SEP/OCT 2011 issue by ADUNAGOW Magazine

THE MAGAZINE THAT PROMOTES UNION AND COOPERATION OF AFRICANS AROUND THE GLOBE, ENCOURAGING AN INFORMED, THINKING AND QUESTIONING AFRICAN SOCIETY.

ISSUE 23 | SEP/OCT 2011

MUSIC: LIL WAYNE CONCERT IN SOUTH AFRICA PAGE 6

SPORTS: SAMUEL ETO’O IS WORLD’S HIGHEST PAID ATHLETE PAGE 8

FINANCE: GET ME OUT OF DEBT! PAGE 22

SAVE THE DATE:

MISS WEST AFRICA INTERNATIONAL PAGE 16

SPOTLIGHTS

INTERVIEW EXCLUSIVE URBAN TRIBE MIMITAH BOFANDO

THE SILENT KILLER IS FEAR PAGE 14

FASHION: WHO CALLS THE SHOTS? PAGE 10

CONTENTS

W E TA L K A F R I C A N . . .

Entertainment

WAYNE: 06 LIL Huge demand leads to additional Lil Wayne Durban Concert in South Africa

Sports

ETO’O: 08 SAMUEL Samuel Eto’o becomes the world’s highest

paid athlete. Find out how.

Lifestyle

Finance

ME OUT OF DEBT! 22 GET Surefire Tactics for Debt Elimination.

Health

EVILS OF CAFFEINE: 32 THE A message to all coffee lovers.

10 FASHION: Who calls the Shots? Silent Killer is FEAR 14 The Our society is full of fear and no one is exempted. Read more about it.

Culture

WEST AFRICA 16 MISS INTERNATIONAL:

Save the date: Sunday December 18, 2011 at Kairaba Hotel, Banjul, Gambia.

08 5 [ Editor’s Letter ] ADUNAGOW MAGAZINE “Reaching Africans Around The Globe” PO BOX 691728 | TULSA, OK | 74169 -1728 | U.S.A.

ADUNAGOW MAGAZINE

SEP / OCT 2011

Spotlights

INTERVIEW with: 34 FREATURED URBAN TRIBE Dance group from Norway

INTERVIEW with: 42 FREATURED MIMITAH BOFANDO

Congolese-born & UK Star Singer

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EDITOR’S COLUMN

By Eric Adunagow |

THINK “SUCCESS” Train yourself on being a Successful person. ADUNAGOW MAGAZINE “Reaching Africans Around The Globe” PUBLISHER: ADUNAGOW EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Eric Adunagow eric@adunagow.net CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Yona Fares Maro Nana A. Tamakloe Debra de Souza Joseph Hernandez Nikoletta Ven Staff Writer CONTACT US: editorial@adunagow.net (714) 612-2057 voice URL: http://www.adunagow.net

ADUNAGOW Magazine [ISSN 1941-7179] is published bi-monthly by ADUNAGOW, PO BOX 691728, Tulsa, OK 74169-1728. Telephone: 714.612.2057. Postage is paid at Tulsa, Oklahoma. U.S. ADUNAGOW. NET and ADUNAGOW are trademarks of Eric ADUNAGOW. All contents are copyright © 2011 by ADUNAGOW Magazine. All rights are reserved. Right of reprint is granted only to non-commercial educational institutions such as high schools, colleges and universities. No other grants are given. Send address changes to ADUNAGOW Magazine, PO Box 691728, Tulsa OK 74169-1728. The opinions of our writers do not always reflect those of the publisher and while we make every effort to be as accurate as possible, we cannot and do not assume responsibility for damages due to errors or omissions. LEGAL STATEMENT: All information in this magazine is offered without guarantee as to its accuracy and applicability in all circumstances. Please consult an attorney, business advisor, accountant or other professional to discuss your individual circumstances. Use of the information in this magazine is not intended to replace professional counsel. Use of this information is at your own risk and we assume no liability for its use.

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“Thinking is a necessity for all successfull people. That’s when you actually connect the dots.”

ROUGHOUT my life experience, I have learnt one thing: reading, conversing with people who know what you’d like to know, and thinking are three things successful people do all day.

Words should be valued and anything that comes out of our mouth should always reflect our thoughts and our self. Thinking is a necessity for all successful people. That’s when you actually “connect the dots.” Always cultivate big-picture thinking where you look at the final destination before drilling on how you will get there. If you don’t have the big picture in your mind, then you will have a hard time figuring out how to get there.

It is often said that what you constantly think about is what you will achieve. The reason is simple: putting your brain at work full-time allows you to play “connect the dots” with all your knowledge acquired through time During your thinking process, you actually by trying alternate combinations until an put your whole knowledge and experience optimal solution is found. in action. It requires focus, creativity, My reading materials are composed of short, reality, strategy, exploration, and most of all straight to the point books and articles; don’t becoming your own critic. All critical thinkers bother giving me a book with more than 200 should have a place and a time dedicated for pages on the same subject. All that it tells this brain exercise. I find myself thinking me is: the author still has not figured it out clearly at night before I sleep, in my office, properly. That’s why I love reading books when everybody is gone to bed. It is quiet such as John Maxwell’s “How Successful enough for me to hear my own thought. people Think,” or any of Mike Murdock’s As you practice these three things every day, Wisdom’s books. These two are my favorite you will become a successful human being, authors. able to solve any issue thrown to you to the When it comes to conversation, I like best of your current knowledge. spending time on the phone with my close Read, engage yourself in meaningful talks friends and partners, who I consider as people with smart people, and then go to your that can “feed” my brain with new ideas and hideout and think through everything that productive talks. My rule of thumbs on any you just learned that day. Connect the dots. business conversation is: if you don’t tell me something valuable after two minutes, then I will be forced to tell you something valuable the next two minutes to assess if a productive conversation can arise between us. Should nothing happen after that, we may have to “talk” later during non-business hours. Reach Eric directly at Eric@adunagow.net

SEP / OCT 2011 A D U N A G O W M A G A Z I N E

ENTERTAINMENT | LIL WAYNE

HUGE DEMAND LEADS TO ADDITIONAL LIL WAYNE DURBAN CONCERT Photo by: Michael Williams

The enormous demand for Lil Wayne concert tickets at the Wavehouse, Durban on 11 December 2011 has led to local promoter, Canoc Productions and media partner Channel O announcing an additional concert at the Wavehouse, Umhlanga on Monday, 12 December 2011. Tickets now on sale at Computicket. The popularity of Lil Wayne, the world’s number one hip hop artist is unsurpassed across the globe with fans flocking to see this phenomenal musician and lyricist perform live on 6

