-political group, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, has kicked against the demand for 24 sureties by the court Adebanjo, in an interview with our correspondent, described the bail conditions as “impossible” and a sign of an “oppressive regime” of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd). He said, “Some people who want to stand as sureties may not want the government to associate them with Igboho,” and appealed to Yoruba indigenes in Abuja to rise up to the occasion and ensure the detainees were freed from DSS custody. Adebanjo stated, “What have they done? You locked them up and detained them, then you are asking for impossible bail? It is part of the oppression of this government. What is their charge to warrant such heavy bail? Murder? Stealing or what? “They woke them up and bundled them to Abuja, killed some of them and those that are alive are given impossible bail. What further evidence of authoritarian regime do we need? It is unfair. Only God will save us from Buhari. It is an unfair position for bail but I appeal to Yoruba sons and daughters to bail them.” The Afenifere leader also urged the Beninese Government not to cave in to the pressure of the Nigerian Government to extradite Igboho. “There is nothing against him (Igboho) that warrants extradition. They (Beninese Government) should not dance to the dictatorship of the Federal Government because it is unfair to extradite him. Someone running away from his life should not be sent back to those who are going to kill him. He has not done anything criminal, all because he wants self-determination for his people, is that a criminal offence?” Adebanjo queried. Also, the Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams, in an interview with Saturday PUNCH, called on Yoruba people resident in Abuja to come to the aid of the detained persons. He said, “Anybody that stands with you as a surety while in detention will be in your history for life. I appeal to the Yoruba community in Abuja to stand as sureties for those in detention. It is very important. I learnt that our group and some other groups are working towards meeting these stringent bail conditions. “Those detained are freedom fighters and not criminals. Every Yoruba son and daughter in Abuja should please rise up and perfect the bail conditions of the court.” Meanwhile, Yoruba Nation agitators have started fundraising to meet the bail by the Federal High Court granted to the 12 detained aides of Sunday Igboho. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); The Communications Manager of Ilana Omo Oodua Worldwide, Maxwell Adeleye, made this known in a statement titled ‘Emergency Bail Contributions for 12 Yoruba Agitators in Abuja’. The group led by Prof Banji Akintoye said, “Accounts were prepared to temporarily raise funds needed to move our people arrested at Chief Sunday Adeyemo Igboho’s house out of the bondage of the Nigerian Government before the close of business on Monday, 9th August, 2021. “Our legal adviser has promised to supervise the utilisation of the funds for the purpose which it was created for. We hereby call on all Yoruba sons and daughters worldwide to support this drive.”

#News Local #National #Trends

[secretradiobrooklyn]

New York State Tax Edition | 3.20 & 3.27.21

Secret Radio | 3.20 & 3.27.21 | Hear it here.

Liner notes by Evan (except * for Paige), Art by Paige

1. Antoine Dougbé - “Towe Nin” 

There was a while during which I tried to listen to every single T.P. Orchestre song that could be heard via discogs.com. They’ve released dozens of albums, probably close to a hundred if you count all of the albums attributed to various members, so that was a very daunting task… though really what it highlighted was the sheer volume of songs that just are not available to be heard in digital form. Those songs take on a sort of mythic quality as we listen to the huge variety of styles and periods that this band passed through in their prolific and very obscure career. But the ones that loom in the imagination the largest, for Paige and me, are the songs attributed to Antoine Dougbé. He writes for the band but doesn’t record with them, and in most cases Melomé Clement arranges the songs — and these are some of Melomé’s finest arrangements, in my opinion. “Towe Nin” isn’t a propulsive powerhouse like the Dougbé tracks on “Legends of Benin,” but it does have tons of style, and the band sounds extremely confident. My favorite detail of many — like, listen to the shaker solo in the middle! — on this track is the final passage, where three voices suddenly meld into an extremely Western, Beatle-y harmonic finale (with an unresolved final chord). Where did that come from?! It blows my mind to think about how these guys were hearing music and writing music in Benin in the ’70s…

2. Hürel - “Ve Ölüm” - “Tip Top” soundtrack

The other night we watched a DVD that was part of our Non-Classic French Cinema Program that Paige has been drafting for us, featuring movies she figures French people would know but that didn’t get exposed to American audiences. This one was… baffling — the problems were French cultural ones that we really didn’t grok at all. Which was kind of cool. An odd detail was that this song featured prominently throughout the trailer and the film, though we couldn’t figure out, like, why. But we knew immediately that it was awesome.

