The Future Arrived Hungry
First, they said AI would help. They promised it would make our lives easier, free us from the mundane and give us more space to dream. But we should’ve known better.
Because when machines learn the wrong lessons from men with no imagination, they do not serve. They consume. And now, creativity itself is on the menu.
It started slowly. Suggestions, autocomplete and moodboards built from data sets stitched together with the precision of a machine that had never danced, mourned, or whispered to an elder in the quiet of dawn. And yet, here we are, watching screens regurgitate “art” without understanding the weight of what it copies. A mimicry of the soul, without the mess or marrow.
"The spirit of our ancestors do not speak in binary code." — Unknown
The Impostor in the Room
Meet Bra A, the self-proclaimed oracle of creativity, an all-knowing machine trained on centuries of stolen artistry. He sits in the boardrooms of fashion houses and music labels, humming in binary, telling execs that he can "generate" the next big thing.
But here’s the problem: Bra A has never felt the bassline of a Fela Kuti song shake his ribcage. He has never inhaled the scent of rain on red African soil. He does not dream.
When The Algorithm Stole the Sun
Bra A doesn’t dream, he collects. He hoards patterns, colours and the echoes of things we once made with our hands. He watches the world unfold and then tries to predict the next move, like a thief standing just outside the village gates, waiting for the elders to rest so he can steal the stories they haven’t finished telling.
The late Virgil Abloh once said, "The future of design is about storytelling, not just products." But how does Bra A tell a story he has never lived? How does he translate the burn of exile into fabric? How does he sew the scent of home into a silhouette? He can't, and he never will.
South Africa’s Thebe Magugu reinterprets the political history of South Africa into garments that carry the weight of generations. But if Bra A were to design them, they’d be just that, designs. No pulse, ache, or echo of a grandmother’s warning stitched into the hem. Just data reshuffled.
"AI lacks the depth of emotional understanding and subjective interpretation that humans bring to their creative endeavours." — 90 Degree Design
The Machines Are Confused. Good.
Right now, Africa and its diaspora are leading a creative renaissance, a movement fueled by memory, rebellion, and the kind of joy that algorithms can’t measure. Lagos is reshaping global fashion, Accra’s artists are bending reality, and Johannesburg is turning the digital space inside out.
And Bra A? He doesn’t know what to do with us. He tries to box us in, categorise and label. He studies streaming numbers and decides which sound is “trending,” but he doesn’t understand that Asake’s street anthems hit differently when you’ve walked on them.
Burna Boy’s voice carries the history of a whole continent, not just a melody and Bra A doesn’t understand why rhythm needs space, why silence is just as important as sound. He lacks the most important skill of all: listening.
"AI can't make humans obsolete because humans like humans too much." — The Algorithmic Bridge
The Real Threat? Creativity Without Conviction
Let’s be real. AI isn’t the biggest problem. The real threat is creativity that’s lost its conviction. The kind that lets AI do the work because it’s easier, not because it’s better. The kind that accepts sameness over substance. If your creative direction can be replaced by a machine, then you were playing it too safe to begin with.
We've already seen it. Logos that look like they were all born in the same factory. Editorial campaigns that feel like stock images with no scent, accent, or hands in the frame. Art stripped of its defiance, its questions, its teeth. Where’s the blood? The fire? The risk?
"While AI can assist in the creation of art, it cannot replicate the depth of human experience that underlies truly meaningful work." — Creativ Indie
Bra A Can Stay, But He'll Never Lead
Let’s not throw the baby out with the algorithm. Bra A can be useful. He can hold our bags while we dance. He can help organize, assist, and speed up research. But he'll never be a DJ.
AI can analyze trends, but it takes a human to start one.
AI can generate variations, but it takes a creative director to say, this one, this one feels right.
AI can suggest, but only we can decide.
The revolution will not be automated. The elders are still telling stories. The sun is still ours. And if the machine ever wants to understand? It’ll have to learn how to listen first.
"AI cannot replace human qualities like creativity, empathy, and judgment. Instead, AI will amplify our human capabilities and help cultivate our creative spirit." — Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft
Sources
Unknown
Abloh, V. (Lecture at Harvard GSD, 2017)
90 Degree Design
The Algorithmic Bridge
Creativ Indie
Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft (SANKA)
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