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SEP / OCT 2011

The Lil Wayne “I Am Still Music Tour” begins at the Bellville Velodrome, Cape Town on Wednesday, 7 December 2011 followed by two concerts at the Coca Cola Dome, Johannesburg on 9 and 10 December and ending at the Wavehouse in Durban with two concerts on 11 and 12 December 2011. All shows commence at 20h00. You can’t miss the hottest hip-hop line up ever staged in South Africa. Book at Computicket by calling 0861 915 8000, visit www.computicket.com or visit your nearest Computicket outlet. For more information visit www.lilwaynesatour.co.za or follow Lil Wayne on Twitter @LilWayneSAtour. Tour Itinerary Cape Town: Bellville Velodrome Wednesday, 7 December 2011, 20h00 Ticket prices: R 350, R 600 Johannesburg: Coca-Cola Dome Friday, 9 December 2011 and Saturday, 10 December, 20h00 Ticket prices: R 400, R 600, R 750

stage. His popularity extends throughout South Africa and the reaction by local fans to next month’s “I Am Still Music” tour to Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban is no exception. Earlier this week an extra Johannesburg show was added, followed by today’s announcement of an extra concert to accommodate Durban fans.

Durban: Wavehouse Sunday, 11 December and Monday, 12 December 2011, 20h00 Ticket prices: R 400 and R 750

Both Durban shows feature the hottest hip hop line-up featuring Lil Wayne and the Young Money crew with Corey Gunz, Gudda Gudda, Mack Maine, Shannel, T-Streets and Jae Millz.

For further media information and images please contact: Debra de Souza Cell: 082 822 9478 E-mail: debranne@icon.co.za AM

Bookings: Tickets available from Computicket, www. computicket.com, 0861 915 8000

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SPORTS | SAMUEL ETO’O

SAMUEL ETO’O: THE WORLD’S HIGHEST PAID FOOTBALLER Photo Author: Майоров Владимир

ho would have thought that one day a Black African player will be named highest paid footballer of the world? Well, that day has come: Samuel Eto’o, the 30 year old Cameroonian professional football (or, as American calls is “Soccer”) player has joined the Russian team Anzhi Makhachkala , making an estimated 20 million euros per season for the next three years. Yes, pick up your jaw from the floor because this guy deserves every single penny. Eto’o was named 2010 African player of the year for a reason. By the way, that was his fourth time to receive this title. This former Inter and Barcelona striker, also the captain of the national team in Cameroon, is actually getting paid more than Kobe Bryant, the highest paid NBA’s player. Keep on reading my friend. He is getting paid more than the highest paid MLB player Alex Rodriguez as well, which makes us all agree with Wall Street Journal’s statement that Eto’o might be the world’s highest-salaried athlete. OK, now you can hate him, but we love our Eto’o. Eto’o has scored over 100 goals in five seasons with FC Barcelona (Do you know what it means? 100 times, a journalist has shouted “Goal” over this guy’s actions). In 2010, he became the first player to win two European Continental Trebles following his back-to-back achievements with Barcelona and Internazionale. He is the second player to have ever scored in two separate UEFA Champions League finals and the fourth player, after Marcel Desailly, TO SUBSCRIBE VISIT

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Paulo Sousa, and Gerard Piqué, to have won the UEFA Champions League two years in a row with different teams. He is the most decorated African player of all time having won the African Player of the Year award a record four times in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2010. OK, I would hate this guy too, but he’s just too amazing. Not only does he have talents, but he got class, often displayed on and off the field. He is a real role model for all soccer lovers out there and a great man. OK, back to some more stats for those of you who are still not convinced that he deserves every single penny given to him: As a member of the Cameroon national team, he was a part of the squad that won the 2000 Olympic tournament; he has participated in three World Cups and six African Nations Cups (being champion twice) and is the all-time leading scorer in the history of the African Nations Cup, with 18 goals. By now, you should start feeling good about the guy and if you’re a girl, you just want to get his number. Slow your rolls girls, and allow us to tell you a little bit more about his personal life. Eto’o has two brothers: David, who plays for FC Koper in Slovenia, and Étienne, who is currently on loan to Pobla de Mafumet CF from Gimnàstic de Tarragona. Eto’o has four children: Maelle, Étienne, Siena and Lynn. He married his longtime sweetheart Georgette on 6 July 2007. They have two children together: Siena, and Lynn who both live along with Georgette in Paris, France. OK, now you can get a tissue and wipe off your tears; another great guy taken away from you. But seriously, you should be happy about Eto’o. After all, it’s not easy to be black in Europe, especially if you’re good at what you do. Check this out straight from Wiki: Eto’o has experienced racial abuse in some away matches. Eto’o, along with former Barcelona teammate Thierry Henry and Universitatea Craiova defender Marco Zoro, have reacted by being outspoken in their criticism and threatening to leave the pitch. In February 2005, during an away match with Real Zaragoza, Eto’o was the subject of racist taunts by Zaragoza supporters, who began making monkey-like chants onto the pitch whenever he had possession

of the ball. The referee, however, Fernando Carmona Méndez, made no mention of the incidents in his match report, commenting only that the behavior of the crowd was “normal”; two of the abusers were caught and given five-month sporting-event bans after being identified to police by other spectators. Eto’o later declared that the punishment was insufficient and that La Romareda should have been closed for at least one year, but Frank Rijkaard told him to concentrate on football and to stop talking about the incident. Infuriated again by Zaragoza fans’ racist chants the next season, however, Eto’o attempted to walk off the pitch in protest.[62] His teammates intervened and convinced him to continue playing. Video of the incident captured him saying “No más” (“No more”) as he walked to the sidelines. On 17 October 2010, in a Serie A game against Cagliari, after just three minutes of play, the referee halted the match to give a warning to the Cagliari fans for their racist chants, which were directed towards Eto’o. After the play was resumed, the rest of the stadium chanted loudly in an attempt to drown out the racist chants in order for the match to not to be stopped. Ironically, Inter would go on to win 1–0 thanks to an Eto’o goal in the 39th minute. Due to ongoing racism from La Liga crowds, Eto’o stopped bringing family members to matches. “It is something that has affected me personally. I think players, leaders, and the media have to join forces so that no one feels looked down upon because of the colour of their skin. At this moment in time I prefer my children don’t go to football matches. In the stands they have to listen to things that are difficult to explain to a child. It is better they aren’t exposed to it.” So, with all this money, Eto’o will have to face new racial abuse, this time from Russian Premier League fans, but it seems like our star is considering it to be just a minor inconveniences, especially for the money he’s been promised to receive. Goodluck to you Eto’o. You are the best player in the world in my opinion and I wish you success and prosperity on all your endeavor. Don’t forget to invest back home in Africa! AM

SEP / OCT 2011 A D U N A G O W M A G A Z I N E

FASHION | WHO STARTED IT?

