January 28th

BUSINESS • The Afro Skin and Hair Company - Their award-winning range of natural hair & skincare, is lovingly handmade in small, fresh batches weekly. We select only the finest organic, natural and locally sourced British ingredients. Harnessing the powerful and healing benefits of plants to deliver your hair & skin with the nourishing ingredients you deserve. Their mission is to elevate your daily self-care rituals and promote true wellness by sharing with you our beautifully restorative blends of pure plant magic. https://www.theafrohairandskincompany.co.uk/ • Yard + Parish - Yard + Parish offers a curated online shopping experience inspired by the modern 'Island' girl to champion a natural, conscious and colourful lifestyle. Here you can indulge in an array of independent Black-owned brands offering clean beauty, handmade jewellery, fashion accessories, homeware, and much more. This is a space where melanin is celebrated, and 'luxury' is given a new definition. As advocates for slow fashion, they embrace craftsmanship and want you to enjoy the items you find here for years to come. https://www.yardandparish.com/ • Plumb and Rabbits Cake Studio - This wedding-cake business owned by Autumn Anastasia Rabbitts uses recipes Autumn learned from both her grandmother and great-grandmother — recipes from pre-war Britain. Rabbitts, who has a degree in Jewellery Design from Central St. Martins and is based in Alnwick, Northumberland, has a range of bespoke cakes, including a pistachio sponge with orange-blossom jelly and dark chocolate ganache. She also offers tasting boxes, delivered to you, so customers can try her services anywhere in the U.K. C.M. https://www.plumbandrabbitts.co.uk/ • Renée’s Kitchen- Renee’s Kitchen is a vegan restaurant and vendor based in Lewisham. They serve Jamaican-inspired, plant-based food — such as jerk “chicken” and island curry — at markets, events and festivals around the country as well as delivering through Deliveroo. https://www.reneeskitchen.co.uk/ •Mento Flowers and Coffee - Mento is an independent florist adjacent to Finsbury Park Station. We offer flowers and gifts and also have Marley Coffee from Jamaica and a selection of homemade vegan and non-vegan cakes. https://mento.business.site/#summary EVENTS • Much Ado About Nothing (4 Feb - 12 March, Royal Shakespeare Company Stratford-Upon-Avon) - Director Roy Alexander Weise (joint Artistic Director of the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester) makes his RSC debut. Set designed by the award-winning Jemima Robinson, the production features costume designs by Melissa Simon-Hartman, who has designed for Beyoncé and Notting Hill Carnival, and an original score by Nigerian-born British guitarist and MOBO award-nominated musician Femi Temowo whose past collaborators include Amy Winehouse and The Roots. https://www.rsc.org.uk/much-ado-about-nothing/ • Kehinde Wiley The Prelude (National Gallery, till April 18) - The American artist Kehinde Wiley (b.1977) is best known for his spectacular portraits that position people of colour in the traditional settings of old master paintings, raising questions about power, privilege and identity, and highlighting the absence or marginalisation of Black figures within European art. In 2017 he was commissioned to paint Barack Obama, becoming the first Black artist to create an official portrait of a President of the United States. In this new collaboration with the National Gallery, London, Wiley departs from portraiture to explore the artistic conventions and canons of the Western landscape tradition - mountainous, coastal, sublime and transcendental - through film and painting https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/shows/small-island •African Concert Series (Wigmore Hall, February 3) - The pioneering African Concert Series, spearheaded by Nigerian-Romanian pianist Rebeca Omordia, now supported by Arts Council England’s National Lottery Grants, has joined Wigmore Hall’s Family of Partners with a day of concerts on February 5 2022 at the famous concert venue. Hall Director John Gilhooly “welcomed Rebeca’s inspiration and initiative.” On 3 February 2022, The African Concert Series will host a panelled discussion featuring distinguished host Kenneth Tharp CBE and African Art Music Pioneers – Rebeca Omordia, Glen Inanga, Leon Bosch and a special appearance by composer Fred Onovwerosuoke, ahead of the special day at Wigmore Hall on February 5. https://wigmore-hall.org.uk/whats-on/the-african-concert-series-day-202202051930 • Lakwena Maciver exhibition (Vigo Gallery, Through Feb 28) - Lakwena Maciver creates painted prayers and meditations which respond to and re-appropriate elements of popular culture. Exploring the role of the artist as mythmaker, with their use of acid-bright colour and bold typographic text, her paintings act as a means of decolonisation, subtly subverting prevailing mythologies. Her approach is instinctive and autodidactic, producing visceral, rhythmic and immersive panel paintings, iconic murals and installations. https://www.vigogallery.com/artists/104 BOOKS • Black Buck (Mateo Askaripour) -This quick-witted satirical debut follows a young man who transforms almost overnight from an unambitious Starbucks employee to a ruthless salesman after a chance encounter with the CEO of NYC’s hottest tech startup. When tragedy strikes, he resets with a new goal: helping young people of color infiltrate America’s sales force.