And… this track sent us down the rabbit hole of Anatolian rock, which turns out to be Turkish psych music from the ’60s & ’70s. We’ve played Erkin Koray’s “Cemalim” and thought that was cool, but had no idea it was a burgeoning scene with tons of creative writers and amazing songs. We’ve spent a lot of time checking out Anatolian music since, and I can tell we’re just getting started. So: thank you to a giant French crowdpleaser movie for the Anatolian clue-in!

3. They Might Be Giants - “Nothing’s Gonna Change My Clothes” 

I was not expecting to experience a They Might Be Giants renaissance at this point in my life, but this is just further proof that time has a lot of tricks up its sleeve. This song tells me a lot about what I like now by re-presenting what I liked then, showing off completely new facets I hadn’t yet appreciated. This song is lousy with insights… including that super Slanted Malkmus-y scream at the very end!)

4. Jacqueline Taïeb - “La fac de lettres”

Jacqueline Taïeb is probably my single favorite French pop artist, even though her body of work is way smaller than most of the runners-up. (I would say the closest contender is Jacque Dutronc.) She’s so full of irrepressible character, it just bubbles up out of the vocal performances. Her biggest hit was “7 heures du matin,” in the character of a bored, rock-obsessed teenager trying to figure out what to wear to school that morning, and “La fac du lettres” kind of picks up the thread: now she’s in the auditorium at school, learning about British history — the invasion of Normandy, the Hundred Years’ War — and pining to get back to the recording studio. 

5. La Card - “Jedno zbogom za tebe”

I didn’t know what circumstance would call for Yugoslavian synth pop warped by endless cassette plays, but it turns out that driving a thousand miles west in one fell swoop requires a certain amount of ’80s vibes. Turns out Yugoslavia had a pretty rich punk/new wave scene in the ’80s, and even though the songs were often critical of the Communist government, they were not only allowed to be played but, to a certain extent, supported by the government, and there were also several magazines covering punk, new wave, ska (!), and rock music in Yugoslavia.

6. Suicide - “Shadazz” 

Maybe it’s the band name, but I was never able to find a place for myself in the music of Suicide, despite how many bands I dig who cite them. But Paige pulled this track, and now I’m starting to get it. I also really like how the kick drum fits against the cymbal-ish sound loop that leads the percussion. 

7. Girma Beyene - “Ene Negn Bay Manesh”

Man, Ethiopia was swingin so hard in the ’60s and ’70s! This track combines the organ-driven band dynamic with a smooth Western vocal croon that I’ve never quite heard before. 

8. Os Mutantes - “Trem Fantasma” 

I still can’t believe that I haven’t been listening to this album my whole life — it’s so freaking amazing from beginning to end. Every song feels like its own complete cinematic experience, with narrative twists and turns, a high-drama dynamic, and each voice taking on a host of characters, independently and together. “Trem Fantasma” is an entire album contained in a single song — and that’s what it’s like with every song on their debut album. PLUS it’s got the coolest possible cover. Truly, I’m still in awe at this album. It makes me wonder: what did the Beatles think of this record?! 

