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Koko Ateba
TopFlash the iconic anti-star
Flashmag ! Issue 156 January 2025
Time is an abstract notion suspended in the moments it consecrates , freezing them in memories in a nostalgic destiny . In October 2011 , there was no better way to express this unprecedented encounter . Flashmag was barely 9 weeks old , and we were timidly trying to land interviews with artists who would make the front page of our newly-created medium , in the hustle and bustle of the American seaside city of Miami . After receiving several rejections from artists who had not yet attained the status of this African music icon , we decided to take the plunge .
It was with some disappointment that , after logging on to the artist ’ s Facebook page , I sent a message to his mailbox , saying to myself : “ Even if celebrities of his ilk never read their mail , who knows ? I was very surprised when , the next day , when I opened my Facebook account , there was a message from Koko Ateba leaving me his contact details to arrange a date for an exclusive interview . And so began a fruitful exchange with the artist and , above all , the affable person that was Koko Ateba - a star , an anti-star whose humility was disconcerting .
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