• My Darling from the Lions (Rachel Long) -'Rachel Long’s much-anticipated debut collection of poems, My Darling from the Lions, announces the arrival of a thrilling new presence in poetry. Each poem has a vivid story to tell – of family quirks, the perils of dating, the grip of religion or sexual awakening – stories that are, by turn, emotionally insightful, politically conscious, wise, funny and outrageous. • Safe: 20 Ways to be a Black Man in Britain Today (Derek Owusu) - What is the experience of Black men in Britain today? Never has the conversation about racism and inclusion been more important; there is no better time to explore this question and give Black British men a platform to answer it. SAFE: 20 Ways to be a Black Man in Britain Today is that platform. Including essays from top poets, writers, musicians, actors and journalists, this timely and accessible book is in equal parts a celebration, a protest, a call to arms, and a dismantling of the stereotypes surrounding being a Black man. What does it really mean to reclaim and hold space in the landscape of our society? • Just Pursuit: A Black Prosecutor's Fight for Fairness -"A firsthand, eye-opening story of a prosecutor that exposes the devastating criminal punishment system. Laura Coates bleeds for justice on the page." --Ibram X. Kendi, National Book Award-winning author of Stamped from the Beginning and How to Be an Antiracist When Laura Coates joined the Department of Justice as a prosecutor, she wanted to advocate for the most vulnerable among us. But she quickly realized that even with the best intentions, "the pursuit of justice creates injustice." PODCASTS • Blacticulate - Blacticulate features young UK Black* professionals interviewed on what they do and how they got there. https://blacticulate.com/podcast/blacticulate/ •Black Magic Podcast Hosted by media entrepreneur Annika Allen, the podcast features conversations with brilliant and resilient British Black women - about their life journeys and paths to success. Voted Podcast of the Year at Precious Lifestyle Awards 2018. https://play.acast.com/s/blackmagicpodcast RADIO • Oti Mabuse's Dancing Legends Alvin Ailey - An exploration of the life and work of dance legend Alvin Ailey who founded the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0013rb2 FILM/TV • A Journal for Jordan - ‘Directed by Denzel Washington and starring Michael B. Jordan with a screenplay by Virgil Williams, A JOURNAL FOR JORDAN is based on the true story of First Sergeant Charles Monroe King (Jordan), a soldier deployed to Iraq who begins to keep a journal of love and advice for his infant son. Back at home, senior New York Times editor Dana Canedy (Chanté Adams) revisits the story of her unlikely, life-altering relationship with King and his enduring devotion to her and their child. A sweeping account of a once-in-a-lifetime love, the film is a powerful reminder of the importance of family. https://www.sonypictures.com/movies/ajournalforjordan • Highlife - Docu-ality series following the lives and loves of a group of ambitious, glamorous, young British West Africans who are all chasing their own idea of success . https://www.channel4.com/programmes/highlife • Riches (Coming in 2022 ) - Deborah Ayorinde (“Them”) and Hugh Quarshie (“Stephen”) lead the cast of six-part Amazon Studio and ITV drama series “Riches,” production on which has commenced in London. The series, created and written by Abby Ajayi (“How to Get Away With Murder”), is produced by Greenacre Films. It follows the exploits of the brash, super-successful, and wealthy Richards family. When Stephen Richards suffers a sudden medical emergency, the family’s world comes crashing down. As his life hangs in the balance, his different sets of children are about to collide. WHAT AM I PAYING ATTENTION TO? • British Vogue February Cover - Nine Black African Models Grace Cover Of ‘British Vogue’ For February 2022 Issue "No longer just one or two dark-skinned girls mingled backstage, but a host of top models took a meaningful, substantial and equal place among the most successful women working in fashion today." https://www.vibe.com/lifestyle/style/black-african-models-cover-british-vogue-february-issue-1234643356/ • Brixton House - In early 2022 we will open our doors to welcome everyone to our new House in Brixton. A brand-new theatre, a vital cultural beacon and a home of creativity and expression for everyone. https://brixtonhouse.co.uk/ WHAT I AM PERSONALLY RECOMMENDING? 1. Our Lovely Goods - Gorgeous gifts curated by Ebi and Emmanuel the founders. A fantastic selection and excellent customer service. Rated 5 on Google reviews. https://ourlovelygoods.com 2. Kehinde Wiley at the National Gallery - The exhibition of the year not to be missed. From the first black artist to paint an official portrait of the president of the United States. https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/exhibitions/kehinde-wiley 3. Brit(ish) - I am a huge Afua fan but this is a very readable account on race and identity in Britain. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Brit-ish-Race-Identity-Belonging-ebook/dp/B01MXVGDLR/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1643367152&sr=8-1