MULTIPLE AWARD WINNER, AUTHOR,, CORPORATE MC, MENTOR, PROMOTER & AMBASSADOR FOR PEACE -UNIVERSAL PEACE FEDERATION. WE PROMOTE THE SUCCESS STORIES OF AFRICANS & CARIBBEANS AROUND THE WORLD. CONTACT US NOW ON +447882809005
UK are you ready for TMMP AWARDS?? A Christian collaborative award ceremony where artists, musicians and community heroes are recognised and celebrated!! Gospel musical talent in various genres, such as RnB, Electro, Reggae and Hiphop, is discovered and put on a platform to showcase the diversity in Gospel Music.
This awards event will take place in the UK City of Culture Bradford and this is the first of a kind. We are inviting all churches and Gospel musicians across the nation to be a part of this awesome ceremony! This is an event not to be missed. Join the event organisers tomorrow for more information . Thank you
There will be so much to do and see around the WOW Festival site at Clifton Park. From excellent speakers, workshops, and art performances to live music, poetry and joyful dance sessions! All topped off with a beautiful marketplace area filled with female makers and organisations.
Tickets for the Main Stage available here:
Pay as You Can
with a suggested amount of £7.50 DAY | £12.50 WEEKEND
THE BRADFORD LITERATURE FESTIVAL 2022 came to an end on Sunday the 3rd of July.
The annual festival is undoubtedly one of the biggest literature festivals in the UK attracting a wide range of people from different parts of the country each year.
I graduated from the University of Lagos in Nigeria nearly 30 years ago and still have great memories of “The Farmished Road” by Ben Okri as one of my favourite literature books of all times.
“The Farmished Road ” also won The Booker prize for fiction in 1991.
The moment I got to learn that the Multi -award winning Nigerian poet and novelist (Mr Ben Okri ) would be delivering an inaugural FREE WORLD LECTURE aimed at celebrating the political power of words to uphold free speech at The Alhambra Theatre in Central Bradford, my mind raced back to my early years of discovering and embracing different forms and heights of poetry and a writer who painted profound pictures in the minds of many of my friends at the time.
Mr Ben Okri delivered an amazing lecture on the last day of THE BRADFORD LITERATURE FESTIVAL 2022
He spoke about the importance of poetry in the world of crisis and a range of themes affecting humanity.
He spoke about the importance of freedom and how freedom has a strong connection with poetry and writers around the world.
It was also a pleasure to buy one of his books “In Arcadia ” and to share a few thoughts with an amazing man who continues to create new legacies in the literary world.
Sunday the 3rd of July 2022 will go down in history not only for meeting a great writer and cultural activist , but a day where I feel even more encouraged to write and to paint life with the stories from my heart
ABOUT BEN OKRI
Ben Okri is a poet, novelist, short story writer, essayist, aphorist, playwright, and writer of film-scripts. His writing challenges perceptions of reality. He is also a cultural activist.
He was born in Nigeria and came to England as a child. He went to school in London and returned to Nigeria with his parents on the eve of the Nigerian Civil War. The war made a defining impact on his life. He finished his secondary school education and wanted to study physics and become a scientist. But he was deemed too young then for university and that summer he read his way through his father’s library and found his true vocation. He began writing at a very early age. He began with poetry and then published articles and essays about the living conditions of the poor in the slums of Lagos. Then he wrote short stories and eventually what was to become his first novel, ‘Flowers and Shadows.’
In 1978, Ben Okri returned to London. He studied comparative Literature at Essex University. Two years later he published his first novel; and in 1982 came his second novel, ‘The Landscapes Within.’ He went through a brief period of homelessness. In 1986 came ‘Incidents at the Shrine’, a collection of stories that won him prizes and enhanced his reputation. In 1988 a second collection, ‘Stars of the new Curfew,’ cemented his reputation as a powerful new voice. But it was in 1991, with the publication of ‘The Famished Road’ that he attained international stature.
The Famished Road won the Booker Prize that year. It was the first Booker Prize winner to go straight to number one in the paperback bestseller lists. The novel has been highly influential in the decades since its release. When President Clinton went to Africa for the first time, he quoted extensively from The Famished Road. The novel was also the inspiration behind ‘Street Spirit’ by Radiohead. Recently it was one of the novels cited in an episode of American Dad. It has inspired paintings, music, classical music, plays, films, and dances. It has now been re-issued as a Vintage Classic.
‘The Famished Road’ is the first book in The Famished Road Trilogy, which included ‘Songs of Enchantment’ and ‘Infinite Riches.’ Since then there have been many novels, books of poems, collections of essays.