FASHION: WHO CALLS THE SHOTS? We were running late for our regular Sunday morning church service. As I got off the shower quickly and started to look through my clothes to figure out which ones will requires less work to prep in order to save time, I quickly pulled out a nice pants (wrinkle free) and a shirt that somehow reminded me of Golfing on a hot summer day. I put them off and quickly headed for the door when my wife whispered to me “Oh, no honey. You can’t wear two different patterns.” I quickly replied “says who?” She then took her time to lecture me about the fashion rules of do’s and don’ts and what colors go with what type of day of the week and blah, blah, blah, blah. To make the story short, I jumped back to my dresser (after wasting more than 30 minutes on the subject) and came up with a plan jean and a T-shirt style, which she looked at me with a regard that said it all: “You just don’t get it.” 10

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HO IN THE WORLD came up with these rules? Where is the “Fashion Bible” and how come only women tend to be expert on the matter? So, I decided to do some more investigation on this matter in order to figure out why Fashion tends to drive our lives to a point where it can determine whether or not we get a certain job, hang out with certain crowds, and so on. Apparently, Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person. Meaning, what we consider correct today in fashion can be incorrect and absolute by the end of next week. This explains why women tend to be the masters of this domain: women, just like fashion, are susceptible to constant changes, while men tend to be more fix and predictable. So, who in the hell dictates what’s hot and what’s not? Well, I quickly found out that an important part of fashion is the media, or fashion journalism. Thanks to the editorial critiques, guidelines, and commentaries found in magazines, newspapers, on televisions, websites, social networks and fashion blogs, now I cannot where my checker short, with my diamond polo shirt (at least, for this week I guess?). Since the beginning of the 20th century when magazines started to include photographs of people dressed up with various fashion designs, fashion as gone mad. As I was trying to educate myself on this matter, I stumbled upon another truth, which pretty much complicated my quest on getting into the root of Fashion: Fashion is also broken down per groups. There is this thing called Ethnic Fashion, which is defined as the Fashion of Multicultural groups such as African-American, Hispanics, Asians, etc. Some examples of Ethnic Designer are FUBU, BabyPhat, Sean John, Etc. Basically, any major rappers out there can be a Fashion, literally. The crazy thing on all this is that Ethnic Fashion has contributed over 20 billion dollars in revenues. I thought to myself “Self, this is a big deal.” Anything that can generate that much money in revenues tells me that it needs to be taken seriously. That’s when I decided to find out more about fashion and also see what I can do in order to get a piece of the pie (20 Billion!??). I now asked myself, how do the magazines and all the fashion gurus out there know what to wear at a specific season? After all, glancing through these fashion magazines, it appears that there are no consistencies among them. I reminded myself how complex fashion could get, just like my wife.

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SEP / OCT 2011 A D U N A G O W M A G A Z I N E

Now, who decides what’s in or out? Believe it or not, designers themselves can greatly influence what direction fashion will go. There are designers out there that are considered as the “gurus” of the fashion world; basically, whatever they say can decide what others will consider as in or out. Designers such as Miuccia Prada of Prada, Marc Jacobs, Louis Vuitton, are all considered as directional designers. For the other designers, the best way to “affect” the trend is to use celebrities and other opinion leaders to wear their new designs, in order to influence the buying public into accepting the emerging trends. One thing for sure is that the consumers (remember the 20 billion still??) kind of decide what’s “Cool” or “in” when they spend their money on a specific styles. So, after all my research, I learnt that the power still resides on my hands - or my wallet as a matter of fact. That’s when a crazy idea came in my mind: “what if I get a bunch of people together, let’s say like on a Facebook page, to agree with me to come up every week with one style to buy into? Meaning, we all buy the same clothes (style) that we vote for on our page. We can actually drive Fashion. Ain’t it cool?!? We will then be able to wear different patterns, switch up colors like chameleons, wear slippers in winter and boots on summer time, etc. Power to the people with fat wallets. Ok, with this last finding, I rested assure that although my wife was right about her comment that day, I could actually just replied that “Baby, this is the new trend; haven’t you noticed?” She would have probably asked me to prove it. That’s when I would have told her that “Give me a week and I will show you that it’s true.” After all, fashion is here today and gone tomorrow. In either case, do not ignore its power and don’t concentrate too much on it. Oh, tonight, as I’m writing this article, I’m wearing my blue squared filled pattern PJ with a khaki plain T-Shirt (and a Hanes underwear). Now, tell me that it’s not fashionable enough. AM

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SEP / OCT 2011 A D U N A G O W M A G A Z I N E

FEAR THE SILENT KILLER IS

By: Yona Fares Marro

it have an office. While we are encouraged to have faith in God and fear not; they same men of God employes security men to protect them from the terrors of fear.. Why not forget they security men and hold fast to God.? whiy do the trust mankind for protection.? preach this and do another thing.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;I am only afraid of the pains of poverty, corruption, injustice, deprivation and the wickedness of man . Indeed, man`s inhumanity to man.â&#x20AC;?

he stars are afraid of the sun and in their vast domain hide they radical shadow without a call to pray. was it by mistake or an intentional art of reservation? Children have no where to hide and out of their unimaginal sense of unknown emerged the voice of infants who saw their parents as strong protector only to be disappointed. As they were afraid so was their parents who never saw reasons to explain to their kids of the impending axils of evil in this mudane world.. While man knows that death is inevitable , fear of dieing remains a terrible torture to his existence. Mankind is a combination of distruction married to money which temporarily provides power and strenght. then exit like the winter birds. Call it death if you like but as for me it is far more than death which happens once whereas fear is the process of dieing more than once.without facing the original death.In this world every living organisms fears; they small fears they big ones and the big ones fears they small ones. The lions and the elephant fears the little flies. Yet all pretends to be the leader, all hided and hanged the dooms` element in the bateke dance. They witches and wizards are afraid while they leaders of nations are even afraid of their Cooks. Yet they commanded them with reckless abandon. They lives of our masters and madams are in they hands of their servants yet TO SUBSCRIBE VISIT

