Culture
Federal government okays N20.1 billion for Nigerian customs equipment
The federal government has approved a total of N20,114,002871 for the acquisition of various operational equipment for the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS). The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, disclosed this to State House Correspondents after the federal executive council (FEC) meeting presided over by Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo at the presidential villa on Wednesday. The Minister said further that Council also approved the sum of N539,277,673 for the construction of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) building at the Ilupeju Medium and Small Taxpayers’ office in Lagos. On the breakdown of contracts approved for Customs, the Minister said a total of 427 operational vehicles, worth N14.55 billion and nine assorted gunboats worth N5,564,002,871 were a...
Delta government commends Nigerians in Diaspora for developmental efforts
The Delta Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Mr Lawrence Ejiofor, has commended the Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation (NIDO) for its efforts toward the development of the state. Ejiofor made the commendation during a courtesy call on him by the former National Chairman of Nigerians in Diaspora, Europe Chapter, Mr Kenneth Gbandi, on Friday in Asaba. The commissioner expressed excitement at the idea of more developmental efforts from the private sector and assured them of the willingness of the government to create an enabling environment for development to thrive and for the promotion of partnerships. Earlier, Gbandi said that he planned to develop housing units in the state for Nigerians in the diaspora. He solicited partnership with the government in terms of access roads, adding that...
Nigerian government receives stolen Ile-Ife artefact from Mexico
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chief Geoffrey Onyeama, on Thursday in Abuja received a stolen Ile-Ife artefact recovered from Mexico. Receiving the artefact, he called for a more secured border to prevent future occurrence of theft. Onyeama collected the artefact from Dr Yakubu Dadu, Charge d’Affaires of the Nigerian Mission in Mexico. The minister hailed the Embassy’s efforts in recovering the artefact. He said that the interventions of Nigerian Envoys in recovering stolen possessions of the country shows the important works they were doing as against negative reports of Nigerian missions on social media. Onyeama also appreciated the government of Mexico for its cooperation in ensuring that the artefact was duly returned to Nigeria. He however stressed the need for sensitising Customs o...
Outriders Is the Loot-Heavy RPG-Shooter You and Your Friends Have Been Waiting For
If there’s one game that’s surprised a lot of people in this new console generation (other than Astro’s Playroom), it’s Outriders. Written off by many as “just another looter-shooter” set in a futuristic apocalypse scenario (one brought on by climate change instead of Terminators or easily-transmitted respiratory viruses), the latest title by the Polish Gears of War veterans at People Can Fly didn’t necessarily get much fanfare leading up to its release last week. But what they lacked in press coverage, the team made up for with entertaining gameplay and deep customization that surprised a lot of tepid strangers on the internet. Unlike other recent titles that have been criticized for releasing in half-finished states, the improvements Outriders showed between its demo release in February ...
Kaduna governor: Bandits have lost rights to life, must be wiped out
Gov. Nasir El-rufai of Kaduna State says bandits terrorising Nigeria have lost their rights to life under the constitution and must be wiped out. El-rufai made this known during a town hall meeting on national security organised by the Ministry of Information and Culture held in Kaduna with theme:”Setting Benchmark for Enhanced and National Unity in Nigeria”. ”The bandits are at war with Nigeria and there is no other way to approach the current insurgency but for security forces to take the war to the bandits and recover forests where they are occupying. “The security agencies mostly react to cases of banditry and abduction, we are in a war with these terrorist challenging the sovereignty of the Nigerian state. “Our security forces must collaborate to take the war to the bandits and terror...
APC chieftain writes on ’21 political lies in Nigeria’
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress in Kwara State, Akogun Iyiola Oyedepo, says his book on “21 political lies in Nigeria” is to educate the electorate on the antics of politicians during elections. Oyedepo said this on Monday in Ilorin while speaking at the presentation of the book. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the 21 chapter, 140 pages book chronicled many lies told by politicians to win votes during campaigns. According to Iyiola, the book is targeted mainly to educate the electorate on how to vote for candidates seeking their franchise, adding that if the electorate votes wrongly, it will live with them for another four years. He said: “I sat down and examined issues through which we win election and I discovered that some of these issues may be there. “They are imp...
