interview
The travel that changed me: Nadine Matheson
Crime author Nadine Matheson tells us why a last-minute trip to Portugal changed her life forever Nadine Matheson is the author of The Jigsaw Man, a deliciously dark cat-and-mouse thriller that pits the best new detective in fiction against a truly menacing killer. Described as a ‘macabre love letter to South London’, the novel has a noirish, nightmarish quality redolent of hardboiled fiction recast for a contemporary audience. On the eve of publication, Nadine tells us why she chose South London as a setting, how her career as a criminal solicitor has helped shape her fiction and why a trip to Portugal changed her life forever. Your debut novel is described as a ‘macabre love letter to South London’. Why is this a compelling setting? Author Nadine Matheson I grew up in South-east Lo...
NSA, Northwest governors to meet in Kaduna over rising insecurity
The National Security Adviser, Maj. Gen. Babagana Monguno (Retd) and all the seven governors from the North-West region of the country have scheduled a town-hall meeting for Monday in order to address growing insecurity in the region. It was gathered that the meeting, which will hold in Kaduna, was convened on the heels of recent disagreements among some of the governors which border on whether to give amnesty to bandits or not. Newsmen report that Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai said that his administration was at war with bandits and so cannot negotiate with them. The governor, in an interview with BBC Hausa radio as monitored on Monday, also ruled out the issue of forgiveness and compensation for bandits being advocated by the state based Islamic Scholar, Dr Ahmad Gumi. But Kano S...
Anambra election: We’ve not disqualified any aspirant – PDP
File Photo The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said none of the gubernatorial aspirants on its platform has been disqualified, ahead of the November 6, Anambra State governorship election. The PDP National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, told newsmen in a telephone interview that the interest of the opposition party was to have a credible, free and fair gubernatorial primary to produce a candidate, who would win the governorship contest. Ologbondiyan, who was responding to question on the purported “technical” disqualification of some persons aspiring to contest the next Anambra governorship poll on the PDP, through alleged zoning of the party’s gubernatorial ticket, said the party is not aware of any disqualification. “Which party? Nobody is talking about disqualification. In f...
The Lucas Bros. Talk ‘Judas & The Black Messiah,’ Growing Up In Newark & More
Source: The Lucas Bros / TLB It has been said that comedians are among the sharpest minds when it comes to bringing cultural commentary to the masses in a relatable fashion. The Lucas Bros are part of a long lineage of funnymen who use humor and sharp wit to speak on social ills, and they graciously shared details of their work on the upcoming Judas & The Black Messiah film and much more. Hip-Hop Wired had the good fortune of speaking at length with brothers Kenny and Keith Lucas regarding their story that framed the backdrop of Judas & The Black Messiah, starring Daniel Kaluuya in the main role as Fred Hampton, and directed by Shaka King. Given the serious themes present in the film, we asked the brothers to lay out their early beginnings and how their profession as comedians brou...
Foo Fighters Perform “Waiting on a War” on Fallon: Watch
Foo Fighters were guests on Monday night’s edition Jimmy Fallon, promoting their new album, Medicine at Midnight. After frontman Dave Grohl chatted it up with the Tonight Show host, the band performed their single “Waiting on a War”. The track is a stirring piece of a hopeful anxiety, with low synths and bass underscoring a tension that waits until the very end to break. As such, this wasn’t a face-melting rock show of a late night performance, with Foo Fighters instead delivering a relatively simple run-through of the song in a purple-lit set. That said, it’s a powerful enough song to still grab you even in such a straightforward set up — especially once Taylor Hawkins and the band got to rip into it during the outro. Prior to taking the remote stage with the rest of the Fighters, Gr...
The Drummer Got Some: The Reinvention & Reignition Of Jay “J-Zone” Mumford Pt. 2
Source: Justin Pounds / JP In Hip-Hop Wired’s first installment of our interview with Jay “J-Zone” Mumford, we learned that the former rapper and producer came to his earlier profession unexpectedly. Amassing a following during the heights of the Indie Hip-Hop craze of the early 2000s, Mumford became increasingly jaded with the industry before rediscovering his passion for the music that defined his youth. Zone Defense As we learned in part one of our talks, Mumford dove into a career as a headlining rapper due to the fact that the inconsistency of artists he hoped to work with had reached its zenith. By some measure, the “road less traveled” approach makes sense in the ultra-competitive realm of independent Hip-Hop but ask any artist who worked at the turn of the century, and they’ll almo...