9. The Beatles - “Think for Yourself” 

This is one of those songs that I feel like established whole new harmony relationships in Western pop… and this likely isn’t even one of their top 50 songs for most Beatles fans. Apparently, they had the main tracks recorded already — this is one of George’s first songs, it’s just 1965 — and they threw the harmonies on in “a light-hearted session” between two other things they were in the middle of, because they were under pressure to get this album finished. That’s amazing! Also, this song is the first one to use a fuzzbox on a bass: Paul played one (excellent) part on clean bass, and another one one all fuzzed out, which became the lead guitar — in fact, John had a guitar part but scrapped it to play an organ instead. What a righteous song to kick off the concept of lead bass guitar! That was Harvey Danger’s big compositional secret: Aaron wrote and played most of the lead guitar parts on bass, and had a fantastic sense of what he could do with the tone of his instrument. 

10. Erkin Koray - “Öksürük” 

Anatolian rock! It has its own note scale, that gives it this Eastern tonality while working in Western rock shapes and with what feels like a very relatably wry sense of humor. Erkin Koray is right up there in the firmament for us — the whole genre is full of welcome discoveries, but Koray is a really unique guitarist and composer beyond any particular genre. This track plays up his lead guitar passages while maintaining a pretty undeniable disco downbeat, and his vocal delivery strikes me as more French than anything. And yet the whole thing is so deeply and fully Turkish.

11. Vaudou Game - “Pas Contente”

We’ve been so head-over-heels for Beninese funk and rock from the ’60s and ’70s that our fantasies about that music are completely separated from any music happening today. But Vaudou Game is led by Peter Solo, a Togolese musician who grew up on the sound of T.P. Orchestre and decided to work with it himself. His band is handpicked and mostly I think French — the sound is I think a really impressive take on classic Beninese style but with very modern feel. This track is from 2014. I’m looking forward to digging in some more, because it’s a thrill to find a live wire in this music style. 

12. Cut Off Your Hands - “Higher Lows and Lower Highs”

This is one of my favorite tracks from the last 5 years. I get so absorbed in the way the bass part relates to all of the other pieces. The bass is absolutely the reason this song works — just tune into it and check out how the whole world of the song bends to accommodate it.

The Gang of Roesli - “Don’t Talk about Freedom”

Years ago, when I took over Eleven magazine, there was a giant stack of mailed-in CDs in the editor’s office. I didn’t hang onto many of them, but there was a set from Now-Again Records that just looked like something we should spend more time with. Turns out that one of them was “Those Shocking Shaking Days,” a collection of trippy, heavy Indonesian rock. I didn’t get it at the time, but lately I’ve certainly been picking up what they were laying down. The baroque keys, the vocal la’s, the hitched-up bass and guitar, that little bass lick, the harmonica… I would love to have been around for the session this came from. 

13. Warm Gun - “Broken Windows” - “PAINK”

More paink from France, in the mode of Richard Hell, short sweet and rowdy.

14. Duo Kribo - “Uang” - “Those Shocking Shaking Days”

This is another amazing Indonesian track — amazing for a completely different reason than The Gang of Roesli. Such a note-perfect rendition of chart-topping American (and German — what’s up, Scorps?) rock, but their own song nonetheless! This song attracts me, repels me, attracts me, repels me, on and on in equal measure. To me the kicker is the outro section, which sounds like something Eko Roosevelt came up with… thousands of miles and many genres away from Duo Kribo.

15. The Real Kids - “All Kindsa Girls”

Even as the theoretical pleasures of Facebook overall continue to recede, I find myself glad of a FB group somebody let me in on: Now Playing. The only stipulation about posts is that you have to include a photo of the actual record that you are actually playing — beyond that, it could be any genre, any period, whatever. People post interesting albums all the time, and will often write up their thoughts or memories about the band when they do. Boston’s The Real Kids just sounded like something I should know about, so I hunted it down and man, they were not wrong. Not everything on the album was for us, but right from the African-sounding guitar intro, “All Kindsa Girls” certainly was. Lead guitar/vocal guy John Felice was an early member of the Modern Lovers and a fellow VU devotee with his neighbor Jonathan Richman — he also spent time as a Ramones roadie. I’m tickled by how much the penultimate guitar riff sounds like something off the first Vampire Weekend album, and the final riff was destined to become a punk classic.

