Connect with us

Culture

Famed Benin Republic’s Voodoo festival brings back Afro-descendants

Published

on

A famous Voodoo festival which holds yearly in Benin Republic has brought together thousands of people of African descent from the US, Brazil and the Caribbean, seeking to discover the religion and land of their ancestors who were taken away as from the beaches of West Africa.

The festival celebrates a tribute to the deities of Voodoo, the indigenous religion that worships natural spirits and reveres ancestors.

The Voodoo festival, known locally as Vodoun, originated in the Dahomey kingdom in the present-day Benin and Togo, and is still widely practised alongside Christianity and other religions in coastal towns like Ouidah, once a trading hub where memorials to the slave trade are dotted around the small beach settlement, according to the organisers in a statement on Thursday.

One of the participants at the festival,
Louis Pierre Ramassamy who said he is Guadaloupe, said he came for the festival to reconnect with his origins.

“We come here first to search for our origins and reconnect with Mother Earth,” he said of his first visit to Benin.

Ramassamy said though he came to discover the Vodoun festival, but his stay has goes beyond that and would follow in the footsteps of his ancestors taken from Ouidah centuries ago, to rediscover the divinity practised by his maternal grandmother.

“If luck does not smile on me this time, I will come back another time. I need this reconnection for my personal development,” said Ramassamy, saying consultations and sacrifices were made for him in a Vodoun convent in Ouidah to help him reconnect with his roots.

Accompanied by drums and dancing, followers dressed in colourful traditional robes and gowns watched “Zangbeto” rituals – whirling dancers dressed as guardians of the night.

At the festival held on Wednesday, January 10, a date that has become synonymous with the festival, dozens of followers dressed in white, faced the ocean in Ouidah to pay homage to “Mami Wata”, a goddess of the sea.

“Our ancestors foresaw this return of Afro-descendants. They eagerly awaited by the ghosts of our ancestors,” said Hounnongan Viyeye Noumaze Gbetoton, one of the Vodoun dignitaries in Ouidah.

“When they return, it is to take blessings and recharge their batteries to move forward,” he added.

Culture

South African Jazz great Abdullah Ibrahim to embark on world tour at age 90

Published

on

Renowned South African jazz master and pianist, Abdullah Ibrahim, is set to embark on an unprecedented world tour to celebrate his extraordinary career which has spanned more than seven decades, as well as celebrate his 90th birthday which comes up on October 9.

Ibrahim’s management team which announced the planned tour on Wednesday, said the tour will also be marked with Ibrahim’s 90th birthday which will also showcase his dexterity as a jazz musician.

Music writer, Christine Lucia, who has followed Ibrahim’s career for more than 30 years and has studied the iconic star’s work as well as published research articlesabout him, said the planned tour was a way of letting the world have a feel of him in his twilight years.

A profile of the distinguished pianist reveals that he was born on 9 October 1934 in Cape Town.

Ibrahim grew up in Cape Town’s District Six and his compositions are characterized by his upbringing and his experiences with racism and political upheaval.

His music has evolved over seven decades, reflecting social change and personal introspection.

Ibrahim is the finest jazz pianist-composer that South Africa has ever produced and has been described as the country’s equivalent of the US jazz star, Duke Ellington, because his “legacy lies not only in his live performances or multiple recordings but also in his large number of compositions.”

“He was brought up going by the name Dollar Brand and was shaped personally by his mixed-race parentage and by growing up in the mixed-race area of central Cape Town formerly known as District Six,” Lucia wrote about the star.

“He was shaped by the violent political landscape of racism and oppression. As a young man he was also shaped by his conversion to Islam in 1968, which is when he took the name Abdullah Ibrahim, and by his practice of martial arts and Zen, a form of Buddhism.”

Continue Reading

Culture

Wizkid, Davido’s online battle gets nasty as they exchange ‘dirty’ tweets

Published

on

The online battle between two of Nigeria’s biggest music stars, Ayodeji Balogun, aka Wizkid, and David Adedeji, popularly known as Davido, has continued to generate more controversies as the two have refused to back down, going as far as exchanging insulting tweets.

The fight between the two superstars was reignited on Monday when Wizkid threw a shade at Davido while responding to a fan’s request on X for a new music.

Wizkid reportedly posted a leaked video of Davido begging someone believed to be a female associate.

While on it, the Grammy award-winning singer also dissed the successful music producer and label owner, Don Jazzy, calling him a social media ‘influencer’.

The post generated serious uproar on the micro-blogging platform, with fans of both music stars taking up sides and attacking one another.

In response, Davido, on Monday night, dropped a series of cryptic tweets believed to be responses to the “Ojuelegba” crooner.

In one of the tweets, Davido said:

“Dem no know your Gbedu”, which many believed was aimed at Wizkid who said he had earlier hinted that he would drop his much anticipated ‘Morayo’ album in May.

Davido followed up with another tweet:

“When light comes, darkness vanishes. Let get active.”

He went further by posting a video of his wife, Chioma, with the caption, “They were trying to distract us, baby no mind dem”.

Wizkid took up the challenge with his own tweet which came with a dig:

“U and all ur crew plus ur pant washer songwriter go to sleep at night thinking you got anything on me in music 🤣😂 wish u all well ✌️”

He followed it up with another tweet:

“U know what..no point. delusional niggas 😇 pray for y’all.”

Davido quickly responded with another tweet:

“WE NOT DELUSIONAL YOU’RE A SICK MAN,” which was a confirmation that there is no love lost between both Afrobeat stars.

Continue Reading

EDITOR’S PICK

Metro3 hours ago

Religious leader, Luchile, notes improvements in media freedom but faults online media abuse

In this ongoing conversation to amplify voices on media freedoms, freedom of speech, and digital rights, we feature, Maxwell Luchile,...

Video4 hours ago

Video: Uganda’s Museveni urges African leaders to verify true motives behind IMF, W’Bank loans

In this video, Ugandan President, Yoweri Museveni, urged African leaders to verify the true intentions of multilateral lending institutions towards...

VenturesNow8 hours ago

Nigerian banks close over two million accounts

At least two million bank accounts have been closed by different commercial banks in Nigeria following the failure of their...

Tech21 hours ago

Tanzania’s horticultural industry gets $2.1m grant from TradeMark Africa to boost market expansion

The Tanzanian horticultural industry has recieved a grant of $2.1 million from TradeMark Africa to enable it boost its market...

Culture22 hours ago

South African Jazz great Abdullah Ibrahim to embark on world tour at age 90

Renowned South African jazz master and pianist, Abdullah Ibrahim, is set to embark on an unprecedented world tour to celebrate...

Sports22 hours ago

Kenya unveils ‘killer-squad’ for Paris Olympics marathon Ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympic

Ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games kicking off in July, Kenya has unveiled a “killer-squad” for the marathon event....

Tech1 day ago

Civil society group says planned online regulation under IBA Act, an affront on media freedom (Video)

Chapter One Foundation Executive Director, Linda Kasonde, says the planned online regulation under the new Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA) Act...

Metro1 day ago

Clergyman raises concern over abuses associated with digital rights and freedom of expression

Emmanuel Kalulu, a clergy member from the Brethren Christ Church in Choma, has expressed concerns about the misuse of media...

Politics1 day ago

Nigeria’s Dangote refinery set to get valid operating licence

The Nigerian government has revealed that the 650,000 barrels per day Dangote Petroleum Refinery will soon receive a full operating...

Musings From Abroad1 day ago

US wants UAE, others to cease support for Sudan’s warring parties

The United States wants all countries, including the United Arab Emirates, to stop helping the warring sides in Sudan, the...

Trending