By Reporter
Creating a panafrican network of artists, labels and festivals is one of the missions of Nyege Nyege festival. After throwing the closing party of Sauti Za Busara earlier this year and Bushfire festival in E-swatini a few weeks back with Ugandan DJs Kampire and Catu Diosis. This time been invited by the National Arts Festival of South Africa to present a selection of works and showcases spanning the whole continent.
These showcases will include several musical scenes that have blossomed on the Continent in the last ten years, including Acholi electronic music from Northern Uganda, Singeli from Dar Es Salaam, Balani Show from Mali, Gqom from South Africa, Gengetone from Kenya and Elone from Gabon curated by pioneers in these respective scenes. Nyege Nyege will also showcase exciting live showcases including modular synth pioneer Afrorack, Kenyan metal grindcore outfit Duma, East African hiphop bosslady MC Yallah and the mysterious HHY & the Kampala Unit, artists who have all lost a considerable amount of shows due to the pandemic.
Despite the setbacks, festival like Bushfire and National Arts Festival are stepping up into the digital field, and reaching out to partners across the continent has become the new way forward. As for their september edition, the question is still, physical or digital, or as the organizers have cheekily pointed out recently on social media, maybe it will be PHYGITAL.
The National Arts Festival will take part online from June 25th to Sunday 5th of July, and more info can be found on the Nyege Nyege showcase and the many other exciting parts of the program.
