After five years, the Ghanaian music and culture festival Afrochella will not be returning, organizers have said.
The shock announcement was made at the end of the two-day festival, in the early hours of Friday morning.
“This is the last Afrochella,” founder Abdul Abdullah told the thousands of people still at the El-Wak stadium in the capital, Accra.
He gave no reason.
However, the California-based music festival Cochella sued the organizers for trademark infringement.
Mr. Abdullah made the announcement after headline act Burna Boy closed his set, wowing the crowd with hits such as Last Last, Angelina and Dangote.
Although the stadium was still packed with thousands of people, the news that this was the last Afrochella went unnoticed by some, especially since it was almost 03:00.
One African-American woman I spoke to had missed the announcement because she was trying to hurry home.
Those who were paying attention were very tired.
“I couldn’t believe it when I said Afrochella was over,” said one woman.
Afrochella is heavily promoted to African-Americans and many people travel from the US or the UK to celebrate the new year in their home continent.
“I was surprised – this is what a lot of people in the diaspora wanted at the end of the year,” said the African-American.
“There’s something special about Afrochella that’s so important to an African American like me — I think it’s going to be hard to fill the void he’s going to leave,” said another.
And this year’s festival was definitely a huge success.
Stonebwoy, Asake and Gyakie entertained their fans with amazing performances.
Even if it doesn’t go smoothly for everyone.
Nigerian artist Oyinkansola Sarah Aderibigbe, also known as Ayra Starr, fell on stage while performing her hit song.
He blamed the organizers for the incident. “Next time Afrochella you have to clean the stage after every artist’s performance, the fall is unnecessary and painful,” he posted.
The event also features performances from other talented musicians.
“It’s great, it’s great to play for my people, make sure everyone is happy. Everyone is having fun,” Jules, a young singer from the Netherlands, told the BBC.
The Aerostar singer was excited about his performance: “The energy was amazing, the crowd was amazing and the band did a great job,” he said.
While the end of Afrochella will certainly leave a gap in the jam-packed calendar of events in Ghana, known as “Detty December”, tourists and visitors alike will still be able to enjoy a wide range of programs.
For example, the Afro Nation festival ended on Friday night with performances by British-Nigerian artist Skepta, Franco-Congolese singer Dadju and Ghanaian rising star Black Sherif, to name a few.
And BHIM concerts, Tropical Fiesta, Mozama Disco, Lamajo fest will all be back next year.
But Afrochella will be sorely missed.
This is one event that the authorities in Ghana hope will continue to attract tourists, especially from the African diaspora, to the country as part of the “Beyond Return” initiative.
This is a follow-up to the “Year of Return” launched in 2019 to mark 400 years since the first enslaved Africans came to America.
Source: BBC
| Disclaimer: The opinions expressed here are those of the authors and do not reflect Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no legal or other responsibility for the accuracy of the content. Please report inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a priority. |
Featured Videos