Monday, May 5, 2014

Have you seen "An African (Sex and the) City"?

"An African City" is in my opinion, the best thing from Africa to hit youtube since "Keeping It Real With Adeola". It is a youtube series that centers around the life of 5 women who return to Ghana after having spent the majority of their lives living and being educated in the West. These characters in this show are so cha-cha that alma mater names like "Harvard" and "Oxford" are randomly thrown around in conversation. Knowing that there are thousands of young Africans who can lay claim to such accomplishments in reality, can sometimes be a little intimidating but the show was so good that I couldn't wallow in self-pity for too long. 

Each episode is narrated by Nana Yaa. She is the most recent returnee of the group and the central character around which things evolves. The other friends are: Ngozi, Makena, Sade (who are vaguely reminiscent of Charlotte, Miranda and Samantha respectively) and lastly, Zainab. The actresses behind these characters are all highly accomplished thespians and all have impressive resumes. Check out their bios here

An African City - Season 1, Episode 1 
(courtesy of youtube.com) 

An African City explores various aspects of being back on the continent from the perspective of these well-educated, foreign-bred women who are also single. Together they navigate first and foremost, the dating world as well as other situations like job-hunting, finding a place to live, deciding whether or not to have a "sugar daddy" and a whole lot more. Although some of them have already become quite accustomed to the way things are done back home, the show still tries to show some of the dilemmas and conflicts that people in this demographic might be facing.

The show is well written but having seen way too many Nollywood "home video" I have to say that the main thing that kept me watching was the great acting! These ladies are completely authentic and very believable and I found myself feeling grateful that they had consented to lending their considerable talents to this project. The episodes are short, averaging about 15 minutes each and I watched the entire first season in one afternoon while getting a mani and pedi. 

All I can say is thank you Nicole Amarteifio (Creator and Writer of An African City) for bringing something so fresh to the screen for our viewing pleasure! Keep up the good work, I can't wait for Season 2!

XOXO,
Starlight.