16. De Frank Professionals - “Afe Ato Yen Bio” 

We broadcast the first part of this episode from the cockpit of the van rocketing between New York and Illinois. Not long after we got here to the woods, a package showed up from Analog Africa with our new “Afro-Beat Airways” reissue, as well as their first indispensable T.P. Orchestre collection, “The Skeletal Essences of Afro-Funk 1969-1980.” We’re celebrating that record with this absolutely killer song by De Frank Professionals, a band about whom very little is known. I am in love with every part of this song, from the sixth-beat hi-hat accent to those tandem vocal parts and that beautiful guitar tone. This track has quickly risen to being one of our all-time faves. Bless Samy Ben Redjeb and everyone at AA for doing the work to find these amazing recordings, track down the musicians, pay them for rights to release, and making these miraculous finds available!

17. Ros Serey Sothea - “Shave Your Beard” 

Concurrent to our African fascination has been the gorgeous and thoroughly tragic revelation of Cambodia’s richly talented and expressive rock scene that was utterly destroyed by the Khmer Rouge. There were so many amazing musicians in the scene, but certainly the most flat-out amazing voice was Ros Serey Sothea’s, as this track makes clear. I also love just how sophsticated and innovative these Cambodian song arrangements are — they really take Western ’60s pop into a new world, with intricate guitar parts and really solidly satisfying instrumental structures.

18. King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard - “O.N.E.”

This is a hard band to keep up with, for a variety of reasons — they can be so intense, and their guitar-rock prog virtuosity can get a bit off-putting if you’re not ready for it. This track, though, reminds me of a host of favorite reference points from the last twenty years of rock. This recording makes me wish that they could have played with Bailiff in Chicago in 2012 — I think everyone would have gained a lot from that connection.

Also, the video is so beautiful!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkZd2lBQb2c

19. Ettika - “Ettika” - “Chebran: French Boogie Vol. 2”

French culture is shot through with African references. Ettika was an early ’80s hit with musicians besotted by synths and American rap styles. This band was produced by a noted French composer who was married to a Cameroonian and very much into African groove. This “French Boogie” collection is full of African-style gems heavily refracted through the decade’s new technology.

20. Spice Girls - “Wannabe”

I yield the floor.

*As I mention in the “broadcast” it just felt right. That confident opening line. What are guilty pleasures? How do you feel listening to this song? And y’all already have our phone numbers, so that’s no surprise!

- The Gang of Roesli - “Don’t Talk about Freedom”

21. Steely Dan - “Reelin’ in the Years”

Gut reaction: do you actually love this song? Do you actually hate this song? Do you find that your reaction changes moment by moment within the experience of listening to the song, where your personal experience clashes with your cultural memory associations? Me too.

22. Zia - “Kofriom” - “Helel Yos”

I don’t remember how I got to this track, but holy smokes am I glad we did! It’s pretty freakin hard to find out anything about Zia. The cover of this album portrays an older man with dyed hair and a white blazer over a black collar… but I did actually find a video of Zia performing this song on Iranian public television, and he looks considerably younger and less flash than that. In fact, he’s sporting a tan three-piece suit with a wide tie, all alone on a heavily mirrored stage, and he kind of looks like he might be running for a senate seat in his spare time. It’s a very weird effect. But meanwhile: this whole album is super cool, very expressive of an emotional state I definitely don’t understand. The handclaps are absolutely top notch in the rhythm — they remind me of Ayalew Mesfin’s awesome “Gedawo.”

23. Jo LeMaire & Flouze - “Je Suis Venue te Dire Que je M’en Vais”

Doesn’t this sound like something you could have had intense adolescent feelings to? 

*I first heard this song in the trailer for Boy Meets Girl  and then later in the film. (Not my personal favorite Carax but definitely great, and the music and sound design is top notch.) Then my French teacher suggested I check out a song, and it was this song. So that’s neat!

