Pass Blog
NGUGI WA THIONG’O – THE WRITER IN POST-COLONIAL AFRICA with an introduction by Ari Sitas
Following the popular success of “Matigari ma Njiruungi” the Kikuyu version of Ngugi wa Thiongo’s 6th novel in 1986, word got to then-President Daniel Arap Moi that a revolutionary called Matigari was going around the country asking awkward questions about truth and justice in postcolonial Kenya. Moi promptly demanded this person be arrested. After the infamous Security Branch reported that Matigari was a character in a novel, Moi demanded they arrest the book! At the time Ngugi was in exile in the UK where “Matigari” the English version of the novel was circulating semi-freely – and so the character, Matigari, joined his maker in the exile of Englishness.
Mzee, rest easy, you told us everything.
We play a recording of Ngugi’s lecture “The writer in Postcolonial Africa” given in Durban in 1991 – on the invitation of the Congress of South African Writers (COSAW). It was Ngugi’s first visit to SA. Ari Sitas, who was one of the organisers of this historic gathering, will also share recollections.
Tuesday, 10 June 2025 from 6:30pm
Live on panafricanspacestation.org.za
FATIMA AND THE DUST – a listening session with Leila Bencharnia
Moroccan artist and composer Leila Bencharnia presents ‘Fatima and the Dust’, a new sound piece, and music selections at the Chimurenga Factory on Friday 6 June, from 6.30pm. ‘Fatima and the Dust’ delves into the spiritual world of Gnawa, rooted in Sufism and other African spiritualities, where music and rituals are pathways between the earthly and the divine. The piece is a tribute to the silent yet essential role of women—guardians of ancestral heritage, keepers of rituals, and weavers of …
FOREST NOTEBOOKS LAUNCH OF THE ECHO-LOGIES SERIES
We are proud to present Forest Notebooks by Mario Lewis, the first publication in the ‘Black Echologies’ series, an ongoing collaborative project between Chimurenga and Nyabinghi Lab, a Berlin based independent arts collective. The ‘Black Echologies’ series challenges mainstream ecological discourse—its coloniality and exclusion of indigenous knowledge. Forest Notebooks brings together a (mostly) unfiltered interpretation of Lewis’ year-long journey working in the forests of Trinidad through striking illustrations and elementary notes. Join us to celebrate the launch of the Black …
Category: Live Events, News
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SONGS FOR WINNIE – LAUNCH OF THE LATEST CHRONIC WITH A SEMBLANCE
Chimurenga presents the launch of the latest edition The Chronic – Brandfort: Liberation Capital with a special performance by A Semblance
Category: Live Events, News, Pass Blog
Tags: Asher Gamedze, winnie madikizela-mandela
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MBIZO! – a gathering for Johnny Dyani [8 March 2025 LIVE @ Constellation, Chicago]
On 8 March 2025, Chimurenga presents ‘MBIZO! a gathering for Johnny Dyani’, a LIVE concert performance at CONSTELLATION (3111 N Western Ave, Chicago) from 8:30pm (CST) / 4:30 (SAST). Conducted by Ben LaMar Gay and Adam Zanolini Featuring Dee Alexander (voice); Nicole Mitchell (flute, electronics); Adam Zanolini (woodwinds, bass); Fred Jackson and Ernest Dawkins (woodwinds); Ben LaMar Gay (cornet, electronics); Matthew Davis (trombone); Sharon Udoh (piano); Ivan Taylor (bass); Jovia Armstrong (percussion); Naydja Bruton (drums) TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE or tune …
CHIMURENGA X SEPTOBER presents – BACKBREAKNOMICS! FRIDAY 21 Feb at Chimurenga Factory
Chimurenga and Septober Energy presents: “BACKBREAKANOMICS!” FRIDAY 21 Feb at CHIMURENGA FACTORY (157 Victoria Rd, Woodstock Cape Town) 18:00 til late The Joburg-based DJ/collector ensemble SEPTOBER ENERGY joins forces with kindred spirits CHIMURENGA in the name of all things groove! This collaboration brings together a massive B2B lineup of your favourite selektors from JHB & CPT in sonic conversation. All vinyl, no rules, no genre. Featuring: Dj Bubbles Riki Jenks Hypocrite Sound of Xee El Corazon Soul Br_th_r Gadaffi the …
KEENAN AHRENDS TRIO – LIVE at Chimurenga Factory
Join us on Saturday 15 February 2025 (from 20:00 – 22:00) for a live performance with Keenan Ahrends Trio – Keenan Ahrends (guitar), Benjamin Jephta (bass) and Jonno Sweetman (drums). Pre-sale tickets available for R150 via Quicket and R200 on the night. After a successful tour in New York, Keenan Ahrends is set to tour South Africa in February. With his trio, he returns home for his second stop at Chimurenga Factory, Cape Town. The performance features compositions from his …
THIS WAY I SALUTE YOU – a gathering for Keorapetse Kgositsile
“When the clouds clear / We shall know the colour of the sky.” On Thursday 30 January 2025, we are proud to host the launch of two long-awaited books on our dearly departed teacher Keorapetse Kgositsile: Collected Works, 1969–2018, from the Broadside and Third World Press days to Beyond Words, a near 50-year journey of word-sound-power, edited by Phillippa Yaa de Villiers and Uhuru Portia Phalafala; and Uhuru’s own pathbreaking study, Keorapetse Kgositsile & the Black Arts Movement. Join us at …
WATER NO GET ENEMY – a day-long broadcast on PASS
In honour of the almighty water we present a day-long broadcast on flows and unflows, tidalectics and water babies, cities and cemeteries, mosi-oa-tunya and motla le pula, drexciya, hendrixian merman and mami wata, ngondo and orin o’lomi, puddles, poem-maps and the rivers in our bellies, nkrumah’s and nehru’s big man dams, saline consciousness and the incessant fear of a wet planet. Contributors: Lamin Fofana, Christina Peake, Listening at Pungwe, Manthia Diawara, Ola Balogun, Otolith Group, Dikongue Pipa, Simnikiwe Buhlungu, Sorana …
Category: Live Events, News, Pass Blog
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