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The Nairobian

Lupita re-discovers her voice after a decade as a 'Mexican-American'

Peter Kimani

By Peter Kimani | Oct 03, 2024

**Lupita Nyong’o at a past event.** [File, Standard]

Oscar-winning actress Lupita Nyong’o has launched a podcast in which she narrates her life at home and abroad. Of course, Lupita has narrated many tales, including reading her children’s book, Sulwe, for an audio book. What’s distinct is that Lupita is doing it in her Kenyan accent.

Again, one might be tempted to ask what sort of voice Lupita has been using in her record-smashing film roles, such as 12 Years a Slave, or even Black Panther that utilises science fiction to reinvent Africa in American imagination.

The answer, simply, is that to earn those roles, Lupita went to a drama school to learn the ropes, which included, most likely, speech therapy to erase her “first language interference.”

I understand that’s a common practice in broadcast media, as reporters and presenters are expected to polish their accents for foreign audiences. The idea is to “tune” your accent and sound like an American.

Or that’s the fiction that I have read about speech therapy, as I am yet to encounter an English man or woman who speaks like an American. They insist on their natural accents, which suggests there are power dynamics between accents and races. Those from the Northern hemisphere are allowed to thrive as symbols of diversity, those from these sides of the world are erased.

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Having made her breakthrough, Lupita is now powerful enough to dictate her terms, so she’s regaining her Kenyan accent. And those who don’t like it can take a ride. I don’t know what happens to her Mexican-American identity, though. Her Kenyan heritage is yet to be acknowledged in the way she’s framed in American media.