Emmanuel Esomnofu, Staff Writer at Open Country Mag

Emmanuel Esomnofu

Staff Writer

Emmanuel Esomnofu is a staff writer at Open Country Mag. He is a culture journalist and has written extensively on Nigerian music and on several moving parts of popular culture. His writing appears online in Native Mag, Okay Africa, Kalahari Review, Praxis Magazine, and elsewhere. He was published in print in The Muse, the oldest student journal in West Africa. In December 2020, he worked on “Fuji: A Opera” as a copywriter, creating informative and exciting stories from Fuji’s rich history.

All Works

April 17, 2023

A Muslim Highlife Pioneer, and ‘70s Star, Returns for Legacy

Alhaji Waziri Oshomah fused Highlife, local folk styles, and Western pop into songs of positivity in Auchi, Nigeria. When New York label Luaka Bop released The Muslim Highlife of Alhaji Waziri Oshomah in its World Spirituality Classics series last year, we spoke to musician and label about his artistry.

Emmanuel Esomnofu

February 6, 2023

A Poet’s Walk of Pain Ends, Finally, in Acclaim

Before his manuscript won the 2022 Sillerman Prize, Tares Oburumu faced seemingly interminable hardship in his personal life. “The act of survival, for me, is a lot more inspirational than anything,” he said, “trying to put yourself in a place where there’s no place for you.”

Emmanuel Esomnofu

December 9, 2022

Agoodjie: Studiocanal Orders 8-Part Drama Series on Dahomey’s All-Female Army

Created by Didier Lacoste and Joy Fleury, with screenplay by Ukamaka Olisakwe, Adachioma Ezeano, and Jude Idada, it will focus on the two Franco-Dahomean Wars of 1890-94. The story, said Olisakwe, looks at “how this impacted lives and the Kingdom’s long rivalry with its neighbors.”

Emmanuel Esomnofu

November 20, 2022

Prophetess, Reviewed: A Modernist Portrayal of Faith

Toyin Abraham is a vulnerable seer in Niyi Akinmolayan’s detailed depiction of spirituality and sports betting.

Emmanuel Esomnofu

October 31, 2022

Nollywood Has a Storytelling Problem. Adapting These 20 Novels Can Help.

Nigerian literature has the global acclaim that Nigerian cinema need only draw from. But will filmmakers look?

Emmanuel Esomnofu

October 15, 2022

Romeo Oriogun Is the First Openly Queer Writer to Win the Nigeria Prize for Literature

The bisexual poet’s historic victory, for his second collection Nomad, is also the first time that a writer of the younger generation has won Africa’s richest prize, worth $100,000.

Emmanuel Esomnofu

September 10, 2022

Arinze Ifeakandu Leads Shortlist for $50,000 Kirkus Prize

The debut Nigerian author’s short story collection, God’s Children Are Little Broken Things, has seen him compared to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Zadie Smith and praised by Damon Galgut.

Emmanuel Esomnofu

August 13, 2022

In New Memoir, Emmanuel Iduma Traces His Family History Through the Biafran War

I Am Still with You: A Reckoning on Silence, Inheritance & History, set for 2023, is billed as “the story of countless families across the country who will never have answers for their loved ones.” Iduma calls it “the book I’ve been preparing to write for most of my life.”

Emmanuel Esomnofu

July 20, 2022

In Affectionate Open Letter, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Endorses Peter Obi for President of Nigeria

The influential culture icon had social media spinning with her birthday note to the Labour Party candidate, already the hot favourite for young Nigerians.

Emmanuel Esomnofu

July 11, 2022

The $100,000 NLNG Prize Longlist a Mix of Young and Veteran Nigerian Poets

The 11 nominees for Africa’s richest literary award, led by rising star Romeo Oriogun, include Iquo DianaAbasi and Su’eddie Vershima Agema—a departure from its tradition of ignoring newer voices.

Emmanuel Esomnofu

April 17, 2023

A Muslim Highlife Pioneer, and ‘70s Star, Returns for Legacy

Alhaji Waziri Oshomah fused Highlife, local folk styles, and Western pop into songs of positivity in Auchi, Nigeria. When New York label Luaka Bop released The Muslim Highlife of Alhaji Waziri Oshomah in its World Spirituality Classics series last year, we spoke to musician and label about his artistry.

Emmanuel Esomnofu

February 6, 2023

A Poet’s Walk of Pain Ends, Finally, in Acclaim

Before his manuscript won the 2022 Sillerman Prize, Tares Oburumu faced seemingly interminable hardship in his personal life. “The act of survival, for me, is a lot more inspirational than anything,” he said, “trying to put yourself in a place where there’s no place for you.”

Emmanuel Esomnofu

December 9, 2022

Agoodjie: Studiocanal Orders 8-Part Drama Series on Dahomey’s All-Female Army

Created by Didier Lacoste and Joy Fleury, with screenplay by Ukamaka Olisakwe, Adachioma Ezeano, and Jude Idada, it will focus on the two Franco-Dahomean Wars of 1890-94. The story, said Olisakwe, looks at “how this impacted lives and the Kingdom’s long rivalry with its neighbors.”

Emmanuel Esomnofu

November 20, 2022

Prophetess, Reviewed: A Modernist Portrayal of Faith

Toyin Abraham is a vulnerable seer in Niyi Akinmolayan’s detailed depiction of spirituality and sports betting.

Emmanuel Esomnofu

October 31, 2022

Nollywood Has a Storytelling Problem. Adapting These 20 Novels Can Help.

Nigerian literature has the global acclaim that Nigerian cinema need only draw from. But will filmmakers look?

Emmanuel Esomnofu

October 15, 2022

Romeo Oriogun Is the First Openly Queer Writer to Win the Nigeria Prize for Literature

The bisexual poet’s historic victory, for his second collection Nomad, is also the first time that a writer of the younger generation has won Africa’s richest prize, worth $100,000.

Emmanuel Esomnofu

September 10, 2022

Arinze Ifeakandu Leads Shortlist for $50,000 Kirkus Prize

The debut Nigerian author’s short story collection, God’s Children Are Little Broken Things, has seen him compared to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Zadie Smith and praised by Damon Galgut.

Emmanuel Esomnofu

August 13, 2022

In New Memoir, Emmanuel Iduma Traces His Family History Through the Biafran War

I Am Still with You: A Reckoning on Silence, Inheritance & History, set for 2023, is billed as “the story of countless families across the country who will never have answers for their loved ones.” Iduma calls it “the book I’ve been preparing to write for most of my life.”

Emmanuel Esomnofu