On this episode, AfroQueer Podcast rebroadcasts an episode of Podcasting Smarter featuring Selly Thiam. Selly is the founder of AfroQueer podcast and AQ Studios. She is a Senegalese-American journalist who has worked with NPR, the New York Times, and StoryCorps, and is passionate about documenting and sharing the stories and training others on docu…

Get ready for an exciting new season of AfroQueer! Season 5 is just around the corner, and we're thrilled to invite you to be a part of it. We're on the lookout for compelling, thought-provoking pitches that celebrate the diversity of the queer African experience. Whether you're a storyteller, a journalist, an artist, or simply an everyday hero wit…

About 20 years ago, Marshall Ngwa moved from Cameroon to the US. He followed his instincts and became one of the country’s hottest drag artists, BeBe Zahara Benet. BeBe’s first-ever performance was with Cyndi Lauper and in 2009 he won the first-ever RuPaul’s Drag Race. His extraordinary journey to that point and beyond has been captured in a docume…

In this episode, we’ve collaborated with Logan February and turned their essay into an audio short story. We first heard the Nigerian non-binary poet and songwriter Logan February read this essay during AfroQueer’s online festival in 2020. It's a beautiful, intriguing and very personal piece of writing that explores one of their queer experiences i…

In this episode, we feature a feed drop trade with a podcast we really love, S***hole Country, an audio memoir set in Ghana during the 2017 holiday season. It's produced Radiotopia presents, a podcast feed debuting limited-run, artist-owned series from new and original voices. The narrator Afia, a middle-aged woman living in California, has spent t…

In 2019, a young lesbian singer-songwriter from Uganda was struggling financially after breaking up with her partner of 6 years. With a child to support, Shivanah was desperate to make ends meet. And so when a former backup dancer told her that an agent could get her work performing in a club in Dubai, she jumped at the chance. This is truly a stor…

Over the past few years, African films - documentaries, features, and animations - have started to attract international attention and are being celebrated by audiences abroad. But at home they are causing a stir in a different way - and they are running into trouble with film classification and censorship boards. Many LGBTQ films have been banned.…

2021 has been a really rough year for Ghana’s LGBTQI people. Police raided and shut down a queer community center in Accra; 21 people attending a paralegal workshop in the city of Ho were arrested and locked up for 21 days before the case was dropped; and eight MPs have come up with draft legislation that, if adopted, makes it a crime just to be qu…

In 2008, after moving to the port city of Kisumu in western Kenya, Paula Abuor decided to open up her house to other LGBTQ people. Meeting in bars and parks was just too risky - and, as one of Kenya’s LGBTQ ‘elders’, she really wanted young Kenyans setting out on their queer journeys to have a safe space where they could be themselves, embraced by …

The year is 1884. The Kingdom of Buganda has a new King, Kabaka Mwanga II. He is a teenager and everybody’s talking about him, his sexuality, and the young men in his court. Religions are being introduced to the Kingdom, and the British are keeping a watchful eye. This is a story of murder, colonialism and Christianity, and the last pre-colonial Ki…

In 2016 two women meet and fall in love, online. They live on different continents, and the choices they make will bring them together or force them apart. This is a story about truth and lies, and what happens when everything unravels.This episode features music from Tetu Shani and Jumadi. Click the links below to listen.https://soundcloud.com/tet…

Coming out to a parent can be tough. In this episode AfroQueer shares a slice of queer African fiction, to bring you courage. You'll hear Kevin Mwachiro read 'I am a homosexual, Mum' a short story by the late Kenyan author Binyavanga Wainaina. Listen in as Aida Holly-Nambi speaks with Kevin on the impact Binyavanga had on his life, and what this st…

One night in Marrakech, a woman called Manal crashes her car, and when the police are called to the scene, they do everything but help her. In this episode, we take you to Morocco and introduce you to two Moroccan trans women, one trying to find her community and one who - inexplicably - vilifies it. This is a story about how celebrity, online infl…

In this episode, we tell you a bit about why we do what we do! We are excited to bring you this rebroadcast from an interview with our host, Selly Thiam, on the podcast HowSound. HowSound tells the backstory to great audio storytelling, and in this episode, Rob Rosenthal interviews Selly and does a deep-dive into some of our favorite episodes. We'l…

We are back! In this episode, we investigate how the Ugandan government has been using fear around the pandemic to target the LGBTQ community. We ask, in Sweden, are immigrants and people of color more at risk? We hear from our community in West Africa on how COVID is affecting their lives and their work. And we go to Boston where we speak with one…

“Closets are for clothes.” Yet we say that a queer person who hasn’t come out is in the proverbial closet. In this episode, we share African coming out stories entrusted to us. This is the high we all need as we go on break. Do share your coming out stories with us in the comment section. :)AfroQueer Podcast is produced by None on Record at AQ Stud…