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they pretended not to know. They rent and bomb without impunity. Fear is incurable and even as all pretends to be without fear , everyone has what he or she fears.It is not a gainsaying nor do we need the services of they soothsayers ?. Those who have access to weapons of mass destruction are today afraid of terrorism , They terrorists are afraid of being seem in the public,Everywhere is fear and everywhere we are all afraid . Talk of fear of natural disasters, accident, fire, flying with aeroplane, plying on the sea shores of Somalia, fears of gathering togather, fears of hunger, fears of malaria,fears of Aids,Fears of diseases. Having zeal to eliminate all these, medicines, condoms, prevention, security and many other things have been invented and developed but they only achived electronic therapy but the real fear dominates every living thing. From the East, West, South and North fear leads, detects and commands and harvest casualities as it wishes and demands. The day has come and gone and we are born to sleep but fear never goes to sleep,We sleep with fear of unknow , our thoughts goes with death, thieves, fire, natural disasters or terrorism. We wake up daily only to hear new havocs of fear. The hero is fear , it is the silent killer which have destroyed the best of creation. It is not a friend , it has no mercy . Even while dieing we die with the fear of going to Heaven or hell.. Fear does not die, it is not physical, nor does

For one to know what is fear ,he should enter into a room and close everywhere without light, the outcome is only a fragement piece of fear . Fear is real, it exists. All fears and all dies with fear. Ask the he-goat about his opinion, his response is that he does not know his faith after the dawn of the market day. whether his master will kill him for peppersoup or not.. What of fear alien , fear of future ,fear of a woman in labour,fear of children being sexually molested, fear of ritualists, fear of kidnappers, fear of loosing an election, fear of examination failures, fear of disgrace, fear of loosing jobs, fear of love, fear of first dating. ? Fears are uncountable and has many faces. Our society is full of fear and no one is perfect., no one is exempted. we all have fallen and we are all loyal to fear. To encourage the Believers , the powers behind addressed fear with the mandatory shame of satan , yet they employed security men and does not eat anyhow just for the fear of being killed. Why have they chosen the way of satan which they baptised satan with ?. Fear not they said but when you get to their Church premises only to see an erosion of armed security men all around.. But fear becomes their every seconds sermon. They put fear on their congregations only to be worshipped more than God. I am only afraid of the pains of poverty, corruption, injustices, deprivation and the wickedness of man , Indeed man`s inhumanity to man. That is my fear . With this type of fear our society will be a better place for us all. AM

SEP / OCT 2011 A D U N A G O W M A G A Z I N E

he first ever Miss West Africa International pageant in Africa is set to take place in Gambia, December 2011 being brought to you by SASS Visa Agency and Brain Concept Solutions. This year is set to be a historical year for pageantries in Africa following the victory of Leila Lopes from Angola in Miss Universe. After holding a series of Miss West Africa beauty competitions around the world, all crowned winners are flying down to Gambia to participate in Miss West Africa International. Africa is going to enjoy for the very first time, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own international Queen of Queens pageant.

MISS WEST AFRICA INTERNATIONAL 2011: THE HEAT IS ON By: Nana A. Tamakloe 16

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As opposed to a competition, the organisers have described the most anticipated beauty pageant in Africa as a celebration of beautiful African queens. The show is set to feature celebrity west African musicians as well as Gambiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best cultural performers which fans around the world can watch live online or via some TV networks. Also, people can expect to see a totally different type of pageant in Miss West Africa International. The girls participating in Miss West Africa International are already crowned queens, they are already winners, and they have all begun activities for the progress of their countries, they have already been through the standard style of pageantry. So on the night, we will be bringing them together to be congratulated in a celebration of West Africans culture and beauty. Nevertheless, one girl will fly home as the successor to the acclaimed Shireen Benjamin who won Miss West Africa International in 2009. An international queen will be crowned in an event consisting of queens from 24 countries, 18 of which are West African countries and also queens from the UK, USA, Italy, France, Germany and Canada. Organisers say it was an outstanding idea to include queens from outside of Africa due to the large number of Africans living abroad wanting to be a part of this celebration of their culture. The events abroad have been a great part of enlightening the foreign world and drawing attention to West African culture TO SUBSCRIBE VISIT

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and tourism. All the queens will be arriving in Gambia on the 13th of December, where they will be greeted by great cultural artists and performers in Gambia, TV networks, Gambian diplomats and ambassadors. Throughout their stay at the Kairaba Hotel, the girls will be filmed by national television networks as well as having their experiences and Gambian tour documented for TV and the 2011 DVDs. Currently, all the queens are working towards the international title engaging in charitable activities shown on http://misswestafrica.blogspot.com, which also allows the public to vote for their favourite queen. The West African beauties are also fundraising for their participation and calling on all generous supporters to open their hearts to their efforts. The organisers are also opening sponsorship opportunities and media partnership for businesses that wish to assist any of the queens.

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â&#x20AC;&#x153;Miss West Africa has opened the hearts and minds of many to learning more about other West African cultures. Our focus has always been on promoting West African tourism, business and culture. In our third year only we are in 24 countries with 16 events. And we appreciate all the support from various tourist organisations and the day to day Africans. We are proud to be making history.â&#x20AC;? For more information on Miss West Africa visit www. misswestafrica.com or contact below. Miss West Africa ltd (0022)4495725 / 7421861/ 7883322 info@misswestafricainternational.com www.misswestafrica.com

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FINANCE | DEBT

GET ME OUT OF DEBT! SUREFIRE TACTICS FOR DEBT ELIMINATION By: Joseph Hernandez

If you’re in financial crisis while your debt has grown to be unmanageable, you’re ready to try taking a little action and straighten out the scenario. Though your money is in chaos, you possibly can continue to do away with debt and restore control over your cash. However, you must find out the best way of getting it done. Here are several tips that will assist you in getting you out of debt: 1.Alter your current utility suppliers You could put away a lot of money yearly on the gas, energy, water and telephone bills by switching. It is advisable to improve your energy power and phone suppliers prior to setting up 22

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direct debits. 2.Try to cut your household expenses. 3.Chop up store credit cards. These have undoubtedly the very worst costs, so if you discover it hard to manage a lot of these debts, discard your cards now to stop temptation. Many shopping area cards use a cash-back incentive. Don’t be misled! The amount of cash-back isn’t nearly as much as the interest you pay to your credit card. You’ll pay through the roof for most store cards - it’s safer to pay cash provided you can. 4. For all those stuff you cannot pay with cash, check around for the best discounts - the market industry is competitive, so

there are some exceptional zero interest credit offers around. Additionally, it is worth having a look at the internet, as numerous creditors offer exceptional deals. 5. Evaluate protection policies Save maney by switching your insurance carrier. It is possible to get cheaper vehicle coverage or mortgage protection, for instance, by phoning around or searching via a web broker. Also, it is truly worth checking that you aren’t unnecessarily increasing your payments by not combining several of your coverages - such as auto, home and fire insurance.. Look at your insurance policies binder. 6. Lastly, target on the plan to pay back debt. Read internet sites for testimonials to getting out of debt. This will help you stay motivated through your journey. Take every possible opportunity to save money. Buy discounted food products and take advantage of coupons. Don’t get worried about becoming humiliated since you also are purchasing over stocked food and utilizing coupons. Feel better about yourself realizing why these many people are wasting money and possibly carry more debt than you. Then, some day when you are debt-free, you will no longer have got to say “get me out of debt!”