He is also widely known as a poet. He thinks of himself as primarily a poet, and he maintains that his artistic response to life expresses itself most naturally through poetry. His first book of poems, ‘An African Elegy,’ contains some of his best known poems, including the title poem, which is a set text in schools, and ‘ To an English friend in Africa.’ His epic poem, ‘Mental Fight,’ has been widely read and embraced. Quotations from it are a regular on the internet. ‘ Wild,’ published in 2012, is perhaps his most diverse and life-affirming volume of poems. His most recent collection of poems, ‘A Fire in my Head,’ to be published in January 2021, contains some of his most famous and highly charged political poems. One of the poems, ‘ Grenfell Tower, June 2017,’ was listened to over 6 million times on the Channel Four Facebook page.
In 2009, he invented a new form called the Stoku, which is a cross between a short story and a haiku. This was first displayed in his book ‘ Tales of Freedom’, now re-titled ‘ The Comic Destiny,’ which featured thirteen stokus. Quotations from his work are popular and have appeared in television series like Criminal Minds.
His essays have also been widely read and influential. ‘ A Way of being Free,’ published in 1997, contains some of his best-loved meditations on the power and magic of storytelling. And ‘ A Time for new Dreams,’ published in 2011, was the titular mascot of Grace Wells Bonner’s exhibition at the Serpentine in 2018. It was also a personal book recommendation by the great artist David Hammons in a New Yorker profile of him in 2019.
Ben Okri has written film scripts and plays. He wrote the text to Peter Kruger’s film ‘N: The Madness of Reason.’ The film won the 2015 Ensor Award for Best Film. He is co-writing, with Peter Kruger, the film script adaptation of his novel, ‘The Age of Magic’. He has also written a play called The Outsider, an adaptation of Camus’s famous novel, which was performed to full houses at The Coronet in September 2018. The play won the 2018 Offies Award for Best Theatre Production. In 2020, his play, ‘Madame Sosostris,’ was performed again to full houses at the Pullof Threatres in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Ben Okri has been a Fellow Commoner in Creative Arts at Trinity College, Cambridge. He was also Visiting Professor of Literature at Leicester University. He is an honorary Fellow at Mansfield College, Oxford.
In 2019 his novel, ‘Astonishing the Gods,’ was selected as one of the BBC’s ‘100 novels that shaped our world.
Christiana Chizaramekpeleamaka Igbokwe is a Nigerian American Vocalist that hails from Houston Texas. She is born to Mr. Chinwuba Kaka Igbokwe and Barr. Mrs. Chioma Igbokwe, She is also the Granddaughter of the Musical Icon and Legend Christy Essien Igbokwe the Lady of Songs. Christiana only 9 years of age started he singing at the age of 4 where Bellanaija (A popular Entertainment Blog) carried her exploits, view here. At the age of 7 she recorded her first cover of “You’re Welcome” from Diseny’s Moana in remembrance of her late Grandma. Christiana not only shares the same name as the legend but also another strong trait which is her love for music. Subsequently she has done other covers in 2020 including “Let it Go” from Disney’s Frozen, and just Recently in 2021 Asa’s “JAILER”.
