'An African City' Migrates from Ghana to Worldwide

BY SUEDE

You don’t have to be a rap genius to know that when Jay Z said, “only time we don’t speak is during Sex and the City,” it illustrated the popularity of the HBO hit amongst African Americans. Fast-forward to present day: Accra, Ghana, where An African City is gaining momentum. EBONY.com checked in with the show’s creator and executive producer Nicole Amarteifio on the release of An African City‘s wildly popular second season and the importance of Sex and the City to its conception.

EBONY: An African City is being called the first African web series and the Sex and the City of Ghana. How exactly is An African City specifically inspired by Sex and the City, and is it truy the first African web series?

Nicole Amarteifio: I was sitting in Accra watching reruns of Sex and the City when I thought to myself: this is one way to fight the single story of Africa. I know the two may appear very random as a problem/solution algorithm, but it worked!

EBONY: Nigeria’s EbonyLife TV purchased the rights to Desperate Housewives and created an “African version,” but how is your situation different?

NA: It’s simply what inspired me. But at the end of the day, An African City has to be its own voice. At the same time, the art itself is, what would the original Sex and the City be if set in Accra and brought to life by women of Ghanaian/Nigerian descent? That’s the art. And I always go back to that. That’s my drawing board, that’s my compass. And when I am true to that, my art that I set forth to create is being realized. Anything else would not be my art. Anything else would be another show.

EBONY: Your market is very niche. You are on the web and transitioning into television. What has been the feedback in the market? Have women in Ghana been open and receptive to the show that highlights a niche, or have you received backlash for only highlighting a certain type of woman?

NA: Sitting in a restaurant in Accra is now a whole other experience. I am not sure if I will be seated somewhere and then be met with a screech. “[screams] We love An African City! We love what you have done.” And what has been done is a different representation. Women not typically represented in our media are now… visible. On global screens and with natural hair. Natural hair does not have to be reserved for women only playing a period piece on slavery.