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HEALTH | CAFFEINE

THE EVILS OF CAFFEINE By: Nikoletta Ven

Charles Czeisler, a neuroscientist and sleep expert from Harvard Medical School explains: “When the nature of work changed from a schedule built around the sun to an indoor job timed by a clock, humans had to adapt. The widespread use of caffeinated food and drink—in combination with the invention of electric light—allowed people to cope with a work schedule set by the clock, not by daylight or the natural sleep cycle.” In addition, scientific studies have shown that the power boost of caffeine is connected with its interference with adenosine – a chemical in our bodies, which has hypnotic effect and works as a natural sleeping pill. Caffeine actually ceases adenosine and in this way our alertness gets increased and our sleep habits are disrupted. As we all know, there’s no such thing as a free lunch and we pay for this extra wakefulness. Health concerns: Experts from the FDA claim that our health is in danger as long as the consumption remains between 200 mg to 300 mg of caffeine per day, which is equal to around two or three cups of coffee. They also say that caffeine contains components such as Niacin, Magnesium and Potassium, which play a vital role for our health: Potassium is essential for nerves function, Magnesium is of importance in our bones and teeth and Niacin aids in the metabolism of sugars and has an essential role for the proper function of intestines. If consumed moderately, caffeine acts as an anti-oxidant, sucking up free radicals. Unfortunately, the refreshing effects of caffeine urge us to constantly increase consumption in order to eliminate brain fog and fatigue. Caffeine is an addictive drug, which alters our brain’s natural state and stimulates it in a manner similar to mechanisms employed by cocaine and heroin: it provokes a release of adrenalin, so that the body remains active and alert. It also manipulates dopamine production and that’s how we experience temporary high levels of energy; our productivity improves and TO SUBSCRIBE VISIT

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we become more coordinated. Caffeine affects our whole body, stimulating the cardiovascular system, raising our blood pressure and heart rate. This process speeds up our basal metabolic rate and we burn more calories. As a result we obtain a wakeup jolt, because caffeine evokes a stress response in our adrenal hormones, the so called “fight-or-flight” response. This is how our body prepares for action and remains in the state of alertness, no matter if we are sitting on our desks, or reading our newspaper on the sofa. When stress hormones remain elevated for long periods of time, our bodies experience chronic stress, which provokes exhaustion and craving for the next sip of coffee, coke or soda. Exactly how caffeine affects us depends on many factors, including the amount ingested, our individual peculiarities (sex, weight and height, age) and whether we are smokers or non-smokers. Studies show that some people are more sensitive to its effects than others. However, when consumed frequently our body develops tolerance to caffeine and this represents a significant health risk. At doses of 600 mg, or 6 cups of coffee, caffeine can lead to: - Restlessness and anxiety - Heartburn – caffeine is alkaline, which spurs the stomach to react by dumping more hydrochloric acid as a neuralizer - Severe headaches and sweating - High blood pressure - Heart problems and rapid palpitations - Nausea - Muscle stiffness – caffeine increases the loss of calcium and magnesium, which has a negative impact on muscle tissues, impeding their relaxation mechanism. - Withdrawal symptoms may also occur, even when moderate amounts of caffeine are withdrawn for 18 to 48 hours. One may feel severe exhaustion, depression and poor concentration.

first week, 3 in the second, 2 in the third, 1 in the fourth). In this way the withdrawal symptoms will be much less severe. Another strategy which can help our body get rid of caffeine addiction is to use less coffee. Every morning we should use put less teaspoons of coffee into our coffee machine, until it is so weak that we can live without it. We can also switch to tea, as it has lower amounts of caffeine. Every day we can switch over one of our coffee breaks to tea. Once we achieve a successful transition to tea, we should repeat the process to transition to caffeine-free tea. Sleep is a very important natural source of energy and that’s why we need to ensure a quality and regular sleep while we are transitioning to our caffeine-free state. In addition we could include morning aerobic exercise, like cycling or running. This will make us feel full of energy, because sport unlocks the production of endorphins (one of the hormones of happiness) and we will be able to start our day on a natural high. We also have to make sure that we don’t lose our connection with nature. In fact, many people suffer from depression because of the unnatural life our modern society leads us into. Thus, make it a ritual to go outside and deep breathe fresh air in the morning. Change your diet. Drink orange Juice, or eat fresh fruits in order to nourish your body with vitamin C. Coffee is a habit. Replace it with a small glass of fresh pressed orange juice. Have a grain or oats based breakfast (with a low glycemic index). It will keep your brain nourished all morning. Avoid sugary breakfasts like donuts or high sugar cakes or muffins. They lead to a rapid buildup and slump in our blood sugar levels. Also, have an afternoon snack. Keep an apple or banana or a handful of cashew nuts ready for the mid-afternoon snack time instead of coffee. Finally, drink more water: carry a water bottle around and take sips regularly. AM

Strategies for reduction of caffeine intake and tips to give it up completely: In order to gradually reduce the amount of caffeine intake a good tactic is to reduce the number of coffee cups by one every week (For example: 4 cups a day in the SEP / OCT 2011 A D U N A G O W M A G A Z I N E

INTERVIEW | EXCLUSIVE

WHO RUN THE WORLD? URBAN TRIBE Exclusive Interview

URBAN TRIBE is an outstanding dance group from Norway that finds its inspiration in different african, carribean and modern dance styles (Afro Street, Coupé Décale, Ndombolo, Ragga Dancehall, Moderne, Hip Hop…) Its unique style is called : AFROFUSION In 2008 Carina ‘Keiko’ Steiro (leader of the group) had a dream : promote culture, music and dance through different humanitarian projects, runway shows, workshops as to provide a better future for kids all around the world but also to help young women today to have good self esteem through dancing and artistic expression. URBAN TRIBE is born. URBAN TRIBE is composed of 9 self-taught female dancers with a passion and talent drove by the willingness to share cultural diversity with the world and discover new horizons. Urban Tribe is well known in Norway but their dynamic moves, colorful self made costumes mixed with their artistic creativity and musical work gets positive support and welcoming everywhere they go. « Who Run The World ? » URBAN TRIBE !