What’s It Like to Be a Woman in Stand-Up Comedy? It’s Hysterical
FX is stepping behind the velvet rope with Hysterical, a documentary about emerging and established female comics that looks at how the comedy world is finally catching up with the times. Feature-length, the piece explores the joy of stand-up, tackles the “women aren’t funny” trope, tiptoes into cancel culture from a female perspective, and reveals a heartfelt camaraderie behind the scenes — something that hasn’t always existed in its current form. “The idea came from Jessica Kirson,” executive producer and Hysterical director Andrea Nevins told SPIN of her fellow producer, who is a full-time standup. “She looked around at the community of women that she was spending time with and she thought, ‘People should know about them. People should know who they are, how funny they are and what it t...
Whatever Is Left of It
April 1st (aka April Fool’s Day) marks 13 months since independent venues have been shut down across the country due to COVID-19, including comedy clubs and comedy theaters. While musicians adapted nimbly and found ways to thrive publicly with livestreams, comedy went underground. Backrooms, basements, rooftops, alleyways and even apartments and backyards became the new home for standup comedy in urban cities across North America. If you knew, you knew, and even that didn’t guarantee you entry. To document the past year, comedian/actor Derek Gaines (The King of Staten Island, The Last O.G.) wrote an ode to comedy at a time most cities had banned it or made it illegal to perform publicly. Gaines says the constant hiding and paranoia about performing is why he wanted to name the video he cre...
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Soundtrack Gets Limited Edition Colored Vinyl Release
Fans of the Assassin’s Creed Valhalla soundtrack can finally rejoice, as their wish for a limited edition vinyl release has finally come true. Ubisoft partnered with Lakeshore Records to put out the multicolored double-album containing hours of the game’s original score. The May 21 release (which is available for preorder through Lakeshore right now) features an entire album dedicated to each composer, with the first disc including 13 tracks created primarily by Jesper Kyd (Borderlands, Darksiders II, and early Assassin’s Creed titles) while the second focuses on 15 of Sarah Schachner’s (Call of Duty, Anthem, recent Assassin’s Creed titles) contributions. As expected, the album also features one of the highlights of the entire game: the vocal contribution...
Lil Nas X Exposed Our Own Hypocrisy With “Montero” Video, Y’all Are Just Mad He’s Unapologetically Gay
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: YouTube / Youtube Lil Nas X wanted to test just how tolerant and welcoming some of y’all really are when it comes to treating people equally. So, the 21-year-old, gay Black man celebrated his sexuality and put our boundaries to the test with his video for “Montero (Call Me By Your Name).” And some of you truly showed your whole entire ass by expressing your outrage on social media due to the imagery in the video. But more on that later. “What Montero Lamar Hill was showing you is that he isn’t afraid of the hell that some of you have already put him in for being gay.” And it wasn’t necessarily what was in the video but who was behind those “provocative” and “evil” images. To be Black is one thing that this country is still trying to accept. To be Black an...
Heavy Culture: Moonspell’s Fernando Ribeiro Talks Hermitage, Pandemic, Growing Up in Portugal, and More
Heavy Culture is a monthly column from journalist Liz Ramanand, focusing on artists of different cultural backgrounds in heavy music as they offer their perspectives on race, society, and more as it intersects with and affects their music. The latest installment of this column features an interview with Moonspell frontman Fernando Ribeiro. The year 2020 made most of us embrace our hermit-like ways. Little did Moonspell singer Fernando Ribeiro know that the word Hermitage that he came across in 2017 would be an apt title for the band’s brand new album. The new release Hermitage is the veteran Portuguese gothic metal band’s 12th full-length studio album. The LP focuses on topics such as solitude and isolation, but also on community. Heavy Consequence caught up with Ribeiro via Skype in mid-M...
Yoruba monarchs warn Nigerians to stop making inflammatory comments
Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, and the Oluwo of Iwoland, Oba Abdul-Rasheed Akanbi, yesterday, cautioned Nigerians against making inflammatory statements that could ignite ethnoreligious crisis in the country. The monarchs gave the warning during the visit of Oba Akanbi to the Alaafin’s palace, in Oyo. Asking those stoking ethno-religious crises to have a retrospective look at the past, the monarchs advised that anything that could fan the embers of discord should be avoided. They said: “Nigerians must exercise restraints; they must bear in mind Nigeria’s long history of ethno-religious conflicts, as people use this type of deep-seated animosity in their speech precisely because of the culture of impunity which reigns in the country.” “What is more, hate speech is an agent provocateur ...