Africa Oyé is set to continue in June 2024 as the UK’s biggest celebration of African and Caribbean music and culture at Sefton Park in Liverpool.

Africa Oyé

Africa Oyé, the UK’s largest free celebration of African music and culture, takes place annually in Liverpool. Beginning in 1992 as a series of small gigs in the city centre, the event has gone from strength to strength, moving to its present Sefton Park home in 2002 to cope with demand.

With too many negative representations of Africa entrenched in images of war, disease, poverty and famine, Oyé seeks to redress the balance and highlight the fantastic range of cultures, foods, music and artists that make this great continent one of the most vibrant and inspiring in the world.

The festival is also a truly international event that harnesses the spirit of multiculturalism. It has played host to artists from nations right across Africa and also programmes music from South America and The Caribbean with Salsa, Soca and Reggae always a popular addition to the festivities.

But Africa Oyé is about more than music… Over 90 stalls selling the best food, drink, arts and crafts and fashion from Africa and beyond will again be present at the Oyé village along with long time supporter ‘News From Nowhere’, one of the UK’s premier stockists of African music, with all the performing artists and much more on sale, it’s a great opportunity to not only take in some of the best roots music around, but take some home with you too.

THE LINEUP

Headlining the live music offering this year are Julian Marley – Grammy Award-winning son of Bob – with his band The Uprising, and the creative feminine force of Les Amazones d’Afrique.

Les Amazones d’Afrique is a creative force formed in Bamako, Mali, in 2014 by three Malian music stars and social change activists, Mamani Kéta, Mariam Doumbia and Oumou Sangaré [who headlined Africa Oyé in 2022]. The collective has since expanded to involve many female artists from across Africa and the diaspora, including Angélique Kidjo, Nneka and rising Malian star Rokia Koné. While their cause, campaigning for gender equality and eradicating ancestral violence, is worthy enough in itself, their musical creative expression is equally powerful.

Also featuring on the Main Stage are, Senegalese electronic duo, Def MaMa Def; Tanzanian folk-fusion pioneers, The Zawose Queens; eco-friendly punks, Fulu Miziki, Ghanaian frafra gospel star, Florence Adooni; Afro-Canadian hip hop outfit, Super Duty Tough Work; Congolese rumba royalty, Nyboma; Haitian multilingual poet and MC, Vox Sambou; and West African griot, Batch Gueye.

In addition, young artists from Liverpool will kick off the daily live entertainment as part of Oyé’s ‘Introduces’ and ‘Community’ programmes. There are also a raft of DJ sets including Seani B who marks his Africa Oyé debut. One of the world’s leading dancehall and reggae DJs, Seani’s weekly BBC 1Xtra show is the most listened to specialist programme on the network

MUCH MORE THAN MUSIC

The Africa Oyé audience are encouraged to do much more than just watch and appreciate the live music at the festival. As part of an extensive offering of free workshops all weekend, Liverpool’s own world dance charity Movema curate the Oyé Active Zone (OAZ), supported by The Granada Foundation. Celebrating 15 years of the OAZ in 2024, expect a range of activities for the whole family, with people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds having the chance to take part in the eclectic mix of activities ,all led by top local and international companies.

As well as the high energy dance workshops provided by Movema themselves, other activities on offer in the OAZ include yoga, capoeira, and traditional drumming circles. Plus, ahead of a main stage set from international star, Vox Sambou, the Haitian MC’s own choreographer, Warda Brédy, will lead a traditional Haitian dance workshop.

In addition to the OAZ, Katumba Drumming and Movement will be leading a parade across the park on the festival Sunday, bringing a melting pot of UK big beat, Caribbean calypso and the carnivals of North East Brazil to create an explosion of rhythmic revelry.

The eclectic mix of food stalls and traders at the festival have become as big a draw as the live performance in recent years at Africa Oyé. Authentic African, Mediterranean, Asian, English and Caribbean cuisine, traditional French crepes, baguettes, Italian paninis, fresh fruit smoothies, cookies, hot donuts and pastries, and fresh ground coffee will be on sale, along with stalls selling everything from arts, crafts, hats, clothing, jewellery and accessories. You can also find charities, training, demonstrations, workshops, storytelling and more, in the cultural extravaganza known as ‘The Oyé Village’.

To read more about a day at Africa Oyé click here.

Remember…THIS IS A FREE FESTIVAL… all you need to do is get there! The Africa Oyé Festival takes place on 22nd and 23rd of June 2024 from 12:30pm to 9:30pm both days.

Check out Les Amazones d’Afrique – Kuma Fo (What They Say) below and you can check out a Spotify playlist here.

Africa Oyé: Website / TikTok / X (formerly Twitter) / Facebook / Instagram

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