In the past year (2020), Christiana has released two Eps a couple of covers including a cover of Fireboy DML’s Peru, cover of Major’s Why I love you and a cover of Anne-Marie and James
Arthur’s Rewrite the stars and performed in a number of concerts. A proud student at the prestigious Eagles Music School Academy Abuja, Christiana is one of their top students surpassing her peers in the vocal and piano classes. Her captivating, high-energy vocals transports audiences into a bottomless barrel of musical ear candy, creativity, and traditional music-making. In 2021/2022 Christiana performed at a couple of shows including her Mash-UP EP Concert at SunnyVale Estate Abuja, Santa in A Box Outreach, Mr Odey’s Uncommonly Funny Show, the SunnyVale Children’s Funfair, Eagles Academy Concert and SunnyVale New Year’s day Fireworks night. Below is a list of official musical works from Christiana Igbokwe
The Mash-Up EP – August 29 th , 2021
Starlight EP – December 1 st , 2021 THE MASH-EP Years After we lost the lady of songs, 9-year-old NIGERIAN AMERICAN Christiana Igbokwe (Grand Daughter of the Late Chief Dr. Mrs. Christy Essien Igbokwe mfr.) drops her first EP, consisting of four Covers and two Original Tracks. Christiana’s first body of work, The Mash-Up EP is a feel-good project, exploring Christiana’s taste for a wide range of genres from around the world. This project would introduce you to Christiana’s versatility in delivering songs and seeing her move on in several directions. A first listen reveals the varying styles pointing less to Christiana’s future and more to her state of mind, while making this EP and understanding her wide range of musical influences on her style. We hope this is the beginning of good things to come from Christiana. Welcome to The Mash-Up EP. The Mash-Up EP consists of 6 tracks and is just above 15mins long. The tracks include 4 covers and two original songs. The track List is as follows:
HOLIDAY
ALL THE ABOVE X LIVE MY LIFE COVER
JUSTICE COVER (Justin Bieber’s Album Cover)
SOUND SULTAN TRIBUTE
JAILER X SOMETHING JUST LIKE THIS COVER
SHUT EM DOWN ft Bridge, Zamir & Kaka The Mash-Up EP is available for streaming on the platform Audiomack via the handle @christianaigbokwe. You can also follow Christiana on Instagram @christianaigbokwe. https://audiomack.com/christiana-igbokwe/album/the-mash-up-ep All Songs Mixed and Mastered by Apex Entertainment Track 1 (Written by Christiana Igbokwe & Kaka Igbokwe, Produced by Kaka Igbokwe, Performed by Christiana Igbokwe)
Track 2 (All the Above written by Maino & TPain, Live Your Life written by Dan Balan, Clifford Harris, Makeba Riddick and Justin Smith, Produced by Just Blaze, Cover Performed by Christiana Igbokwe) Track 3 (Somebody, Ghost & Hold On written by Justin Bieber, Cover Produced by Kaka, Cover Performed by Christiana) Track 4 (Area & Mathematics written by Olanrewaju Abdul-Ganiu Fasasi, Cover Produced by Mostickx, Cover Performed by Christiana Igbokwe) Track 5 (Jailer written Asa, Something Just like this written by Chainsmokers & Coldplay, Cover Produced by Kaka, Cover Performed by Christiana Igbokwe) Track 6 (Song written by Bridge, Zamir, ESOJay & Kaka Igbokwe. Performed by Christiana Igbokwe, Bridge, Zamir & Kaka)
STARLIGHT EP
Christiana Igbokwe releases a new EP, titled STARLIGHT. Starlight Ep is the second body of music work by Young Nigerian American Songstress Christiana Igbokwe. STARLIGHT is inspired by Christiana’s childhood and the things she loves and believes in, from Santa to fairies to Prayers to kindness and Jesus. With 5 songs on the Ep and one interlude, Christiana let’s her light shine through her music. Starlight is a beautiful little girl many people would love to meet. She is someone so perfect, and out of this world. #StarlightEP #ChristianaIgbokwe. You can follow her on he social media platforms Instagram: @ChristianaIgbokwe Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChristyEssientheLegend TikTok: @ChristianaIgbokwe Twitter: @christyigbokwe
My names are Taiwo Obude (djbudetee) a Nigerian living in the Netherlands, married with three kids. I am a deejay, an Actor, Event promoter, blogger and Radio presenter.
I am an international award winning deejay recognised both at home and in the Diaspora.
I have acted movies produced here in the Netherlands like Under-pressure, Dapo Jnr. With my colleagues we formed Double ‘A’Entertainemt and went into music promotion, we have brought artists likeTony one Week, Ogie super star, Dr Sunshine and Dr Collins Okë , a veteran Bini artist from Edo State with his band, to play live concerts all over Europe. In 2000, I featured in another movie, produced and directed by late kenendy Oviahon. In 2001, I featured in another movie called “Sins of Seduction, produced by Rita Azenabor and Directed by Lancelot Oduwa Imasuen, among many other prodfuctions
I have played as a dj on big screens across Europe
By God’s grace I own and run a prominent radio station called Budetee Afro Hour dedicated to promoting Afro beats music in Europe and beyond. I am also the brain behind the popular blog Tafia world- bringing current news gists to global Nigerian audience.
Anything pertaining to music, enetertainment in general and both culutral and conventional, I am avalaible at the service of the Embassy and Nigerians in general.
Thank you for the attention and opportunity to serve my country, Nigeria.
Zerian Karim studies the BPTC LLM at BPP University in Leeds. She studied Law and Business studies at the University of Bradford and the GDL at BPP University. She works as a Child and Adult workforce interpreter within the Legal Sector.
Why do members from ethnic minorities, instead of following their dreams of becoming a barrister, settle for less? The issue of diversity is an important challenge facing the Bar. Those from ethnic minorities often believe there are limited opportunities for them at the Bar; as a result they deprive themselves of following their dreams. I want to initiate a change in thinking and help inspire others to follow their dream of becoming a barrister.
