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


  • Illegally Imprisoned Venezuelan Diplomat Faces US Court Amid a Shifting Global Context
    Roger D. Harris
    Illegally Imprisoned Venezuelan Diplomat Faces US Court Amid a Shifting Global Context
    06 Apr 2022
    Alex Saab’s April 6 hearing takes place in the setting of a mercurial world situation, where events in Ukraine may have indirect bearing on his case and on the larger US economic war against…
  • Laboring Beyond Black Representation
    Too Black
    Laboring Beyond Black Representation
    06 Apr 2022
    The allure of Black representation in high places can be very dangerous. A Black man organizes an unprecedented union victory but gets less attention than one celebrity slapping…
  • Thin Blue Wall of Silencing: Jalil Muntaqim vs. The (Language) Police
    Spirit of Mandela Writing Committee
    Thin Blue Wall of Silencing: Jalil Muntaqim vs. The (Language) Police
    06 Apr 2022
    Former political prisoner Jalil Muntaqim is still not treated as a free man. In this case, the State University of New York at Brockport succumbed to political pressure and moved his…
  • How Afro-Colombians are Fighting White Feminism
    Krys Cerisier
    How Afro-Colombians are Fighting White Feminism
    05 Apr 2022
    The struggles of Black, Indigenous, and Queer women must be part of any conversations about feminism in Latin America. Afro-Colombians like vice presidential candidate Francia Marquez exemplify this…
  • Rise of Violence, Deterioration of Rights Sparks Month-Long Actions Among Health Workers in Haiti
    Peoples Health Dispatch
    Rise of Violence, Deterioration of Rights Sparks Month-Long Actions Among Health Workers in Haiti
    05 Apr 2022
    Health workers in major public hospitals in Haiti continue to strike over bad working conditions, as others join them to protest a rise in gang violence and kidnappings.
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us