Nowadays, African superstars love to show skin, whether it’s in a music video, on stage or on the red carpet. Lately, nudity has caused controversy and quite a number of explicit videos have been censored or banned. Critics say watching African music videos now is the easiest and unconscious way of turning yourself on. They are now a subtle instrument for seduction.
It’s no secret nudity sells. Most fans are excited to see nudes. Some African stars have also gone wild on social media adopting nudity as a strategy to gain popularity. What is more, this seems to have negative impacts on the younger generation. Sex tapes and nude leaks are a normal phenomenon amongst young people. Unfortunately, a few that can’t stand the shame after a scandal end up taking their lives. Also, video directors are getting more expressive and are coming up with explicit sexual contents. Gone are the days when nudity in videos are shown in abstract, today, directors give us all the obscene details that raise moral questions.
Some years ago, Nigerian Actress Christabel Ekeh dropped a bombshell online to add her name to the black list. Reports speculate she’s off upstairs, however, her family insists Christabel is sane. Popular entertainers such as Kenya’s Avril Nyambura and Boity from South Africa say their leaks were due to hacks, Desire Luzinda was little known in Uganda, but when her nude photos went viral, she became an instant hit. Dj Crème was famous in Kenya not for his disc jockey skills, but a 5-minute sex tape leak.
When she leaked her nude photos, Ghanaian singer, Deborah Vanessa claimed she accrued $8,000 for her leaks. Also, that of Ghanaian actors, Moesha Budong, Efia Odo, Jessica Larny amongst others broke the internet. According to Jessica Larny, who is also a model, “If going half-naked or doing these shoots will put food on her table which it does anyway, she will do it, since it’s a certified profession, adding that shooting semi-nude photos pays better than what she makes from acting in a whole year.
Though we live in a society that treats female public nudity as a moral offense or a cause for concern and discussion, but not as a source of non-sexual female power, others believe nudity empowers. Truly, female nudity has power, and majority can’t resist the gaze, but at the end, It’s about choice, and what you choose to do, whether it is for a campaign or protest, for art or simply self-expression or self-love. Well, there are powerful, provocative and intelligent ways females can use their bodies, without having to bare them, however, the big question is… has money become the ultimate goal rather than using creativity as a tool to fix the society?(FlashAfrica)
