Africa Oye adds iconic DJ and broadcaster Andy Kershaw to their main stage line-up

Africa Oye adds iconic DJ and broadcaster Andy Kershaw to their main stage line-up

Following the reveal of their live bands and artists for this June's festival in Sefton Park, Africa Oye have added iconic discjockey and broadcaster, Andy Kershaw to their main stage line-up.

As revealed in the Liverpool Echo earlier today, the former BBC Radio 1 and Radio 3 personality, who holds more Gold Sony Radio Awards than any other broadcaster, will perform an hour long DJ set on the Sunday of the festival, showcasing the variety of World Music that fans of his will have enjoyed for the last 30 years.

For many in Britain, Kershaw's Radio 1 show will have been the gateway to their first taste of music from Africa. In 1985, he was invited by the station to present his own show with a free choice of music. As his own tastes evolved so did the content of the radio show. Meeting the musicologist and Radio 3 presenter Lucy Duran and the first appearance of Zimbabwe’s Bhundu Boys in the UK tipped Andy heavily into African music.

Esa Williams makes a welcome return to Oye this June

Kershaw will also be joined by two other stellar DJs on the main stage across the festival weekend. To keep Sefton Park buzzing in between the live artists, Oye is very pleased to welcome back DJ Edu (BBC Radio 1 Xtra) and Esa Williams after their hugely popular appearances at last year's festival.

The 'Trenchtown' area of the festival site will also see acclaimed DJs from Merseyside and further afield providing festival-goers with a wide variety of music as they peruse the 80+ stalls and traders and enjoy relaxing with food and drink at the Oye Inn.

Africa Oye 2015 Live Line-Up

Omar (UK)

Frankie Paul (Jamaica)

BKO Quintet (Mali)

Diabel Cissokho (Senegal)

Gordon Masiala and NKA Musica (DR Congo)

Lindigo (Réunion)

Derito (Angola)

Sarabi (Kenya)

Cumbia All Stars (Peru)

Modou Toure & Ramon Goose (Senegal/UK)

For full artist/DJ bios and images or for more information on this year's Oye Village and Trenchtown (including the 80+ stalls and traders on-site) please visit africaoye.com 

Africa Oye Announces More Acts For June Festival In Sefton Park

Africa Oye Announces More Acts For June Festival In Sefton Park

Africa Oye 2015

Sefton Park, Liverpool

Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st June 2015

12:30pm - 9:30pm both days /Admission: FREE

Funded by Arts Council England and Liverpool City Council 

The UK’s largest, free African music festival Africa Oye will grace Sefton Park once again this summer and organisers have added 3 more globally acclaimed acts to the line-up.

Congolese pop star Gordon Masiala will return to Oye for the first time since 2009, bringing his brand of high tempo Soukous, Rumba, Salsa and Afro-Cuban music to Liverpool once again.

He will be joined in Sefton Park by one of Angola's most decorated performers - Derito. The author, composer, singer, guitarist and music producer has a career spanning nearly 40 years and is sure to be one of the stand-out performers this June.

And rounding off this latest wave of acts is Senegalese musician Diabel Cissokho - part of the great line of Cissokho griots. well established in the UK, Diabel’s virtuosic talent, his “resonant voice and rocking kora style” (Songlines), have been welcomed everywhere from WOMAD and Glastonbury to London’s Barbican, where he performed alongside legends such as Femi Kuti.

These 3 acts will take their place alongside the likes of UK soul star Omar, Mali's own BKO Quintet and  Lindigo, hailing from Reunion Island. The final acts are set to be announced in April.

Now in its 23rd year, Africa Oye attracted record crowds of around 80,000 in 2014 to the two-day, family friendly city event.

Artistic Director, Paul Duhaney is excited at the challenge of following 2014's record-breaking event. “I'm so glad to be able to bring back Gordon Masiala after his last show here 6 years ago. Along with Diabel and Derito this is a great second wave of artists and I can't wait to reveal who else we've got lined up” .

The main stage acts will be complemented by the usual eclectic 'Oyé Village' featuring an array of foods from across the globe, traders, DJs, dance classes and workshops in the Active Zone, as well as kids entertainment to keep Sefton Park buzzing throughout the festival weekend.

*AMENDMENT: Sadly due to unforseen circumstances, Ibibio Sound Machine will not be performing at Oye 2015*

http://www.africaoye.com/

Africa Oye Announces First Acts For 2015 Festival In Sefton Park

Africa Oye Announces First Acts For 2015 Festival In Sefton Park

Africa Oye 2015

Sefton Park, Liverpool

Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st June 2015

12:30pm - 9:30pm both days /Admission: FREE

Funded by Arts Council England and Liverpool City Council 

The UK’s largest, free African music festival Africa Oye will grace Sefton Park once again this summer and organisers have unveiled the first 3 acts of a globally acclaimed line up for the event, including UK soul legend Omar.

Now in its 23rd year, Africa Oye attracted record crowds of around 80,000 in 2014 to the two-day, family friendly city event, and the team are excited to reveal the first 3 acts for this year's festival.