24. Rung Petchburi - “Pai Joi” - “Thai? Dai!: The Heavier Side of the Lukthung Underground”

We’re still just getting to know Lukthung music, but for the last couple weeks we’ve been getting deeper and deeper into Thai rock, psych, surf and funk. It’s a rich vein, and it shares some really interesting characteristics with seemingly unrelated regions, like Turkey and Ethiopia.

Black Brothers - “Saman Doye”

I’m telling you, “Those Shocking Shaking Days” will improve your life immediately.

25. Nahid Akhtar - “Dil de Guitar” - from “Good Listener Vol 1,” 

This collection just came out this month, which was a surprise because we just stumbled across this track by reading about Nahid Akhtar elsewhere. What an AMAZING track! This was recorded and released in Pakistan in 1977, and I can’t even imagine how they wrote it, much less recorded it. The drum loops seem like they hadn’t been invented yet… but there they are, cranked up to their highest speed. It’s a collage of ideas and hooks, all just crammed together into a single song. the main hook reminds me a bit of “Jogi Jogi,” our favorite Pakistani song on WBFF thus far. I feel like I could listen to this song a hundred times and hear something new each time. Akhtar’s voice is so expressive and confident in those long held notes — and who is that ogre doing call and response with her? So weird. So cool.

[raweewann]

The Premier League - The Biggest Traitors in Soccer History

Many top soccer teams  ทีเด็ด บอล ชุด 4 ตัว throughout the years have achieved great success and reached many finals over the years. The World Cup is one of the most widely attended and rated international soccer tournaments. Each country that hosts the tournament comes up with exciting promotions and special events to attract fans. Fans go crazy about the teams no matter where they are from. Whether you are from Manchester or London, you will be able to attend a match at some point during your life because of the popularity of the game.

Soccer is one of the most popular sports worldwide. For football, known as football in Europe, there are several options being explored, such as playing matches in specially designed venues in June and July, or going overseas for some top quality matches. The popularity of the game has made it an extremely lucrative business opportunity for many teams. Teams are competing against each other to win the league, and fans travel from country to cheer on their favorite team. Each team gives it all they have, both on and off the field in order to win the league.

Premier League clubs play in different countries around the world. Some of the most popular clubs in the world are Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool, Queens Park Rangers, The Hawthorns, Wolves, Burnley, Crystal Palace, Watford, West Bromwich Albion, Everton, Newcastle United, Norwich City, Watford, Celtic, Rangers, West Ham, Stoke City, Newcastle United, Watford, West Ham, Queens Park Rangers, Wolves, Celtic and Watford. There are also many smaller clubs in various countries, such sorts, Beninese FC, Sporting Lisbon, Alaves, 1860 Munich, FC Barcelona, Arsenal, Internacional and Deportivo la Luz. Premier League matches are always live on TV for the fans.

Another part of the football history is the teams and players who betrayal the fans and the team. These are some of the biggest traitors in soccer history. David Beckham, Pele, Diego Maradona, Ronaldo, and substituted legends John Terry and David James are the biggest traitors from the England side. These three stars were once in their pomp and now are considered sell outs by the millions of soccer fans throughout the world.

Another superstar in English football is Wayne Rooney. His move to PSG has turned some heads in the football world. However, there are many who do not see his move to France as a positive for the game. Many top English sides have a star player who can play in the premiership, although this is becoming rarer. Many fans are starting to turn against the Premier League and its premier players, even World Cup stars.

The biggest traitors in soccer history are the players themselves. The daily Mail has become a tool of the league, supporting their team, while shunning other teams. Some news reports state that "CRubs" are a team on steroids. This is a ridiculous statement to make. The Daily Mail should stick to the news and report only news worthy items.

[pmemusic1]

Four-time Grammy Award winner Angélique Kidjo is one of the greatest artists in international music today, a creative force with thirteen albums to her name.