My own story started in 2003 with my family’s move from war-torn Iraqi Kurdistan (Southern Kurdistan) to Sweden. Cultural and social differences became immediately apparent, at times even diametrically opposed. This was especially so in respect to the perceived role of women in society. I observed what I perceived to be injustices being suffered by Kurdish women in my own community, such as gender inequality and disenfranchisement. I began to ask myself, what could I do? However, as a Kurdish woman I felt powerless to be able to make a difference. This was made very apparent when visiting family in Kurdistan. I suddenly realised that boundaries were being set for my sisters and me. As young women we were not given the same freedoms as young men our age. When questioned we were told that such boundaries were in place because women are perceived as being weak and unable to think clearly. Instead of being despondent, I became motivated to show that I, as a woman, was able to achieve my goals and prove them wrong.
In 2012, I moved to England following my marriage to my Kurdish husband. My intention was to continue my education. I had always had a passion for the field of law and was interested in being able to represent the most vulnerable and disenfranchised in society. However, even here in England I was confronted by the taught cultural norms of the Kurdish community that made it clear that such aspirations of university and studying law would be beyond my capabilities as a married woman. Cultural norms dictated that family took priority over career aspirations and especially when we talk of women. I often heard people say that there was little point in me pursuing my dream career, since I would end up being a housewife in the end anyway. Such gender inequality within my adopted British Kurdish community surprised and saddened me. Such barriers motivated me to strengthen my resolve to achieve my goal of studying law. It was important to keep reminding myself of the power within me, of the need to break stereotypes. To prove that people like me, a Kurdish woman from an ethnic minority in the UK, could dream bigger and achieve anything you set your mind to.
I also saw it as my responsibility to help break the often hidden cultural and social barriers prevalent within the British Kurdish community and the wider British culture around the perceived position of women. This belief has strengthened my passion to act as an advocate for the vulnerable within society and what better way than becoming a barrister.
In order to achieve my dream, I studied Law with business at Bradford University. In addition, I sought work as an interpreter within the legal sector. This experience exposed me to a variety of cases in and outside court. I then gained more work experience at chambers and firms, including mini pupillages, in order to gain a deeper insight into the profession. These experiences made me realise that my areas of interest are immigration, family and criminal law. I also participated in pro- bono work at university over the past two years. I am currently studying the LLM full-time and hope to be Called to the Bar in November 2020.
A career at the Bar, I have learned, is not necessarily one without risks, but these risks motivate me to succeed. I have shown through my own journey of learning that dreams are possible to achieve. Determination to succeed has been my driver. Cultural background and life’s experiences should be viewed as a positive. I hope that other women, including those from ethnic minorities, will be inspired to pursue a career at the Bar.
The City of Bradford continues to celebrate the launch of its latest online television B4B TV with two new amazing presenters who are great change makers in the City of Bradford .
Jerry Crawford and Esther Osakwe are the latest role models to join the B4b Television crew.
B4B Television is not only aimed at promoting the amazing stories of Bradfordians to the rest of the world, it is also aimed at promoting local news, a wide range of stories from different sectors and so much more.
Jerry Crawford is a Community Worker/Activist, Event Organiser , Audio Engineer , Community Stars Winner, Change maker & Covid 19 Community Champion.
He helped set up Bradford’s 1st community recording studio running music projects for the social disadvantaged.
Over the years he has been involved in many community projects and worked in partnership with numerous organisations.
In 2020 he helped to organise peaceful protest for George Floyd.
Collective Impact also helps individuals, families or whole communities to bring about social change and improve the quality of life in our local area. They act as the link between communities and a range of other local authority and voluntary sector providers, such as the police, social workers and teachers.
Jerry Crawford AKA Red Dred who has been very instrumental in many music/media based projects and events. He has over thirty years of experience of Djing and organising events.
Over the decades Jerry has provided entertainment at many functions weddings ,raves, house parties christening, birthdays, community events,festivals and carnivals
Jerry is also a radio presenter which he has been doing for over 25 years.
Jerry Crawford is one of the first pioneers to introduce house music to Bradford.
Jerry worked at Livestock Records Bradford’s 1st dance music record shop. He set up Bradford’s first acid house rave all nighter. In early 90s Jerry set up Reuben Sounds
Bradford’s 1st community recording studio at Bradford Community Arts where he started running music production and dj mixing courses. Over the decades he has worked with many organisations such as
Mapa
Xplosion
Bradford Council
The Youth Services
Bradford Festival
Bradford Trident
The Princes Trust
SportsDev
Raise The Roof
BCB Radio
Windrush Generations
and many more schools, community groups and charity organisations.
