Africa - Rocker ladies in Botswana

Document Abstract / Summary Overview

A heavy metal fan base has been developing in Botswana for years now, and a surprising number of women from across the generations are identifying with the genre as they rebel against a society structured along patriarchal lines. We accompany three of them as they master the tribulations of everyday life and celebrate their favorite music. In the developed North, heavy metal might be viewed as white, masculine and European, but not in Botswana. There a unique subculture is emerging. This documentary tells the story of Queen Gloria, who set up a rock club in the small northern town of Maun in the Okawango Delta. Until then, male rockers had dominated the scene. But thanks to the club, Queen Gloria and her group of female metal heads soon begun to be taken seriously. They don’t only perform occasionally at traditional weddings for African metal fans, but also play an active social role in Maun - for example, by organizing clean-ups in its streets, which they lead in full black leather regalia. And afterwards, of course, there’s always a performance by Botswana’s queens and kings of heavy metal.