Africa No Filter has a guide on how to talk about Africa. Though it is targeted towards non-profit and development organizations (presumably from outside of Africa), it is a great resource for all storytellers who, like us, wish to tell “authentic African stories”. And believe me, there are plenty of us who make this claim. But what exactly is an authentic African story anyway?

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In the wake of Black Panther and Black is King, phrases like ‘African pride’ and ‘authentic African stories’ seem to pop up in almost every article one reads about the continent. Witnessing this shift first-hand is like watching a child take their first steps. The pendulum is definitely swinging to the other side, but sometimes pendulums can swing too far. Here’s what I mean.

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The two American productions I mentioned were hailed as pioneering a new kind of storytelling for Africa, one that highlights innovation, beauty, creativity and pride. When the hype died down, however, some African voices criticized the projects, saying they weren’t truly authentic, but rather Western fantasies come to life. Instead of seeing them as ushering in a new era of “authentic African stories”, these people argued that the productions were merely feel-good projects. In the case of Black is King, one critic was annoyed by the heavy use of animal print and tribal body paint, noting that these were the images the West wanted to see, making the production for them, not us.

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That touches on the heart of the matter. A story’s authenticity has to be measured not by the number of cultural references injected into it, but by the impact it has on the people it depicts. Therefore, what makes a story authentically African is not the accents, language or even costume design. These are merely devices that creatives can employ to aid in the portrayal of their narrative. They are enhancers, the spice to the relish, not the relish itself. So when does the story become “authentically African”?

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In my opinion, it is when the story impacts the African audience positively. Now, this doesn’t mean all stories must leave us feeling good all the time, or that the story itself should have a positive arc or even factual (did someone say African comic books?). A story becomes authentically African when the majority of its African audience can somehow relate to it in a unique way. I am reminded of Denzel Washington’s answer to the question on the significance of the director’s race for the movie Fences. He mentioned that it was a cultural issue, not a racial issue. 

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Authentic African stories must aim to accurately highlight the culture of the people whose story they are portraying. Oftentimes, this means showing resilience, problem-solving skills, agency and community (qualities that can be found in pretty much all African cultures). Other times, it might mean showing the shadow side of a culture: a quickness to cast out what is not easily understood, economic pressure on the youth, secrecy. What matters is that the parts of the story that are “African” don’t feel performative, but are rather a key element to the story being told. 

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What do you think should be the measure of authenticity in African storytelling?

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