Time Magazine has called her "Africa's premier diva". The BBC has included her in its list of the continent's 50 most iconic figures, and in 2011 The Guardian listed her as one of their Top 100 Most Inspiring Women in the World. Forbes Magazine has ranked Angelique as the first woman in their list of the Most Powerful Celebrities in Africa. She is the recent recipient of the prestigious 2015 Crystal Award given by the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the 2016 Amnesty International Ambassador of Conscience Award, and the 2018 German Sustainability Award.

As a performer, her striking voice, stage presence and fluency in multiple cultures and languages have won respect from her peers and expanded her following across national borders. Kidjo has cross-pollinated the West African traditions of her childhood in Benin with elements of American R&B, funk and jazz, as well as influences from Europe and Latin America.

Angelique also travels the world advocating on behalf of children in her capacity as a UNICEF and OXFAM goodwill Ambassador. At the G7 Summit in 2019, President Macron of France named Kidjo as the spokesperson for the AFAWA initiative (Affirmative Finance Action for Women in Africa) to help close the financing gap for women entrepreneurs in Africa. She has also created her own charitable foundation, Batonga, dedicated to support the education of young girls in Africa.

After exploring the roads of Africa's diaspora — through Brazil, Cuba and The United States — and offering a refreshing and electrifying take on the Talking Heads album Remain In Light (called “Transformative” by the New York Times, “Visionary” by NPR Music, “Stunning” by Rolling Stone, and “one of the year’s most vibrant albums” by the Washington Post), the French-Beninese singer is now reflecting on an icon of the Americas, celebrated salsa singer Celia Cruz.

Kidjo’s album Celia (April 19 - Verve/Universal Music France) divests itself of the glamour to investigate the African roots of the Cuban-born woman who became the "Queen" of salsa. Celia was recorded in New York and Paris, produced by David Donatien and mixed by Russell Elevado (D’Angelo, Kamasi Washington). Over the course of 10 beloved songs from Cruz’s extensive catalog but with special focus on her work from the 1950s, Angelique’s voice soars in lockstep with a grand presentation of rhythmic touchstones that delve deep into the history of music from Africa and it’s influence on the music of Cuba. Each song celebrates this idea – from the tight afro-beat groove of “Baila Yemaja,” the high octane take on “Quimbara,” the frantic energy of “Bemba Colora” to “Oya Diosa,” a lushly orchestrated ballad.

Angélique’s interpretation of The Talking Heads’ classic 1980 album, Remain in Light, was recorded with superstar producer Jeff Bhasker (Kanye West, Rolling Stones, Beyoncé), taking classic songs such as "Crosseyed and Painless," "Once in a Lifetime," and "Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On)" and reinterpreting them with electrifying rhythms, African guitars, and layered backing vocals.

Her star-studded album DJIN DJIN won a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Album in 2008, and her album OYO was nominated for the same award in 2011. In January 2014 Angélique’s first book, a memoir titled Spirit Rising: My Life, My Music (Harper Collins) and her twelfth album, EVE (Savoy/429 Records), were released to critical acclaim. EVE later went on to win the Grammy Award for Best World Music Album in 2015, and her historic, orchestral album Sings with the Orchestre Philharmonique Du Luxembourg (Savoy/429 Records) won a Grammy for Best World Music Album in 2016.

Angelique has gone on to perform this genre-bending work with several international orchestras and symphonies including the Bruckner Orchestra, The Royal Scottish National Orchestra, and the Philharmonie de Paris. Her collaboration with Philip Glass, IFÉ: Three Yorùbá Songs, made its US debut to a sold out concert with the San Francisco Symphony in June 2015. In 2019, Angelique helped Philip Glass premiere his latest work, Symphony #12 “Lodger”, a symphonic re-imaging of the David Bowie album of the same name, at a sold out performance at the Los Angeles Philharmonic. In addition to performing this new orchestral concert, Angelique continues to tour globally performing the high-energy concert she’s become famous for with her four-piece band.

Source: Internet

#music #beauty