A queer woman named K travels to visit family in Somalia. After a few weeks, she disappears. Her friends back home in Minneapolis feared the worst and set out to find her and bring her home. This is an episode about friendship, acceptance, and hope when all seems lost.AfroQueer Podcast is produced by None on Record at AQ Studios and Edited on Hinde…

It all began with a call for pitches on the AfroQueer social media pages which turned into a full-blown quest to find the filmmaker behind one of the first feature-length LGBTQI films ever made in West Africa. We found the filmmaker, Mohammed Camara and talked about his film, Dakan.This episode was reported by SellyThiam and Maimouna Jallow. Produc…

Ostracized by his family in Uganda for being gay, a lonely Gibson leaves for Kenya after he survives an attempted acid attack. After arriving in Nairobi, he is sent to Kakuma Refugee Camp where he comes up with a bold plan to host the first ever Gay Pride Event at a refugee camp. Here is how it went...AfroQueer Podcast is produced by None on Record…

Tshepho Ricki Kgositau is a well known name in the global LGBTQ+ activism community. What many people don't know is that she started her activism at a young age.In this episode we journey with her through her experience of gender transitioning that led to her finally living fully in her true identity. AfroQueer Podcast is produced by None on Record…

What happens when our own truths are subjected to constant medical tests and public scrutiny? Female athletes singled out for sex testing and the unnecessary testosterone therapy stay defiant and we love it!This episode was reported by Aida Holly-Nambi and Selly Thiam. Produced by Selly Thiam, Aida Holly-Nambi and Maeve Frances. Sound design by Tev…

We’re back! Season 2 of AfroQueer drops on September 26th and we’re excited to bring you great stories from around the world. These stories will make you smile, cry, sigh and give you insight into the lives of our guests. Here’s a sneak peek into what we have in store.Engage with us on-Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/afroqueerpodcast/Twitter: …

On Friday May 24 the High Court of Kenya ruled on repealing laws that criminalize homosexuality in Kenya. In this episode host Selly Thiam investigates where these laws came from and why Kenyan activists and lawyers are fighting harder than ever to get them struck down.This episode was produced and edited by Selly Thiam, Aida Holly-Nambi, Maeve Fra…

Door AfroQueer

Scrolling across Instagram, a shocking photo captures the eye of a young Kenyan lesbian, Rachel. Follow her journey to Johannesburg where she tries to make sense of the phenomenon of people being raped and killed for looking just like her - masculine. Content warning: Sexual assault and gender-based violence.This episode was reported by Rachel Wamo…

Accusing it of “promoting lesbianism”, the Kenyan Film and Classification Board banned the film Rafiki in Kenya for seven months. The director of the film, Wanuri Kahui, sued the government and won the case, allowing her to screen the film in Kenya for seven days only. We went to the very first screening of Rafiki in Nairobi, and bring you this rev…

In this episode, we find out firsthand what the effect of words preached in Kenyan churches and mosques has been on the lives of LGBTQ Kenyans along the coast. How does a religious leader calling for mobs to "flush out the gays" have a change of heart?This episode was reported by Halima Gikandi, produced by Selly Thiam, Aida Holly-Nambi, Maeve Fran…

This is a story about two men who met, fell in love and got married. That should have been the end of it. But instead, their wedding broke the Nigerian internet.This episode was reported by Selly Thiam, produced by Selly Thiam, Aida Holly-Nambi and Maeve Frances. Technical support from Rachel Wamoto who is also AfroQueer's social media manager.…

Grindr is widely thought to be the most popular dating app on the African continent. In this episode we ask, is Grindr doing enough to protect its users in Africa?This episode was reported by Selly Thiam, produced by Selly Thiam, Aida Holly-Nambi, Maeve Frances and Arit Okpo. Technical support from Rachel Wamoto, who is also AfroQueer's social medi…

What is the cost of visibility and when does it become too high? This episode we look at what happened when the police raided a Ugandan Gay Pride event in 2016.This episode was reported by Selly Thiam, produced by Selly Thiam, Aida Holly-Nambi and Maeve Frances. Technical support from Rachel Wamoto, who is also AfroQueer's social media manager. Fie…

In episode one we travel to Johannesburg, South Africa and unpack the messy realities of race, class and geography around Africa's oldest Pride.This episode was reported by Aida Holly-Nambi, produced by Selly Thiam, Aida Holly-Nambi and Maeve Frances. Technical support from Rachel Wamoto, who is also AfroQueer's social media manager.…

Meet our host, Selly Thiam who remembers lesbian activist FannyAnn Eddy.This episode was produced by Selly Thiam, Aida Holly-Nambi and Maeve Frances with help from Rachel Wamoto, who is also AfroQueer's social media manager.Door AfroQueer

AfroQueer is a podcast about queer Africans living, loving, surviving and thriving on the continent and in the diaspora. Listen to our teaser! First episode out July 19th!Door AfroQueer