Erica Génécé

NEGUS: king — used as a title of the sovereign of Ethiopia. ​Negus​ is a noun derived from the Ethiopian Semitic root ngś, meaning "to reign". The title has subsequently been used to translate the words "king" or "emperor" in Biblical and other literature.

NEGUS ​is a contemporary visual ode to the African diaspora: a call for humanity to come together and look past our differences. As this artist sees it, all people of color belong to the African diaspora; all their roots can be traced to Africa. ​NEGUS​ began as an assignment during Génécé​’s first year at the School of Visual Arts graduate

MPS Fashion Photography program. This homage series was sparked by the urge to enlighten the millennial, and younger generations within the African diaspora about the mother culture and its ancestors. ​NEGUS​ is nurtured by the desire to inspire confidence and to remind these generations of their worth and strength. “I want my future children to see beauty, pride, and courage in themselves, through knowledge of history, and visuals.”

In addition to the photography, ​Génécé​ created an accompanying video, shot and produced in Brooklyn, NY. The video highlights a mixture of exuberant beats, hip-hop verses, and prolific speech excerpts from historical and contemporary figures, combined with visuals of historical flashbacks intertwined with original footage shot over a two day period. The video is meant to serve as a public service announcement to ignite awareness, encourage unity, and remind the generations to ​stay woke​.

“NEGUS is a call to the diaspora to unite. Our numerous similarities unite us, our differences in culture strengthen us.” ​Erica ​Génécé