He is now working with Collective Impact a community organisation based at Mapa.
ESTHER OSAKWE
Osakwe Nonyelum Esther, popularly known as ONE, is a 35-year-old mother of three who wants to make a difference in Bradford and beyond.
Originally from Nigeria, Esther lived in Colchester and Milton Keynes before making Bradford her home 6 years ago.
Her passions include education, empowerment, music, children, food and faith.
She is a creative artist with a special talent for all things rest and relaxation and currently undergoing a master programme in dance movement psychotherapy at the University of Derby.
Esther volunteers in several local and international organisations supporting change and improving quality of life globally. She’s also the founder and director at Life Improvement Consults C.I.C.
Chief amongst her achievements and recognitions is her title as the Miss commonwealth for Africa 2021/22.
She hopes to leave her world better than she met it.–
Monday the 27th of June 2022 was another historic day in The City of Bradford as BRADFORD 4 BETTER organisation was shortlisted as a finalist for THE NATIONAL DIVERSITY AWARDS in the category of COMMUNITY ORGANISATION – MULTI STRAND
The grand final award ceremony is due to take place in Liverpool in September .
This comes as very good to news to the people of Bradford as members of The Bradford 4 Better organisation have been working round the clock to make a profound difference to the lives of the people of Bradford.
Only last month , Bradford was named UK CITY OF CULTURE 2025 . The great news was revealed on the evening of May the 31st 2022.
Thursday the 9th of June 2022 was another historic day in this great city as Bradford 4 Better Organization launched its new product -B4B Television.
Regular Hosts for B4B Television were in attendance at the launch .
They included Dr Sohail Ahmed, The Chairman for Bradford 4 Better Organisation and a passionate community champion who continues to make a profound difference to the lives of many people in different regions.
Also in attendance was Mr Atif Hussain , an amazing film maker, actor and writer. Mr Hussain will be providing coverage on content relating to film, so watch this space for his show.
The soft spoken Mr Shahid Islam was also in attendance as a regular host. Shahid is a Senior Research Fellow at the Bradford Institute for Health Research and Vice Chair of Bradford for Better. In 2015 Shahid won the Community Star award for his contribution to the Voluntary and Community Sector and has been heavily involved in energising communities to increase social capital and reduce health inequalities. In 2020 Shahid won the Most Outstanding Academic Paper awarded by International Journal of Human Rights in Healthcare. More recently (2021) Shahid was awarded the The Chief Scientific Officer’s Excellence in Healthcare and Science Innovation Award.
Bradford based Tony Tokunbo Fernandez – Published Writer, International Blogger and Online Broadcaster was the Compere Host for the evening.
We wish BRADFORD 4 BETTER the very best at THE NATIONAL DIVERSITY AWARDS FINALS 2022 DUE TO TAKE PLACEIN SEPTEMBER . THE GRAND EVENT WILL BE IN LIVERPOOL
INFORMATION ABOUT BRADFORD 4 BETTER CAN BE FOUND BELOW
BRADFORD 4 BETTER
Bradford 4 Better was formed in Spring 2019, initially as a pressure group to highlight the many concerns of the residents of Bradford and inspire positive change. The group has rapidly evolved into a citizen led community action movement to inform, inspire and empower the residents of Bradford to make positive changes for the betterment of Bradford and its communities.
On 17th of September 2020 Bradford 4 Better was formally incorporated at Companies House as a Community Interest Company called Bradford 4 Better CIC.
We are a group of ordinary citizens of Bradford, Bradfordians, working together to make Bradford cleaner, safer and better for everyone. We are a grassroots movements, completely volunteer led, united and driven by the passion to make our city better.
Would you believe that only last year I published My third published book “MY LITTLE BOOK OF CHRISTIAN POEMS” – An inspirational book of poetry for people of all faiths around the world.
And yet, ten months later, many readers from around the world are still enjoying the book.
CLICK ON THE LINK HERE, to watch the two minute video of some of the readers who decided to place a copy on their book list. – DO NOT FORGET TO SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weYRMMROJC0
YOU CAN ORDER YOUR COPY VIA PAYPAL TODAY FOR 5 POUNDS A COPY – afripoet@hotmail.com
Tickets for the Main Stage available here:
TONY TOKUNBO ETEKA FERNANDEZ 