STATEMENT Africa Is Accepting Pitches/ How To Submit (Pay: $1/word)

STATEMENT Africa is a media company focused on the work of African creators. They seek to tell stories through their editorial blog covering Africa’s creative industries.

They champion the African creative class, on the continent and the diaspora, and bridge the gap between African creators and global brands. Their aim is to tell stories covering Africa’s creative industries through the STATEMENT editorial vertical.

STATEMENT Africa regularly accepts pitches from freelance writers looking to write on African TV/film, music arts, etc.

Submission Guidelines For STATEMENT Africa

They prefer timely ideas because they are up-to-date and relevant. They want their readers to know what’s happening, and they also want them to be able to come back to it months later.
They are looking for original stories and angles and might not accept your pitch if it is a story idea that has been widely covered. It helps if you have a fresh take on it and an angle you are bringing in that we have yet to read of.
They are also looking for features that provide a strong data or insight component and offer custom data to their readers. For example, an article on the State of the African Box Office might include a spreadsheet list of the most recent film hits and the amount of money made in theaters.
Additional research support and aid will be available in building the accompanying datasets.

Pitching Format

They are always looking for exciting stories. So, below are ways of formatting your pitches:

Your pitch should have a working headline via subject with ‘PITCH’ before it. Please, add ‘Timely’ to your pitches, too, if they are.
Your pitch should briefly describe what you plan on covering. This will help them understand the story, the people you’ll be speaking to, why you’re the best person for it, why you should cover it now, and any other information you think is important for us to know before commissioning.
Please, no more than two pitches per email. Also, wait until you hear back before sending a new pitch.
A good pitch should also contain a brief bio and links to relevant stories. They want to know a little about who you are and your experience covering stories like your pitch.
Please, direct all pitches to their Managing Editor, Chisom Peter Job, at chisom@statementafrica.com.

Sections Statement Africa Covers

Below are the sections they cover.

Entertainment
Fashion
Art

While every section is different, these are some things they are looking for across all sections. They include:

Creative challenge: Dissect a unique creative experience a filmmaker/artist/creator had, what happened, and how they went through it.

Influences: A Q&A format about unique influences people across sections have had to get them to where they are. This goes deeper into what shaped them and how they have changed because of these influences.

Trends: Pieces centering on interesting trends happening across sections. Are people in Kenya wearing a particular style? Is Nollywood influencing anything? Is a challenge taking over the continent? These and more are some of the things we are looking for.

Profiles/Interviews: Did an actor give a performance you can’t stop thinking about? Do you want to speak to a filmmaker, writer, designer, or your favorite musician about their upcoming album? Are there people doing amazing work behind the scenes? Then, pitch them.