They Lied About Africa

Aminata “Ami” Mbaye had a path that looked familiar to many young people in the diaspora: build a life in the United States, find a stable career, and keep moving forward. But afte…

At just 20 years old, Imran Bakaluba is building the kind of company many Africans in the diaspora have been waiting for. Growing up in the UK before moving to Uganda, Imran found…

European football is filled with some of the best players in the world—but have you ever stopped to ask why so many of them have African roots, or why Europe's biggest clubs invest…

What if I told you that African countries once boycotted the FIFA World Cup—and that this protest is part of the reason African teams are able to qualify for and compete in the tou…

Sub-Saharan Africa loses $95 billion every single year because women are systematically excluded from owning land, accessing financing, and being compensated for their labor. In t…

Before colonialism, Yoruba women controlled entire regional economies. Ashanti Queen Mothers had veto power over who became king. Igbo women fought a war against the British in 192…

One plot of land. Five different buyers. Five families who each believed it was theirs. This is not a horror story — this is what is actively happening to diaspora investors trying…

In this episode, I sit down with Senegalese stylist and textile exploration artist Marième Mboup to unpack a question that feels simple, but isn’t: is modesty really a choice? Rais…

Apartheid is often taught as a uniquely South African system, but the ideas that shaped it didn’t appear out of nowhere. In this episode of They Lied About Africa, we explore how a…

The aid industry didn't just respond to poverty in Africa. It built a system around it. In this episode, we break down how foreign aid became an industry, how that industry shaped…

African countries are called “independent” — but independence isn’t just political.In this episode, we break down who really controls African money, why currency matters for develo…

Many people assume Islam is an Arab religion, that Africa encountered it late, borrowed it, or reshaped it incorrectly. In this episode of They Lied About Africa, we challenge that…

In this episode, we sit down with the founders of Kayrafet, a young African-owned jewellery brand handmade in Dakar and built with intention. We talk about their journey into entre…

Thomas Sankara became president of Burkina Faso at 33 and transformed his country in just four years — before being assassinated and erased from history. This episode unpacks why o…

In this episode of They Lied About Africa, I sit down with Isha, the visionary behind Afrique Noire Magazine, to unpack what it really means to build an intentional space for Afric…

Sudan is facing one of the worst humanitarian crises of our time, and most of the world still isn’t paying attention. In this episode, I sit down with DarAid — a grassroots initiat…

This episode breaks down the uncomfortable truth behind why so many of us grew up believing Africa was poor, struggling, or in need of saving. These ideas didn’t come from nowhere—…

Eighty years ago, hundreds of African soldiers who fought for France in World War II were massacred at Camp Thiaroye in Senegal — unarmed, unpaid, and betrayed by the very country…

Cameroon has just re-elected the world’s oldest president, Paul Biya — at 92 years old and over four decades in power. In this episode, I break down how he’s managed to stay in con…

If what’s happening in Sudan wasn’t happening in Africa, would the world care? This episode breaks down Sudan’s ongoing civil war between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, the…