BARUA YA BARAZA: Dialects & Dilemmas

BARUA YA BARAZA: Dialects & Dilemmas

Greetings, friends:

This week’s newsletter is continuing the tradition of inviting members of our community to write From The Curator’s Desk, and for this edition, I’m happy to hand it over to our Deputy Curator (yes, we now have one!) Martie Mtange.

Please send your guest writing pitches for this section to chris@barazalab.com if you’re interested in being our guest curator on the newsletter, and you have something of interest to share to our community — a trend you’ve noticed or something you’d like us to think about.
~ Christine

Whose voice tells the story? The evolving role of voices in African and Global Storytelling

Two weeks ago, Baraza Media Lab had the pleasure of hosting the Annual Podcast and Voice Awards Kenya watch party edition, and it was a night to remember. Despite the rain, the event brought together an extraordinary group of audio creators, industry leaders, and media personalities, who were all there to celebrate the best in Kenyan audio. Among the award winners were our very own Executive Director, Maurice Otieno, Board Vice-Chair, Adelle Onyango, and Semabox’s Dan Aceda. It was a joyful evening filled with laughter, thought-provoking conversations, and a warm sense of community.

I had the honour of moderating a panel discussion on the theme “Kings/Queens of the Game: Reflections from this Year in Audio Creation.” My panellists included Kalekye Mumo, who took home the Best Relationship Podcast Award, Musa “Mufti” Mwaruma, who was recognized for Best Commercial Performance on TV and Best Documentary Performance, and Nyambura from the popular Okay Kiasi Podcast.

During the panel discussion, Musa shared a thought-provoking observation that sparked a deeper reflection. He explained how he is frequently approached for roles that require him to adopt authentic European accents, such as Russian or Italian, despite not being from those regions. Directors, he noted, are often seeking non-European actors for these roles. This revelation made me pause and reflect on the shifting dynamics of representation in the creative world. Traditionally, especially in today’s heightened social justice landscape, there has been a push for authenticity in casting—where voices and stories should ideally be told by those with lived experiences.

This brought to mind the controversy surrounding Idris Elba’s casting as Okonkwo in the upcoming adaptation of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart. A24 Studios, an American production company known for hits like Euphoria and Everything Everywhere All at Once, cast Elba, a British actor of Ghanaian and Sierra Leonean descent, as the lead in a film set in Chinua Achebe’s setting of a deeply traditional Nigeria many years ago. While Elba is a brilliant actor capable of mastering various accents, many were concerned about his ability to authentically portray a character whose cultural background he had not lived in firsthand. Critics pointed to his previous roles, such as a voiceover in Asake’s short film Lungu Boy, where he reportedly struggled with Pidgin and Yoruba phrases. The core question was whether non-Nigerian actors should be entrusted to tell one of Nigeria’s most iconic stories.

This led me to reflect on Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s famous TED Talk, The Danger of a Single Story. In it, she emphasised the power dynamics in storytelling: how a story is told, who tells the story, when, and how many versions of it are shared. In light of what Musa shared, it became clear that there’s an interesting tension in the global storytelling industry. The Western world, it seems, is increasingly comfortable having its stories told by non-natives, while Africa, still in the early stages of reclaiming its own narrative, is more protective of its stories and who tells them.

Two things can be right, and at the same time, gaining a clearer perspective of the different mindsets we approach progress with is crucial. On one hand, Africa’s stories are sacred, and telling them authentically is a matter of pride and cultural preservation. On the other hand, in order for these stories to reach and resonate with a global audience, collaboration with outside voices may be necessary. Finding the balance between protecting the integrity of our narratives and allowing them to make a global impact is a delicate, but important, conversation to have.


In the meantime, here’s:
What I’m Reading: Ta-Nehisi Coates’s Not So Radical Departure, a review by Deborah Baker on Ta-Nehisi Coates’s recently released book, The Message. As I prepare to read The Message, I’ve been diving into the writer’s interviews, just to understand his current state of mind so that I can contrast it with the state of mind I find in the book. I find that thoroughly exciting.

What I’m Watching: A podcast episode where comedian Andrew Schulz interviews former President Trump on a video podcast called Flagrant. I acknowledge how strange this is, but hear me out: I was curious to see whether there’s an interviewer alive who can successfully humanise the former US President who inspires so much polarity. You’ll just have to find out for yourself!

What I’m Listening to: One of my favourite South African artists released a great album and came to Nairobi to launch it. In case Afro-house is something you fancy, you can listen to Mpho.Wav’s new album. “Waves of Mombasa” is my personal favourite.

My best,

Martie Mtange
Deputy Curator | Baraza Media Lab


Vacancies

We currently have no openings but kindly check out and subscribe to our bi-monthly newsletter Barua Ya Baraza for vacancies and opportunities within the broader ecosystem