Liverpool fullback: I haven’t been good enough this season
Liverpool fullback Trent Alexander-Arnold admits his performances haven’t been up to standard this season. Alexander-Arnold has claimed there is no excuses for his below-par showings and has claimed he is committed to rediscovering his best form. In an interview with Sky Sports, he was asked if he was playing at the top level this season: “Me? No. “There’s been times this season I felt like I’ve been playing quite well. Recently I’ve been trying to get back into that rhythm I was talking about earlier from a personal point of view. “It’s been a tough reason in that respect in just trying to find that rhythm and get back into it and just letting things happen naturally. It’s been quite difficult. “But again there’s no excuses. I want to try to make things happen for the team and perform as ...
The Drummer Got Some: The Reinvention & Reignition Of Jay “J-Zone” Mumford Pt. 1
Source: Johan Vipper / JV Few artists in Hip-Hop, and across all musical genres period, are afforded the option of a second chance to make an impression on listeners. While the journey had more than its share of ups and downs, Jay Mumford, the former J-Zone, has landed in a particular place in life that has reconnected him with his true creative purpose. The Funk Roots Run Deep During a recent chat with Hip-Hop Wired, Mr. Mumford was approachable, eager to share his story, and, much like his earlier work as a producer and rapper, humorous. But with the jokes came valuable insight of how one can nearly have it all in one space, only to toil against the strain of placing one’s energies into music that doesn’t speak to them — or for them — any longer. Mumford’s journey in music actually began...
DR Congo’s president becomes African Union chairman
The DRC’s President Félix Tshisekedi has now taken over the helm of the African Union to serve as the chairman for one-year. He replaces his South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa, following the AU’s 34th summit on Saturday. But Tshisekedi faces big challenges this year with the coronavirus pandemic hitting health service and economies hard. The continent has so far been hit less hard than other regions, recording 3.5 percent of global virus cases and 4 percent of global deaths, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). But many African countries are battling damaging second waves while straining to procure sufficient vaccine doses. African leaders are speaking out against hoarding by rich countries at the expense of poorer ones. “There is a vaccin...
Former minister Tony Momoh passes on
YouTube Former Minister of Information, Prince Tony Momoh, has passed on. Prince Momoh was a veteran journalist, lawyer, politician and former Minister of Information and Culture (1986–1990) during the military regime of General Ibrahim Babangida. Momoh was born on April 27, 1939 in Auchi, Edo State, to the royal Momoh family. He was also the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman, Governing Council of the University of Jos. In January 2011, he became the National Chairman of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, one of the “legacy parties” which merged to form the now ruling All Progressives Congress, APC. Known for his bluntness, Prince Momoh was one individual who was committed to any cause he believed in irrespective of whose ox was gored. Get more stories like this on Twitter You Des...
Ex-President Obasanjo: Why Peter Odili didn’t emerge Umaru Yar’Adua’s running mate
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has disclosed the behind-the-scene details of how former Rivers Governor Peter Odili lost out in the race to emerge late President Musa Yar’Adua’s running mate in 2007. Odili was a leading contender for the vice presidential slot but lost out in dramatic manners at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national convention in Abuja. Obasanjo, who was handing over after a two-term rule, said Odili was favoured for the slot but was dropped because of corruption cases with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Speaking on Sunday in a virtual interview with historian and academic Toyin Falola, Obasanjo said: “Now, we needed a running mate for Yar’adua. There were two possibilities – the first possibility was Peter Odili. “Peter Odili was a much str...
Twitter: Donald Trump ban permanent, even if he runs for office again
Former President Donald Trump will not be returning to Twitter at any point in the future, according to the company’s chief financial officer. In an interview with CNBC’s Squawk Box program on Wednesday, Twitter CFO Ned Segal said that running for public office again would not reverse the ban the company handed out to Trump in the aftermath of the US Capitol riot on January 6th. The question is relevant considering Trump’s ongoing impeachment trial. A central question in the trial is whether Democrats can bar Trump from running for president again in 2024 or seeking other public office. Regardless of the outcome, the @realDonaldTrump will still remain suspended for good, Segal said. “The way our policies work, when you’re removed from the platform, you’re removed from the...