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E XC LUS I V E AM: HOW DID THE GROUP STARTED? UT: I made a descision in 2008 about creating my own group with a different dancestyle and set up an audition for this purpose. AM: HOW MANY DANCERS ARE THEY IN YOUR GROUP? UT: We are 8 today

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AM: PLEASE TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE DANCERS UT: Oda: 19 yrs. The funny girl! Works with disabled kids and with old people at a nursery home. She’s the “big mama” in the group and her confidence inspires not only us but also a lot of other girls and women that struggles with their self-esteem and image reflection. Mary: 20 yrs. She is from Uganda. Got dance experience from jazzballet. Enhusiastic and spreads joy everywhere she goes. Kamisa: 15 years. She’s the “baby” in the group. Half Gambian half Norwegian. She’s got an amazing talent and very

mature even though she’s the youngest one, and is one of the girls that contributes the most to Urban Tribe when it comes to choreography. Tuva: 20 yrs. The “foodmonster” in the group lol. Not only hungry for food but also for knowledge about life and dance. Creative and smart. Outgoing and easy going with people. Cecilie: 20 yrs. The sweetest and most caring girl you can meet. Extremely flexible in her dancing. 100% dedicated to absolutely everything she puts her mind into. Want’s to become a nurse. Wafa: 19 yrs. The business woman in the group that comes with a lot of great ideas. From Morocco. She’s got tons of karisma and SEP / OCT 2011 A D U N A G O W M A G A Z I N E

enthusiasm. Laughs a lot and very LOUD lol. Carina: 30 yrs. Bosslady! She knows how she want things and what she must do to get them. Even though she can be strict she is wery loving, and takes GOOD care of the group. She’s not only our leader but also a true friend. Very creative and puts a lot of time and energy into the group. Julie: 21 yrs. The stubborn one in the group. Very structured. She’s also very acrobatic. She’s got a very special look that reminds us of an elf lol. When she has made up her mind about something she will not change it for anything! AM: WHERE ARE YOU LOCATED? UT: In Oslo the capital of Norway. We dance in a basement transformed into a dance studio. AM: WHAT TYPE/STYLE OF DANCE DO YOU LIKE MOST? WHY? UT: (Carina) personaly, I like West African dance. But within the group there are different tastes. It varies from street dance to African and Caribbean styles. But mostly, we agree on styles like dancehall, soca, African styles, streetdance and of course our own-made style that we call Afro Fusion. AM: TELL US: WHO’S THE CRAZIEST GIRL IN THE CREW? UT: Oda is definetly the craziest girl in the group, she has a craaaazy humor and got absolutely no limits with that! (laughs) AM: DO YOU HAVE NICKNAMES? UT: JayJay(julie), Keiko(Carina), Ceccy(cecilie), T-bone/Tuvafish(Tuva) AM: WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT YOUR GROUP? UT: Definetly our ability to stay together as both business partners, friends, colleagues and sisters. Our unique sense of humour, self-irony, our open environment within the group, our group mentality in general. We’re all unique, and outfill each other. We’re hardworking girls and we never settle for less. AM: WHAT DO YOU LIKE LEAST? UT: We’re very talkative, and the chatting sometimes steals focus from dancing. It can be difficult at times when we have periods with lack of inspiration to create new piece, but we always try to make the best out of it. AM: WHO ARE YOUR ROLE MODELS? UT: Nelson Mandela (he represents our mentality and humanitary work). Beyoncé 36

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Knowles (She’s an amazing preformer – dancer, ++) AM: HOW MANY TIMES/HOW LONG DO YOU PRACTICE BEFORE YOU GET IT RIGHT? UT: We do practice a lot but this depends on what kind of style, show-event, costumes etc we are preparing for. Usually, we practce two times a week, 4 hours each time. But when we have an upcoming show, we usually need to put more time into it and arrange extra rehearsals. AM: YOU DANCE FABULOUSLY – TELL US ABOUT YOUR GREATEST PERFORMANCE? UT: Thank you, much appreciated ! We danced on Soca Monarch – the biggest soca event of the year in trinidad. Over 80 000 people in the audience and both the crowd and us went crazy! “Norway TO SUBSCRIBE VISIT

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Got Talent” was also a great experience ! Dancing with singer Flo Rida during his last year concert in Norway was also a really good experience. AM: HOW DO YOU LEARN YOUR DANCE MOVES? UT: Mostly by getting inspired by dancers in clubs, dance classes, youtube links, theatres, movies etc... AM: TELL US MORE ABOUT YOUR DANCE STYLE THAT YOU CALL AFRO FUSION. UT: Afro Fusion is a mixture of caribbean and African dance moves like Coupé Décalé, Ndombolo, Traditional steps blended with steps from modern dance like streetdance, ragga dancehall and jazz. AM: WHAT IS YOUR DREAM? WHAT’S NEXT FOR URBAN TRIBE?

UT: A really important dream to us that we wish to make it true is to dance for Nelson Mandela. We also want to get our own studio sometime in the near future. We also want to be able to hold workshop for kids that are not able to have access to dance activities to help their self-esteem. Apart from that we want to expend as an entertaintment group and keep travelling the world to share, inspire, explore and bring happiness to people. AM: HOW DO PEOPLE GET TO KNOW YOU? UT: Mostly trough our Youtube channel UrbanTribeOfficial and our facebook page : UrbanTribeOfficial AM: HOW LONG DID IT TAKE YOU TO LEARN TO DANCE “NDOMBOLO”? “DECALE COUPE”? UT: (Carina) l personally learned myself SEP / OCT 2011 A D U N A G O W M A G A Z I N E

some of the steps and feeling about the style around the age of 17. It was first in 2010 when one of our previous dancers called Merveille who is from Congo helped us to learn more about the technical part of this style. We worked hard together to understand more behind the different styles. So, basically some months of training to make it look good and authentic. AM: WHAT’S THE MOST NEGATIVE COMMENT YOU HAVE EVER RECEIVED ABOUT YOUR GROUP/DANCE? UT: Like most people that does something good and original, we also get a lot of haters. For instance, we hear things like “oh, they are white girls trying to dance like 38

