Women Climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, and They’re all Over

Marketing Travel Rihanna and LeBron James are the New Faces for Travel Luggage Brand Rimowa

By Nasha Smith

Roger Federer

Singer/business mogul Rihanna, NBA superstar LeBron James, 20time Grand Slam tennis champion Roger Federer, and multidisciplinary artist Patti Smith are all part of the new global

Rimowa campaign “Never Still”

which showcases their personal relationship with travel.

The Covid-19 pandemic created a shift in travel, forcing the industry Patti Smith to redefine how we experience diff erent destinations. The legacy LVMH-owned luggage label is leaning into more purposeful travel and has enlisted the high-profi le icons to share their own travel stories.

The refl ective and intimate short videos feature a poem written and narrated by Smith and a custom score by Jamie xx.

“Travel as we knew it is over,” says LeBron James in a 15-second clip.

LaBron James

“Now it’s not about how far you go, but why you go. And who you bring along for the ride.”

Rihanna adds, “You just need to receive life as it comes, and traveling really did that for me. When everything is minimized, you see what’s important. You’re discovering experiences as they come to you, and you’re embracing it.”

The entertainer has previously been spotted with the limited-edition Rimowa x Off -White Cabin Multiwheel suitcase, designed by Louis Vuitton creative director Virgil Abloh.

This new campaign is part of the promotion for Rimowa’s collection of “mobility essentials” launched late last year. “I’m not here to criticize what we’ve done in the past — it was a diff erent era — but I think this is truly our fi rst Virgil Abloh campaign where we’re keen to have a two-way conversation and really get people thinking about the impact the pandemic has had on them and what they’re going to change, keep, evolve, you name it,” Emelie De Vitis, Chief Marketing Offi cer at Rimowa told High Snobriety in an interview. “It’s truly a universal question. I think there will probably be less futile travels, but more travel for purpose.” https://travelnoire.com/rihanna-lebron-james-luggagelabel-rimowa Image credit: luxexpose.com, hawtcelebs.com, lesitedelasneaker.com, Pinterest, Hypebeast, UnderConsideration

Africa’s largest fi lm festival kicks off Saturday in Burkina Faso amid both the COVID-19 pandemic and a growing jihadi insurgency in the West African nation that has killed thousands of people and displaced more than 1 million in recent years.

Alex Moussa Sawadogo, head of the PanAfrican Film and TV Festival of Ouagadougou said organizers wanted to go ahead with the event known by its French acronym, FESPACO in spite of the challenges to show Burkina Faso can still “inspire imagination through cinema.”

“This event will be a FESPACO of resistance because it is taking place under harsh security and health conditions,” he told The Associated Press in an interview in the capital, Ouagadougou.

Sawadogo said the number of venues has been reduced this year.

The weeklong festival showcases works by African fi lmmakers and works produced on the continent. Out of nearly 1,200 fi lms submitted, 282 have been selected to compete, some of which have already been shown at places like Cannes and the Toronto Film Festival.

Participants say they hope FESPACO will be a breath of fresh air for a suff ering nation. Boubakar

Diallo, a fi lm director and twotime FESPACO winner, will debut his comedy, “The 3 Lascars”, about three friends going on a trip with their mistresses. “In these very diffi cult times Africa’s Largest Film Festival for Burkina Faso and all the countries of the Sahel because Kicks Off in Burkina Faso of the terrorist attacks, I have the pleasure of off ering a By SAM MEDNICK beautiful comedy to make people smile, to entertain the public and ask questions about our current identity, to show our identity to others and enjoy theirs,” Diallo, 59, said. Burkina Faso was once regarded as a beacon of peaceful coexistence in the region, which some attribute to its rich cultural scene. “Culture builds the ground for development. It is crucial for living together in peace,” said Alexander Widmer, head of governance at the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation in Burkina Faso, which co-funds the fi lm festival. Some people think the event could be an opportunity to unite an increasingly fractured nation and remind the world that it’s still open for business. “It’s now that FESPACO is even more important for the country,” said Koudbi Kabore, a historian and researcher at Joseph Ki Zerbo University in Ouagadougou. “It showcases African cinema, and holding it will undoubtedly return Burkina Faso’s image of being a good destination for business and investment.” https://apnews.com/article/coronaviruspandemic-entertainment-health-pandemics-artsand-entertainment-fb9ebee2055fbcd31e34ff 7 0e7087985