Devised and shot by rapper and musician Baloji, “Capture” is a moving celebration of his birthplace, the Democratic Republic of Congo. Although today he lives in Belgium, every year the 36-year-old travels back to the DRC, a country whose minerals are integral to much of today's technology. 

“Everything I do in music is computer-based – and 40% of my computer and my phone came from Congolese soil,” says Baloji, whose forthcoming EP, released in October, is appropriately called 64 Bits and Malachite. ”The way Africans perceive Apple devices, they are the new Chanel or Louis Vuitton logos: they represent access to certain freedoms, to certain European perspectives.”

A European perspective also dominates the Congolese sense of style. “There is a fascination with how to wear shirts, how to wear jackets, a certain way to carry to yourself,” says Baloji. “A lot of people used to try to look like that, and they called themselves 'les évolués' – 'the evolved.’ Maybe you are going to meet the woman of your life, and so you cannot look unprepared.”

One aim of Baloji's road trip was to track down a lost statue of British explorer HM Stanley, who traced the route of the Congo river to the sea in the 19th century. En route – alongside street performance collective Kongo Astronauts – Baloji witnessed the extraordinary natural elegance of everyday people. “We went to a real funeral and I tried to capture something super-honest,” he says. “I think beauty has something to do with dignity. Even if they are living in a crazy situation, they are so proud.”

Tom Horan is Culture Editor-at-Large at NOWNESS.