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African girls.” Still, we choose to ignore this and ajust our focus on the positive side. We’re doing our thing and we will keep doing it no matter what. AM: WHAT’S THE MOST POSITIVE COMMENTS EVER RECEIVED/FROM WHOM? UT: From people that explain how they feel we inspire them to live a better life. There was one girl who sent us a very long mail telling us that she had many years of problems with alcohol and drugs. When she watched our work and the videos we made she said that it gave her so much good feelings inside of her. For her knowing that there are girls who had such passion, self-respect and stamina made her want to stay away from the bad things she was doing to herself. Also in Paris, we had a TO SUBSCRIBE VISIT

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show at a children’s hospital. The positive energy and all the response we got back from the children were worth more than a thousand complements. It was a heart print feeling for all of us. AM: HAVE YOU EVER THOUGHT OF PERFORMING IN AFRICA? WHY? WHEN? UT: (Carina) OH YES! When I started the group I knew that one of the goals was to travel around the world and especially to AFRICA! I did travel as a solo dancer but Africa has been one of my dreams to take the girls too because its the part of the world where I get most of my inspiration from when it comes to music making, choreography, costumes and hair. AM: TELL US, WHAT IS THE CRAZIEST THING YOUR GROUP HAS EVER DONE? UT: We don’t even know where to start.. (laughs) Every time we’re together we do so many crazy/funny things! But one incident that was both crazy and that turned out to become very important to us for future work opportunities happened at a concert in Trinidad Tobago with the great soca artist Machel Montano. We were watching the 40

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concert from backstage and climbed up in the «stage fence» during one of his songs as to get a better view. Machel discovered us while singing on stage and turned the spotlight to us and he strated freestyling about us. We climbed even further up and started whining and dancing far up in the fence, while Machel was singing about us and the audience was cheering. This event actually made us famous in Trinidad, and during carnival people recognized us everywhere and we got newspaper interviews as well! AM: WHAT ARE YOU LIKES AND DISLIKES? UT: Likes: - Food! (A LOT) - HUMOR - to travel and explore new cultures, people - to help others – huminatary work - be creative! - in the making of coreography, costumes, music - to laugh at each other (we’ve got a lot of self irony) - theatre

- prejudge - negativity - to talk behind each others back - to be unserious/unprofessional - bad hairday AM: THE MIC IS YOURS. ANY LAST WORDS? UT: Thanks to Adunagow Magazine for letting us expose our opinions. We enjoyed this interview. We hope to be able to come to the States and perform! We just finished our new promo clip that we shot in Paris with a production crew called HOPE VIDEOS. They did an amazing work that you can check on Youtube. Just type “Urban Tribe Dance within Elements” and please share it with your family and friends. We will love to read your comments on our work. So, come join us on our journey through our facebook page : https://www.facebook.com/ UrbanTribeOfficial. Love from Norway ! Contact : urbantribedance@gmail.com

Dislikes: - racism TO SUBSCRIBE VISIT

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INTERVIEW | EXCLUSIVE

Bio

Mimitah is the award winning star of UK BEST NEW TALENT at the African Music Awards. She describes her style of music as COWO meaning “Congo meet World” a fusion of Congolese music and other beats of the world.

MIMITAH

Mimitah won an award for UK’s best new talent in the African Music Award that took place in Europe 2009.

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She is a fast rising star born DR Congo, she grew up in east London in a refugee family of 8, she describes her style of music as COWO, meaning “Congo meet World”. COWO is a young traditional and modern Congolese sound mixed with other music of the world. She released her single TATA MUASI meaning “Aunty” back in Congo 2008, which proved to be a hit in Congo, topping the Congolese charts and winning millions of fans, mainly because the song is sang in rumba style, which is a very popular genre in Congo. The song also stood out because it was a rumba song with a European feel to it and the fact that the song is talking about an Aunty who didn’t like her nephew’s girlfriend, which is a very common issue in African families. When Mimitah went to Congo to promote her single she was shocked as Congo wasn’t the way she remembered it as a child, so she decided to put herself on a mission to bring Congolese music to the world, through that she could raise awareness on cruelty women face in Africa, also raise awareness on deportation.

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E XC LUS I V E AM: How did you get started into Music? Mimitah: I started singing in choirs and local girl bands. Because it wasn’t working out, I started attending auditions and taking parts in contests hoping to get noticed, but somehow singing RnB didn’t get me noticed. So, I joined a local African band in canning town east London singing famous songs by well known African female artists; that’s when things started to fall into place for me. AM: How old were you when you performed for the very first time? Mimitah: I was about 6 or 7 the very first time that I performed. I was doing a school play for our families in school back in DR. Congo. AM: Where do you currently live? Mimitah: I am located in London. I’ve been raised in London in a refugee family of 8. I came over here to live with my mother. AM: How was it growing up in UK? Mimitah: Growing up in the UK was good; sometimes bad if I look back. I remember escaping the difficulties my family faced in Africa only to come to the UK to discover that I belonged in the reject side, the losers side, because at that time being an African was not cool; the way we dressed, the food we ate and our family names was just funny. The fact that I could not speak English made everything worse. When I tried to fit in with the kids in school so I wouldn’t be laughed at, it would cause problems at home because my mother could not afford to dress me in the latest fashion or buy me the latest gadget nor the freedom that most of the kids in England had. It was very hard but the good thing about being in the UK was we were safe medically, we had education and life was no longer a struggle. AM: How many languages do you speak? Mimitah: I speak 4 different languages: TO SUBSCRIBE VISIT

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English, Lingala, French and Swahili. AM:What type/style of music do you like most? Why? Mimitah: I like all styles of music, but African music I love the most because it takes me back home. AM: I heard you can rap as well? Mimitah: I used to rap only because I couldn’t sing at first, and rapping is much easier to get it right in the song than singing. It takes an awful lot to sing, but I am no stranger to rap and I do little rap from time to time, but singing is what I do and I don’t care what it takes anymore. AM: What do you like most about your profession? Mimitah: What I like most is the urge to create; the buzz I get out of fulfilling my ideas. Nothing beats the moment I seat back and realize what I have done, I love that very much. AM: What do you like least? Mimitah: I hate it when I am restricted! I

hate restriction in my work, I don’t want to stop, I want to go on and on and on and on. AM: Who are your role models? Mimitah: My role models apart from Michael Jackson are the 3MC (meaning the 3 Marie-Claires)… There are 3 ladies in my life who inspire me the most and they are all called Marie-claire. The first one is my mother Marie-Claire Omoyi Lufulu, who gave birth to 8 of us; she deserves to be praised. The second one is MarieClaire Bi-Omba: my aunty. She is the most successful business lady in Kinshasa DR Congo, specializing in fashion, and I admire her strength. The third one is Marie-Claire M’bilia Bel; the most famous Congolese female singer. I pray for her endurance in the music. AM: How long do you practice before you get it right? Mimitah: You can never practice enough to SEP / OCT 2011 A D U N A G O W M A G A Z I N E

