Elsy Wameyo - Nilotic

What this video is

Released November 17, 2021, 'Nilotic' arrives in the sustained cultural aftershock of the 2020 Black Lives Matter resurgence. Nairobi-born, Adelaide-based artist Elsy Wameyo uses the title — referencing the Nilotic peoples of East Africa, including Kenyan tribes she descends from — as an act of heritage reclamation. The video's costuming dialectic (traditional dress vs. contemporary professional attire) visualises…

Why it matters

A landmark entry in African-Australian hip-hop, 'Nilotic' demonstrates the genre's capacity for politically charged, spiritually rooted, and culturally specific storytelling. Wameyo's self-production and co-direction signal a new generation of autonomous Black female artists reshaping Australia's…

The director

Richard Coburn is an award-winning writer-director and motion designer based in Adelaide, Australia. He has won the AADC's Master's Chair twice and received the AADC's 2016 President's Award for outstanding contribution to the industry. His music video work…