I love this podcast! It is so well researched, and it centers the history of Africa from a perspective that is not European dominant. So many other history podcasts do this. They give short shift to African history or ground it in a Eurocentric view. I learned so much with each episode that I think I’m going to have to go back and listen to all of the seasons all over again once I’m done. It’s a wealth of knowledge and information about Africa, and it’s really mind blowing the amazing cultures, civilizations, and that have created such a rich history on this continent, and yet these stories rarely get told.. thank you for telling it, and putting African history in its rightful place.
My recommendation is to start with season 2. This show really comes into its own when covering the Ashanti Empire in season 3. Lots of hard to find info in this show… these episodes are the furthest things from wikipedia articles that you will find in narrative hist podcasting. Great stuff
Also “tapped into an already existing slavery network” is incorrect. Learn the difference between servitude and slavery. Europeans used the enslavement of Africans as a mode of production to build Europe and to fuel capitalism.
Enslavement was not a mode of production in African states. Btw Tribe is a pejorative word. This podcast should be called A History of Africa as told by an European.
This is a great podcast! I really wish it was more popular. I’d recommend people start with the second season on Aksum, which is astonishingly well researched. It’s about a civilization that existed during Roman times in the Ethiopian highlands and outlasted both Rome and Persia, only falling in the 13th century! Can’t believe I’d never heard about it before. I contribute a substantial amount to this podcast on Patreon each month bc I’m terrified the guys doing it will stop! It’s true the recording quality initially isn’t the best, but eventually it gets better—highly highly recommend
I am actually not Ghanaian by nationality but I grew up as one of their own and claim to be one of them. Growing up in schools, we studied what the predecessors fought for, shaping their kingdoms to empires and now a nation united. Relating to this podcast, almost all we learned in schools for several years can be heard in greater detail, in this podcast, and I should say that it is very impressive in my opinion. Thank you for sharing the stories of the men that built such a wonderful home for many!
This is well researched and well informed report of African history. Missed in history class. He compares sources and shares what he seems to be the most common or accurate in the literature. It is interesting content. I wish the speaker had a more dynamic voice and sounded excited to talk about the subject. I just started the podcast at the beginning so maybe he has improved over time. Thank you for doing this!
I am really glad this podcast exists. It is really hard to break into the history of an entire continent.
Earlier on, some aspects of recording podcasts are occasionally shaky, but that improves.
This is a well researched podcast with a lot of detail, while still being accessible to new comers to this region of history.
This is a great podcast for anyone who loves history about such an incredibly interesting and important yet neglected topic.
Some of the early episodes suffered from some music and audio issues but those got resolved and now it’s just fine.
As the narrator points out, even history buffs tend to ignore Africa. This is a great intro to societies I only knew about from the perspective of later colonists and invaders. Much appreciated.
This is a really well-presented history of Africa for a western audience.
The only thing keeping it from 5 stars is the music - there are times when it is absolutely *booming* and drowns out the voice.
It also ebs and flows in ways that are not congruent with the story, so it gets louder and louder as the narrative is not really building up to anything at that moment.
The Information is VERY hard to find, so it’s good to have this available. To my ear, the presentation just drones with very little inflection of any kind. And, also to my ear, the constant music in the background is distracting, sometimes to the point of irritation. There are also moments when it completes drowns out the voice.
Fantastic informative podcast on a much neglected subject. I’m going four-star for balance but I’m only five podcast episodes in so I may go for five in the future if there is any improvement at all or go lower if it becomes terrible (seems less likely; great start)
This podcast was so necessary. When it's (rarely) covered in schools and pop history, African history is usually reduced to unhelpful stereotypes and generalization. This podcast is the first that really covers the region with the depth and care it deserves, especially the season on Axum.
I discovered this podcast through Our Fake History and 6 episodes in I absolutely love what the podcast could be. The host is informative and engaging and the material is fantastic and woefully under covered in general historical education and particularly in podcast space. However this far the technical problems are a major issue, even more than most beginning podcasts in my opinion. Occasionally repeating sentences and generally poor audio quality are a bit annoying but forgiveable in a new podcast. But in episode 6 one section had music so loud it utterly drowned out the host for at least 30 seconds, the most extreme example of the generally fluctuating audio mixing. I’m gonna keep listening and rate it 4 stars because I enjoy the material and host and really want to see this podcast grow and succeed but those audio issues really hold back a potentially great podcast. But once those are worked out than this will absolutely be a first rate podcast.
Andy is an excellent host. It’s amazing there was no existing podcast on this topic. But Andy saw the need and filled it with organized quality. He’s a great instructor and guide. I was really impressed as a podcaster myself often in need of a guide. Excellent content.
The author of this podcast covers in detail the underlooked history of Africa and serves into a fantastic jumping off point in further historical research.
This podcast is actually super solid. If you’re interested in historical background, this podcast is for you! It elaborates well on the historical matters in an interesting way that makes you want to keep hearing more! Give it a shot! It’s worth it!
I appreciate this podcast so much. The clear presentation of such convoluted material is fabulous.
The music, please, is absolutely distracting throughout. It does not provide the intended ambience. It provides annoyance.
Get rid of it during your narrative. You worked too hard to let it impact our comprehension and enjoyment of your research.
The music at the beginnings and ends of your episodes would always work as long as you fade out when you hit the main content.
A nice compromise?
So so so sincerely,
Lucia E
I just started listening and I already love this podcast so much- I’ve already listened to half of the episodes! The host is so knowledgeable and presents the information in such an interesting way. One suggestion that I have is to maybe get rid of the music and extra sound effects. Sometimes it is so loud, that I can’t even hear the story and it can just be overall a little distracting. I think the content itself is so interesting that the extras aren’t even necessary:)
