| 👋 Good morning! Let's address the elephant in the room: Bridgerton is back, and everyone in the ton is getting married. Meanwhile, in real-world Nigeria, it's currently peak 'breakup season.' If your relationship is still standing, you're basically a local hero. Stay strong. | Today, we're talking about Akinola and Wale's big BAFTA moment, the war between critics and filmmakers, and whatever is going on with Brymo and Simi this time. | Also inside: Fit of the week, an eclectic debate, and a playlist to get you through it all. | If you're enjoying this, don't forget to subscribe and join The Juice community. We're building this together ♡. | | Quick Question | Is impact or visibility more important for a creative? | The answer is at the bottom of this newsletter. |
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| | | 🗞️ THIS WEEK IN POP CULTURE |
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| | 🎵 MUSIC | We've always thought Rema had a face that belonged on runways, and that belief was proven when the HITMAKER (see here for more on his hitmaking status) walked the Diesel SS26 Runway at Milan Fashion Week. |
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| | ☆ FESTIVAL | Here's a chance to become an indie filmmaker: The S16 film festival is opening its submission portal to their S16 labs on March 5. Selected filmmakers will have a hands-on experience where they can refine their craft and receive guidance. Interested? |
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| | 📽️ FILM | Akinola and Wale Davies snagged a BAFTA on Sunday for their film My Father's Shadow. Wale is probably already penning the BAFTA rhymes for his next album. "I got the baffs, now I got the BAFTA." There is a reason we didn't make it as rappers. |
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| | 📺 CULTURE | Filmmakers have waged yet another war on critics. It's an annual event, nothing new. Just filmmakers rejecting any form of criticism. But art must be critiqued; if not, how does one become better? |
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| | ↝ TRENDING | Simi has been receiving a lot of backlash for past tweets denoting tribalism, pedophilia, and all sorts. While we are against any form of discrimination and harassment, we do wonder why decade-old tweets are coming up right after she went on a campaign against rapists. |
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| | | | | For our fashion segment, we enlisted our very own Law Roach and Zendaya (double entendre!), Wumi Tuase-Fosudo. She talks about the stylish celebrity who has caught her eye. Catch the deets below! |
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| | | Currently, one of the women whose style I genuinely enjoy watching is Hafymo. What makes her interesting to me is her evolution. Since transitioning from covering her hair and relocating, her fashion choices feel more expansive & expressive. You can tell she's exploring who she is in real time & I love that her style reflects personal growth. | She plays beautifully with textures & colours that accentuate her body & skin tone. I like how the silhouettes flatter her & her fabric and color choices are intentional, maybe because she's a fashion designer too. | One thing I'm particularly drawn to is her accessories. She accessorizes so well. Watching her style evolve has been refreshing because it feels authentic. |
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| | | | | | Why Did Brymo Feel Comfortable Admitting to Sexual Harassment? | In 2022, a video of Brymo admitting publicly that he requested sex from Simi for a feature circulated on the internet. That video has popped up again. In the video, he told the interviewer, "The only way I can do a feature now is if I'm lying with the woman I'm working with, so it can be intense." | So, according to Brymo's School of Music, harassment is the requirement for "intense music". | The rape crisis centre of England and Wales defines sexual harassment as any unwanted sexual behavior that makes someone feel upset, scared, offended, humiliated, or is meant to make them feel that way. | Brymo's request sits neatly in the quid pro quo sexual harassment department. It's a form of sexual harassment where a person in power conditions a benefit on sexual compliance. If access to collaboration is contingent on sex, that is harassment. | This incident does not exist in a silo; it is part of a larger systemic pattern. Women in the music industry have to go the extra mile to "avoid" harassment and assault. | Take, for instance, Tems, whose style earlier on in her career often featured her in baggy clothing. Her wardrobe today is a stark difference from the baggy clothes. What changed? She gained significant success. | In 2024, Korty sat with Tems for an interview. In their discussion, Tems revealed the reason for her outfit choices in the past. | She said, "My objective is just to make music. And if me being attractive is disturbing you, if it's stopping me from achieving my goal, then I'm going to help you. So, when I go to the studio, I wear baggy clothes. I'm in my 'alpha mode' because I don't want you to be seduced by me." | From her comment, you can tell she felt responsible for a man's urges. That is why I'm more frightened, not by what Brymo said, but by why he felt comfortable saying it. | There has been a long-standing protection of male artists. It was only a few months ago that it seemed like Burna Boy was going to be cancelled. Newsflash: he still isn't "cancelled". Davido has a cheating scandal every two days, but nobody bats an eyelash. | In an industry where male artists are often insulated by fandom, talent, and controversy fatigue, the cost of admitting sexual harassment is rarely career-ending. | The reaction becomes discourse, not discipline; outrage flares and then folds into streams, playlists, and think pieces. That cycle breeds confidence, and they are well aware of it. | At its core, this is about power: who can attach conditions to opportunity and remain protected by reputation and audience loyalty? Conditioning collaboration on sexual access is not creative chemistry; it is harassment. | So let me be the first to say it: Brymo might be an artistic genius, but he is also a sexual harasser, and we should be saying the latter out a bit more. |
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| | | | | Which Side Are You On? | Hey, Shalom here. This past weekend, I found myself in a room packed with some of the most electric young creators I've ever met. Middle of the session. They divided the room into two for a debate. | The question they asked changed the entire mood of the afternoon. We yelled. Laughed. Debated. It was fun. | The question was this: Would you rather have a legacy that changes lives but no one knows your name (Impact), or have the whole world know your name but your work is forgotten in a week (Visibility)? | So, if you could only have one for the rest of your career, which would you choose? | Make a choice | | Before you decide, for the first option, your work changes lives, solves massive problems, and is studied for decades, but your name is never known. You are anonymous. | And for the second: everyone knows your name; you are the face of your industry; and you have total reach, but your work is consumed quickly and rarely leaves a lasting impact. | Next week, we'll reveal how you voted, plus our own thoughts! More importantly, we'll share a correlation between both and how likely you are to burn out. Don't miss the breakdown. |
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| | | 🎵 PRESSED BY THE JUICE |
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| | This Week's Playlist | | We are still in the month of love and are far from leaving the Valentine headspace. So we have updated our love playlist. Dive in for more Cupidish sonic sounds ♡ | Don't forget to save, we update frequently. | Want your song featured? Reply to our mail, thejuice@pulse.ng | |
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| | | | 141 M | No fewer than 141 million Nigerians are expected to live in poverty this year. This is more of a sad stat than a fresh one, but it's still a necessary one, and not many people are talking about it. source. | 4000 | Jack Dorsey just cut 4,000 roles at Block, Inc., with AI cited as a key driver. It's not our usual lane, but the implications could travel, and Africa won't be immune. Update your CV, perhaps consider bricklaying. source. | | Today's email was brought to you by Shalom Tewobola and Praise Okeoghene Vandeh | Editing by: Shalom Tewobola | Designs by: Daniel Banjoko | Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up here. | Have a story or product that needs to be seen? Submit here. |
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