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In the midst of the ruinous Thatcher era, Manchester’s Hulme Crescents estate became a haven for squatters, anarchists and acid house ravers, who converged in the hedonistic flat-turned-studio and after-hours club, The Kitchen. Kemi Alemoru speaks to former residents, DJs and familiar guests from the Madchester scene about the lasting impact this space had on the city’s cultural landscape

Soaring ascents, the kind that can take an artist from obscurity to stardom in what seems to be the blink of an eye, don’t occur often, in dance music or elsewhere – those who are lucky enough to have that experience often disappear just as quickly. But there’s little chance of a quick fade for South Africa’s Palesa Desiree Shilabje, the DJ and producer known to the world as DESIREE, who in just a few short years has proved to be one of the international festival circuit’s most exciting new stars. Here, Bruce Tantum hears her story, and about how her evolution through music has been as organic as they come

It’s an exciting time to be both a new and old fan of African music, but how does it feel for African artists raised and working in the diaspora? As producers and consumers, these artists have a unique vantage point on this cultural shift. Jessica Kariisa speaks to Nazar, Hagan, Juba and Chief Boima and asks: what does music from “back home” mean today?

TYGAPAW makes music with a message of liberation, and of working toward a world where everyone is free to be true to themselves. It also happens to be music that slams. Bruce Tantum meets the Brooklyn-based artist to learn about their long journey to get to where they are now, and the road ahead