The Fader, Trace, Urb, Spin, NME…all these magazines are closely connected to the indie music, fashion and art scenes of the west. It’s only right that Africa would begin producing it’s own lifestyle mags to expose the subcultures of it’s various countries to the world.
Popafricana is to the African continent, what those aforementioned magazines are to their respective movements and countries. It’s a bi-annual publication that focuses primarily on fashion and art, with a healthy dose of Pan-African music and culture. One of the many measures of a society is the variety of art it produces and the counter-cultures that inevitably arise as a result. Africa is no exception, people around the world just don’t necessarily know where to look…
Chioma Nnadi, Style Editor of The Fader, agrees:
Oroma Elewa, the editor of Pop’Africana likes to think of her magazine as a “visual guide” to a new Africa, and is pretty serious about featuring the work of African photographers in Africa, continuing a legacy of image-making started by the likes of Malik Sidibe and Seydou Keita. Looking at the introductory issue that’s online, it’s refreshing to see a style publication as intensely joyful and fun as this one. It’s made by young Africans for young Africans, and is refreshing, especially in the wake of an all-black issue of Italian Vogue that did lots to showcase the talents of the models in front of the camera but little for those behind it.
I know the term ‘hipster’ comes with some bad connotations (consumerism, drugs, sex, recklessness) but that doesn’t change the fact that it’s a movement youth all over the world have connected with. In some circles there are the hipster ‘extremists’ but others are more inclusive and seek to define the world, not by race or ethnicity, but by how much they can belittle your taste in music (*wink*). Ultimately where in the world do the young not experiment with drugs, sex, music and act a little reckless. Hell, American Apparel built a whole brand around it! Beyond that, African fashion culture is exploding. Groups like Ladybrille are really heading a movement that improves how African’s see themselves while setting trends around the world. It’s also great to see more female entrepreneurs taking risks. So hats off (no pun intended) to PopAfricana and I’m looking forward to their next issue.
About the author: Jonathan Gosier is a software developer, writer and social entrepreneur. He currently lives in Kampala, Uganda where he incubates and invests in East African entrepreneurs as the CEO of Appfrica Labs. He's also a TED Fellow.
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PopAfricana and the African Hipster Movement
The Fader, Trace, Urb, Spin, NME…all these magazines are closely connected to the indie music, fashion and art scenes of the west. It’s only right that Africa would begin producing it’s own lifestyle mags to expose the subcultures of it’s various countries to the world.
Popafricana is to the African continent, what those aforementioned magazines are to their respective movements and countries. It’s a bi-annual publication that focuses primarily on fashion and art, with a healthy dose of Pan-African music and culture. One of the many measures of a society is the variety of art it produces and the counter-cultures that inevitably arise as a result. Africa is no exception, people around the world just don’t necessarily know where to look…
Chioma Nnadi, Style Editor of The Fader, agrees:
I know the term ‘hipster’ comes with some bad connotations (consumerism, drugs, sex, recklessness) but that doesn’t change the fact that it’s a movement youth all over the world have connected with. In some circles there are the hipster ‘extremists’ but others are more inclusive and seek to define the world, not by race or ethnicity, but by how much they can belittle your taste in music (*wink*). Ultimately where in the world do the young not experiment with drugs, sex, music and act a little reckless. Hell, American Apparel built a whole brand around it! Beyond that, African fashion culture is exploding. Groups like Ladybrille are really heading a movement that improves how African’s see themselves while setting trends around the world. It’s also great to see more female entrepreneurs taking risks. So hats off (no pun intended) to PopAfricana and I’m looking forward to their next issue.