Nelson C.J

A fly on the wall at this year’s AMVCA for @okayafrica @johnniewalkerafrica

1. Maintain mystery 2. Proudest moment in last slide

Igwe Aka was sleeping on couches last year. Now, fans are hopping out of cars to greet him on the streets of Lagos.⁠ ⁠ The Nigerian-born, Sacramento-raised rapper broke through with “KAPOW.” The story behind it is less about the algorithm and more about a Sacramento childhood of Saturday dance practices with his father, a deep pride in his Igbo roots, and a refusal to spam a good song into the ground. “I’ve always believed that quality content is better than quantity […] I’d rather have a career than a million views in a month,” he tells P&P.⁠ ⁠ Now based between Lagos and Northern California, Aka is at the forefront of a shift in Nigerian music—one where underground sounds are starting to impact the mainstream. Read the full interview at the link in our bio.⁠ _⁠ 📝 by Nelson C.J, @nelsonfromnorman____ ⁠ 📸 (slide 6) by @emmadrew for ‘See You Next Year 3’

Meet our curators of cool. This Friday, Nelson CJ (@nelsonfromnorman____ ), culture writer and founder @athirdspace___ , joins us in the briefing room. Culture Brief: Decoding the Cool is a curated, live session breaking down how culture is created, amplified, and translated into value. Together, we’ll examine real cultural moments and answer the questions: What makes something cool? Who defines it? And how does it scale? Tickets now available via link in bio. Limited seats. #CultureBrief #DecodingTheCool

Excited to moderating a timely conversation about the artist’s role in these times at @ourhomecoming today curated by @athirdspace___ . It features the incredible Papa Omotayo @papaomotayo and @victoradewale_ Entry is free. RSVP via link in bio

The first one’s my favorite.

Had the pleasure of leading and writing the first story for @okayafrica ’s Artist Of The Month featuring the incredible @folapondis We talked about his atypical creative process, his early start and why his music is hit amongst young Nigerians. This was a great story to work on. Link in bio.

“I’m used to driving beats, amapiano kicks. But hearing a violin carry a fújì melody? That’s another angle.” —Asake When Asake (@mrmoney ) takes the stage for Red Bull Symphonic in Brooklyn, NY on Saturday, he will be the first Afrobeats artist to bring that experience to life, reinterpreting his high-energy, street-pop songs through strings, horns, jazz and music sheets. But let’s look at how Afrobeats got here. What cultural and systemic forces drove the success of a sound that intensely encapsulates contemporary African culture? Writer @nelsonfromnorman____ takes us into the history and future of Afrobeats, from Fela Kuti to Asake’s ascention, and how the fluidity of the music allows for it to expand into unexpected spaces. For NYC-based DJ, @djmohogany , “I was able to add tracks by amapiano and Afrobeats artists, because sonically the music is house/dance. The crowd went nuts, but they had no idea they were listening to African music.” 🔗 in bio for the full breakdown on the global impact of Afrobeats. Words by @nelsonfromnorman____ Illustration by @dk1994 Photos by @shamaal

Find here: an ending, a great start, a lovely trip, some great meals, a kind gift, an ending, a favorite place, a plant, an ending, the colorful cover of an unfamiliar vinyl record, books, a tree, a bouquet, a need.

A Third Space is 1! Last September, we launched with a simple vinyl listening experience. We invited a few friends, were loaned vinyl records by the amazing folks at Jazz Hole @jazzholelagos + wonderful drinks from Quacktails @quacktails.ng and asked our guests to bring their own vinyls as well. That experience, filled with the warm and deeply inspiring energy that will continue to define the A3S ethos, was made possible in a space provided by Hfactor Homes, a charming, retro space designed with intention and reflective of our sensibility. From that one experience, A3S has expanded into a range of programming brought to life with 40+ artists and collaborators. We have staged Artist Living Room, exhibitions, readings, film screenings, sound installations, culturally timely conversations and created a space for momentary escape and creative subversion. A3S has and will continue to be a space to rethink how and why people gather using art that is unconventional, unruly, disruptive, alternative, original, and thoroughly imaginative to make that happen. We are grateful to all our space partners Hfactor Homes @hfactorhomes , Polygon @polygon.hq , The Namibian Embassy, The Ark By Anny Robert @thearkbyannyrobert , S.EA Experience @s.ea.experience and the Homecoming Concept Space for being incredible partners and incubators of all our radical ideas. We are even more grateful to our creative partner Amabile Di Rosa Italian Wines @amabiledirosa , whose support has powered many of our programming. We will forever be thankful to our A3S Members, our guests, artists, collaborators, thinkers, friends and well wishers who have watched us grow, evolve, dare, try and have given us space to actualize our visions. It is an honor to have shared space with all of you and we cannot wait to step into the next year with all of you. The future looks bright, and we’re excited to walk into it with you. Love, From everyone at A Third Space.

I have a new short story out today @republicjournal It’s my first in two years and was edited by the incredible @chigozieobiomaauthor who called it “powerful and convincing” This story came from obviously watching too many friends carve out exit plans, but specifically was inspired by my dear friend @nikeagba who loves a good list. When you read the story, it’ll make sense why I mentioned that. Many thanks to Wale Lawal for the incredibly kind note. And to my first readers: @yagazieemezi Naza, Innocent, @demola.f @uxtobiaf and the entire Republic Journal team for giving this irreverent, incorrigible story a home. Link in bio and stories to read.

Long post sorryyyy: The first time I stepped into @s.ea.experience I thought it had a wonderful, indescribable charm. Experimental, unrelenting in its insistence on cultivated taste and delightfully particular. It is fitting then that @athirdspace___ is hosting its first A3S Film Club curated by the brilliant @nollyw00davantgarde in this space. For our first ever gathering, we will be screening the 1999 romantic comedy “The Secret Laughter of Women” starring the legendary Joke Silva, alongside Nia Long and Colin Firth. This is a classic I had so many questions about while watching. How did the role come about? What was the filming process like? What did it mean to translate into a diasporic context? Many of these questions will be answered by Ms. Silva who will join us for a post-screening conversation moderated by the wonderful Love Khian. I’ll forever be grateful to @amabiledirosa for seeing doors when there were only walls. Because seating is limited we have to limit this to A3S Members but do get a membership (link in bio!), it grants you access to our other programming as well and you can invite two guests each time . It would be wonderful to share space with you and the support means we can keep curating experiences like this. I am beyond ecstatic about this one. What a life. What an honor to have space to curate and bring to life that which seemed impossible as an idea. That said, see you on Sunday? Link in bio.