The Moveee-In #2: We Rise, by Lifting Women

The Moveee-In is a newsletter featuring the juiciest drop-ins from the creative world. Send recommendations to us at newsletter@themovee.com.

WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH

In 1954, a group of four South African women launched what has been termed the “first attempt to establish a broad-based women’s organization”; the name of the group was the Federation of South African Women. Members of the group include Amina Cachalia, Lillian Ngoyi, Ray Simons, and Helen Joseph (pictured above, arranged from left to right).

The objectives of the Federation were to bring women together to secure full equality of opportunity, regardless of race, colour or creed; to remove social, legal, and economic disabilities; and to work for the protection of women and children.

At the Federation’s first conference, a Women’s Charter was written, calling for the voting rights of men and women of all races, equal employment opportunities, equal pay for equal work, equal rights in property, marriage, and children, and the nullification of all laws and customs that denied women such equality. Paid maternity leave, childcare for working moms, and free and compulsory education for all children were also included in the Charter.

This is a typical representation of the change that women clamour for in today’s world. The purpose of celebrating events like International Women’s Day will be lost if we do not step back to reaccess our world to ensure that we are making progress in all the important places, for example, changes as demanded in the Women’s Charter.

MUSIC: RACHAEL KERR’S INTIMATE MASTERPEACE

UK-based singer-songwriter of Caribbean and African descent, Rachael Kerr drops her debut album, Masterpeace. The two time MOBO award-winning singer, who also happens to be a member of the Grammy Association and a BET Music Matters endorsed artist. Rachael also runs a performing arts academy, Singercise (sounds like exercise for music, catchy). Under this academy, she has worked with some of Africa’s most colossal artists like Tiwa Savage, PSquare, and Waje as a vocal coach. Her debut album features a one-hour live performance resonating with love, positive affirmations, and hope. Listen with us here.

MOHINI’S REDEFINITION OF AFRICAN BEAUTY; A PALETTE AT A TIME

Omoehi Ighodalo, a 25-year-old beauty entrepreneur from Lagos is the owner of Mohini Beauty, a new lifestyle brand dedicated to developing skin-conscious beauty solutions by making their products available to, and easily accessible and usable by the everyday beauty consumer. Besides being a beauty entrepreneur, Omoehi is also an interior designer. She is indeed a well-rounded creative person. In her interview with Radr Africa, she discusses her creative pursuits, from beauty to design 

MIRA DOES WHAT SHE WANTS 

Mira Oto likes to think of herself as a genius. She hopes to take over the world someday, one project at a time. Although at the moment, she’s currently running with passion projects that will fetch her money. The protégé who stretches across writing, music, creative marketing and copywriting is currently a marketing intern at Mavin Global. She manages the growing talent at the company under the Mavin future five. She’s certain that when they start rolling out, they’d set the music industry ablaze again. Mira is an “I know you want this, but this is what I’m going to do, ‘cause it’s what I want” type of person. She talks about gatekeepers in the music industry and every other thing in this new interview with The 49th Street.

GRINDING FOR CHANGE

If you’ve ever chanted the words “Go big and don’t go home,” then subconsciously, you’re one for what’s known as the “grind” or “hustle” culture. It’s a metric system of success that believes in longer and longer work hours as a yardstick for success. According to an NYT article, it is “performative workaholism obsessed with striving.” It’s the new norm, all work and no play. However, Ash Phillips and Miro LaFlaga are pushing against it. Through their company, Six Cinquième, they are opting to do things differently and on a less demanding scale. Their 4-year-old company specializes in brand identity for entrepreneurs, startups, and emerging artists, driving change within these sectors. Miro called it a launchpad for “trailblazers who are ready to make their mark.” When they’re not busy with company work, they’re hosting workshops, teaching, encouraging, and building a local community of people that will ditch the grind culture and look for new ways to get work done. Read all they had to say about the grind culture and change here. 

AWAY! TO COLUMBIA RECORDS WITH OXLADE

On Thursday, March 10th, Oxlade took to his social media pages to announce a new deal with Epic records. We said Columbia, didn’t we? Here’s how it still falls back to Columbia Records; according to tags in the announcement posts made by Columbia Records via their social media page, Oxlade will receive label attention and support from their France-based arm, Epic Records, a label founded label by Columbia and Sony respectively. This deal looks promising to amplify Oxlade’s music broadband reach to other parts of the world. The UK arm of Columbia Records will also be servicing its record deal, while Sony Music’s global arm will provide global across other parts of the world. Oxlade’s new single “Want you” is set to be released on the 18th of March, and this looks to kickstart things for him. 🚀 

EVEN TOP BOY DOESN’T GET IT EASY

For the lot of us that have seen HBO’s all-time classic, The Wire, Top Boy could arguably be its twin version from London. And if you haven’t, think of Thomas Shelby in the 21st century without the cap and not being white. After a first national hit in 2011, the show had a successful global reboot on Netflix in 2019, largely due to Drake’s (who happens to be a massive fan and executive producer) love for the authenticity of the series’s portrayal and true glimpse of London. The show is staging back for a season 2 as a Netflix original. Some cast speak of how they related to their characters and their roles in the second season. For instance, Michael Ward (Jamie) revealed how the season challenged him to look inwards personally. Ashley Walters spoke about how he shares some similarities with the Dushane character. You can read up on the remaining cast’s experience if you feel up to it. 

NIGERIA’S ÓWÀMBÉ MAKES IT TO NETFLIX

Tobi Kyeremateng takes Nigerian culture to a whole new level. Her directorial debut documentary film ÓWÀMBÉ is one of ten products of the inaugural Netflix Documentary Talent Fund. ÓWÀMBÉ’ beautifully showcases the Nigerian culture of hall parties, more specifically in the UK scene. It reviews how the tradition has evolved over the last 25 years. It’s also a call to Nigerians living in the diaspora to keep this fantastic culture alive despite their first-generation parents. The film premiered on the 20th of February 2022 on Netflix. It was produced as part of a series titled “Britain Is Not Boring“. 

WHAT ELSE WAS DROOLING MOVEEE-ING ON

• Best fashion footwear from the Fashion month on Highsnobiety. 
• A stunning all-out African women power picture, we thought you’d like it. 
• You might want to check our KERMIT. He’s not a hermit, and he’s a fashion model. 
• Longstoryshortpod has you covered if you’re a podcast gig searching for something new that’s on the border of books and voices.
• Ever wondered what Disney characters with Afro origins would look like? If it marvels you, check out afrodisney on Instagram.
• Still reminiscing on Women’s day, have a motivational peek into America’s Adell Dillard. The woman who pulled through with ten children. 

CREDITS

Featured Image: Halimah Smith

Written by Eslah Ayenajei and edited by Tope Akintayo