get it right; it’s all about giving all and the best you can. AM: Tell us about your greatest performance. Mimitah: My greatest performance was when I first performed with Kanda Bongo Man in 2006 at the Womad festival in Adelaide, Australia. It was the my first time performing in front of 15,000 people. It was amazing and that performance made me believe in myself more. AM: Tell us more about your music styled called COWO. Mimitah: COWO means Congo meet world, because that’s the kind of music I do. It’s easier for me to say my style of music is cowo instead of saying I do a mixture of Rnb and soukous with a touch of techno and Indian music. Cowo is a mixture of any music style of the world mixed with Congolese music. I am not comfortable with just one genre of music; I like a mixture. AM: What is your dream? What’s next for Mimitah? Mimitah: My dream is to see African music in the main stream. I think it will benefit the European society a lot, especially in England. Young people listen to music that requires them to be a certain way, for example people who listen to rap think they should talk slang, have a b**ch or a baby mother, have a crew and deal drugs and robbery and so on. Girls on the other hand think they should look like rap video girls, be a groupie, and have a bad boy and so on. But, African music allows you to be who you are, and commands you to dance.

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This is the next step for me; take African music to the mainstream here in the UK. AM: How do people get to know more about you? Mimitah: I am available at www.mimitah. com, facebook: Mimitah Britain’s very own African artist. AM: What’s the first song you ever remember listening? Mimitah: The first song I remember hearing will probably be We Are The World. AM: What are you listening to lately? Mimitah: Lately, I’m listening to my new album, I am doing the finishing touches before I finalize it. AM: What’s your favorite album by another artist? Mimitah: I don’t enjoy any album as much as I enjoy Michael Jackson’s old albums. AM: What inspired your hit song “Tata Muasi?” Mimitah: The words TATA MUASI mean aunty, but your father’s big sister only is called aunty. So, she plays a very important role in the family. Because she is a big sister to your father, she can come and make decisions in your family and your father will have nothing to say; she is usually a strong character. My ex boyfriend had an aunty like this and she didn’t want me and my ex boyfriend to see each other. She thought that I wasn’t good enough for my ex, so I sang this song to her. AM: How did you end up working with Kanda Bongo Man? Mimitah: Singing alone was too boring for

me, also I found myself still very nervous on stage. So, I wanted to do something about it and I thought dancing would maximize my performance. I was working with a dancer who was dancing for Kanda Bongo Man. One day, she had a contract to dance with Kanda Bongo in Australia and there was room for one more dancer, because Congolese dance is natural for me I signed up for the show and that is how I joined Kanda. AM: What’s the most negative comment you have ever received about your singing? Mimitah: In music we face negative comments all the time, so I can’t tell you the most negative comment. But I can tell you the comments that irritates me the most is when they tell me I sang out of tune; I hate it. It makes me feel dumb… But it’s mostly because even the most experienced singers go out of tune from time to time. AM: How about the most positive comment ever received and from whom? Mimitah: The most positive comment in my music is when a lady in Congo Kinshasa approached me to tell me that her first boyfriend who she lost her virginity to, cheated on her and left her. She was beaten down by the experience, and it was until she heard my song called Mosusu Akoya meaning someone else will come, she had hopes again and she was able to let go of the guy. That felt like a job done to me. AM: So, you’ve performed in Africa before? Mimitah: Yes, I have performed in Africa; it was in Congo in 2009. I went to release and promote my single Tata Muasi first in Kinshasa. AM: What do you do in your spare time? Mimitah: In my spare time I am a mum; I enjoy looking after my son Qenan. AM: What’s the side of you that the public never sees? Mimitah: The side of me that the public don’t see is me being a normal girl doing housework and being a mum, also the fun and lazy side of me. AM: Are you involved with anyone? Mimitah: Yes, I am involved with someone. I don’t know how hard it is to maintain a relationship while on road because I got with my man while I decided to take a break. I guess I will know when I get back on road. AM: What would you be doing if you weren’t a musician? Mimitah: If I wasn’t a musician, I would do anything to stay alive. TO SUBSCRIBE VISIT

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AM: How supportive are your parents about your music profession? Mimitah: My family and parents are now very supportive of my music. Before they were a bit confused by it, but now they enjoy it. AM: Tess us, what’s the craziest thing you have ever done? Mimitah: The craziest thing I’ve ever done was to release my single in DR Congo after nearly 2 decades of absence by myself with the help of a team I barely knew. AM: What are your likes and dislikes? Mimitah: I like honesty and I dislike cruelty. AM: What’s your opinion on the upcoming election in Congo Kinshasa? Mimitah: I have nothing to say about the elections in Congo. There are far more important issues in Congo that need solving. AM: Why do you think there are so many cruelties towards women in Africa? Mimitah: There are so many cruelties towards women in Africa because men dominate mostly in Africa, and not all men in power use their power wisely especially in 46

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a country where law is poorly exercised. AM: Do you think African countries will be much stable if they were governed by women? Mimitah: African countries will be stable if governed but not only women, but by the right types of women working alongside the right types of men. African men need to realize that African women are their biggest assets. They need to walk with them side to side not putting them behind. AM: How can Africans living abroad help further African development? Mimitah: Africans living abroad can help the development of African countries by setting up organizations that deal with developing their countries directly from where they are. Africans abroad needs to still serve their countries even if living abroad; we need to educate our children about their backgrounds and encourage them to represent their countries of origins. African histories should be engraved in our children’s brains so they can grow up knowing that one day we will get together and claim back what has been

stolen from us. THE MIC IS YOURS AM: Any words of wisdom for all our Mimitah: Word of wisdom to my fellow artist is, take it easy, do it on your own time and don’t let no one or nothing stop u, when it’s not going right just put it a side and take a break then back on it. My last words goes to my women out there, you are the iPHONES of today, you can do anything you want to do by getting yourselves apps of your choices that will provide you with tools that will enable you to achieve what you want to achieve. A person without a skill in life is like a soldier without a weapon, defenceless and destined to fall. The world is your app store, so go out there and invest in making yourself somebody. AM

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THE MAGAZINE THAT PROMOTES UNION AND COOPERATION OF AFRICANS AROUND THE GLOBE, ENCOURAGING AN INFORMED, THINKING AND QUESTIONING AFRICAN SOCIETY.