Uganda-
A festival built on love, resilience and passion for music, Nyege Nyege is going all-in this year, collaborating with collectives from across the Continent to present a pan African music and art showcase via a digital platform developed by African Digital Art (ADA).
The festival will explore a hybrid combination of digital experience and in-person event, hosting its signature party in Uganda, while connecting with 25 collectives and many more remote watch parties, all in full compliance with COVID safety measures and Nyege Nyege vibe measures.
Since its inception in 2015 and through its record labels Hakuna Kulala and Nyege Nyege Tapes, the festival has established a reputation for championing a diverse range of African music. Energized by the endless possibilities of connecting digitally, Nyege Nyege wants to make 2020 a truly pan African affair with labels, collectives, curators and crews from all over the Continent co-curating the four-day program. The festival aims to provide a totally immersive, mesmerizing African party experience, diving deep into the cauldron of contemporary African music and its wider diaspora. Highlighting Singeli, Mchiriku and Sebene from Tanzania, Dennery Segment from Santa Lucia, Gqom and House from South Africa, Balani from Mali, Coupe Decale from Cote d’Ivoire, Kuduro and Afrohouse from Angola, Gengetone and Metal from Kenya, Elone from Gabon, Hip Hop from Kigali to Ouagadougou and Abidjan and Maloya from Reunion Island. Complementing the lineup will be special showcases curated by Sahel Sounds in Niger and Mauritania, Nadah El Shazly in Egypt, LaSunday in Ivory Coast, Sun-El World and Pussy Party in South Africa, Jakaranda Festival in Zimbabwe and Jowaa Asokpor Corner in Ghana. The digital happenings and African performance art program will be orchestrated by Violaine Le Fur and will include Cameroonian performance and dance collectives Modaperf, Zora Snake Compagnie and more (see below).
Joining the party will be Principe from Lisbon, Moonshine from Quebec, Jookoo from Barcelona, AS A SS and Al Hara from Palestine and a special footwork showcase with EQ Why presenting the GHB/HAVOC Picnic from Chicago. The creative Nyege cauldron will be spiced with comedy, fashion, film and digital art to bring the sauce to a boil, including many tasty collaborative experiments, but the entire program will only be fully revealed during the festival.
The festival’s digital platform has been created in collaboration with Kenyan artist, cultural pioneer and African Digital Art founder Jepchumba (www.africandigitalart.com). On top of curating some of the continent’s best artists to collaborate on broadcasts, she has devised a unique interface to navigate the maze of content based on the original forest on the Nile that hosts Nyege Nyege. With live reports from the site, 360 degree live cameras, virtual stages and all that the physical event will offer (see above), it promises to be a game changer in the online event space.
Within this digital space there will be an “artist only” area, a sort of industry focused “back stage” where artists can interact with one another and devise future collaboration and with industry players, attend key panel discussions and leverage the opportunities generated from the festival’s visibility.
The festival runs a year-long music residency and safe community space where musicians and creatives from all over the continent can meet and create together. Harnessing that energy, the festival has evolved from a small party into the most adventurous festival on the continent – a party no Ugandan can miss. Despite past challenges of rain and government shutdown, and in spite of the current pandemic, the festival has never drifted from its vision; in 2020 Nyege Nyege aims to inspire and amaze even more.
Nyege Nyege says; “By exploring the hybrid of the physical and the digital we cherish this totally unique opportunity to explore the full potential of an online component to the festival. We hope to create a moment that will carry these new connections forward, give more visibility to the collectives involved and build momentum towards more collaborations, solidarity and of course amazing music and art.”
