Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

“Kwaito” Music Moves South African Youth
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley and Glen Ford
06 Jul 2020
🖨️ Print Article

Margaret Kimberley · “Kwaito” Music Moves South African Youth

Xavier Livermon, professor of African Diaspora Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, sees “many parallels” between the US-based Hip Hop phenomenon and the Kwaito music beloved by young South Africans. LIvermon is author of the book, “Kwaito Bodies: Remastering Space and Subjectivity in Post-Apartheid South Africa.” Livermon doesn’t see Kwaito as purely commercial and self-commodification. “South African youth play with and engage the system,” he said, “but also push back against it.”

South Africa

Related Podcasts

BAR Radio Logo
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
Black Agenda Radio July 17, 2026
17 July 2026
In this week’s segment, we discuss the Supreme Court ruling that ends Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian immigrants.
South Africa
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
The Anti-Immigration Movement in South Africa
17 July 2026
What is behind this South African movement that drives immigrants out of the country?
Global March to Gaza
Black Agenda Radio with Margaret Kimberley
Nkosi Mandela on the Global March to Gaza
13 June 2025
Our guest is Nkosi Mandela. He is the tribal chief of the Mvezo Traditional Council and the grandson of Nelson Mandela.

More Stories


  • ESSAY: I Go to Jail for the Scottsboro Boys, Ada Wright, 1932
    Editors, The Black Agenda Review
    ESSAY: I Go to Jail for the Scottsboro Boys, Ada Wright, 1932
    21 Jun 2023
    Mrs. Ada Wright, mother of two of the “Scottsboro Boys,” traveled the world to advocate on their behalf. This essay is a remarkable testament to the unrewarded and unheralded labors of the Black…
  • Could Cornel West Help the Greens Win Ballot Access in 50 States?
    Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
    Could Cornel West Help the Greens Win Ballot Access in 50 States?
    21 Jun 2023
    Dr. Cornel West is a candidate for the Green Party’s 2024 nomination. I spoke to ballot access expert Richard Winger, who thinks that if he wins, the Greens might qualify for the ballot in all 50…
  • Is cruelty Governor Woke Smoke’s superpower?
    Raymond Nat Turner, BAR poet-in-residence
    Is cruelty Governor Woke Smoke’s superpower?
    21 Jun 2023
    Is cruelty Governor Woke Smoke’s superpower?
  •  BAR Book Forum: Danielle N. Boaz’s Book, “Banning Black Gods”
    Roberto Sirvent, BAR Book Forum Editor
    BAR Book Forum: Danielle N. Boaz’s Book, “Banning Black Gods”
    21 Jun 2023
    This week’s featured author is Danielle N. Boaz. Boaz is Associate Professor in the Department of Africana Studies at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Her book is Banning Black Gods:…
  • “I Will Stay Until 2026”: Boluarte Rejects Early Elections as Perú Gears Up for The Third Takeover of Lima
    Clau O'Brien Moscoso
    “I Will Stay Until 2026”: Boluarte Rejects Early Elections as Perú Gears Up for The Third Takeover of Lima
    21 Jun 2023
    Peru's coup government and its president Dina Boluarte remain in power despite the deaths of protesters and planned mobilizations for the Third Takeover of Lima.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us