There are precious few, if any contemporary UK artists whose creative credentials and influence extend as far and so consistently wide as Omar. Since first breaking through to worldwide renown all the way back in 1991 with his first releases on Gilles Peterson's seminal Talkin' Loud label, Omar has gone on to work with all manner of musical legends including a certain Stevie Wonder. His original techniques have garnered him a strong legion of followers in the UK and a devoted fan base in diverse regions across the world.

In addition to Omar, the festival has announced two more acts that will grace the Sefton Park stage in June - Malian stars BKO Quintet and Reunion Island's Lindigo.

All the members of Mali’s BKO Quintet grew up with the music and culture of their ancestors, both the hunters and the griots. They bring together those separate traditions and the result is a unique sound that lives up to the album’s modern title, creating a new tradition of Malian music.

Lindigo is fronted by the charasmatic, Olivier Arasta, committed champion for continued development of 'maloya' - Reunion Island's vibrant symbol of creole culture whose strident vocal calls, chanted responses and complex percussion rhythms originated with the slaves brought to work on the sugar plantations and became a weapon of resistance, banned until the 1980s.

Artistic Director, Paul Duhaney is excited at the challenge of following 2014's record-breaking event. “Last year was a really special Oyé, there's no doubt about that. I'm really looking forward to revealing the rest of our line-up for 2015 and proving that we can follow it with another spectacular festival” 

The main stage acts will be complemented by the usual eclectic 'Oyé Village' featuring an array of foods from across the globe, traders, DJs, dance classes and workshops in the Active Zone, as well as kids entertainment to keep Sefton Park buzzing throughout the festival weekend.

Africa Oye festival 2014 After Parties Announced

Once Africa Oye starts wrapping up at the park, make the short journey to Liverpool's Baltic Triangle where the party carries on.

Saturday 21st June Tickets: http://www.skiddle.com/e/12197454

Sunday 21st June Tickets: http://www.skiddle.com/e/12200028

Physical tickets available from Wednesday June 11th at Dr Hermans (Bold Street), Ragga's Lark Lane and Ragga's Smithdown Road.

All proceeds from these parties go towards keeping Africa Oye free and open to all.  

For more information on Africa Oye and Oye Touring and Trading, check out the links below:

africaoye.com / facebook.com/africaoye / @africaoye #africaoye

Africa Oye reveal Finley Quaye as headliner

The UK’s largest, free African music festival Africa Oye returns this summer and can unveil a globally acclaimed line up headed up by reggae / trip hop star Finley Quaye.

Rising to fame in the 90’s, Finley Quaye's sound made waves across the globe and he topped the UK charts with hIts like ‘Even After All’ and ‘Sunday Shining’.

His debut album Maverick A Strike was an instant success racking up multi platinum record sales. Finley Quaye (whose relatives include Afrobeat purveyor Femi Kuti and trip hop star Tricky) will play a mix of classic and new material when he brings his warm Sunshine sounds to the stage.

The team at Africa Oye can’t wait until the Scottish-born, Mobo and BRIT award winning legend Finley lands in Sefton Park to headline on Saturday.

Now in its 22nd year, Africa Oye attracted around 30,000 in 2013 to the two-day, family friendly city event, and the team are over the moon with this year’s line up. Jupiter and Okwess International have a unique story; and Jupiter collaborated with Damon Albarn to feature on the album “Kinhasa One Two” in 2011. Jupiter was born into a family of griots from the Mongo region. His grandmother was a renowned healer and she taught him how to play traditional rhythms to heal the sick at a young age. As a teen his family moved to Berlin, where he collaborated with European musicians before returning to the Congo. A documentary about his musical exploration called “The Dance of Jupiter” was released in 2007 and his album Hotel Universe was released last year to critical acclaim.

Also joining the bill are London based Cuban 9-piece band WARA, playing a mix of latin funk, hip hop and rumba. Bending genres with gusto, band members hail from across the globe; from Argentinia to Spain and this unique mix defines them.

Next up on the bill HAJAmadagascar and The Groovy People who create Afro trance, in a project that gathers musicians from across Africa and the Diaspora. Rooted in Malagasy tradition (the spiritual music of Madagascar) the charismatic groups live show delivers immense energy, and is a must-see education for music lovers!

This year Africa Oye will be bigger and better than ever! The family friendly, non camping show features workshops, Oye Active Zone, DJ tent, world cuisine and Oye Traders Market on top of the sterling main stage line up.

QUOTES:

Headliner `Finley Quaye says:

"It's an honour to be headlining Africa Oye in Liverpool; Songwriter City as I often refer to it. It's a privilege for us to be gracing the stage in Sefton Park; a park I often talk about and we are also blessed to be part of such a prestigious event and line up."

 Location: Sefton Park, Liverpool
Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd June 2014
12:30pm - 9:30pm both days
Admission: FREE
http://www.africaoye.com/

Africa Oye reveal festival stage times

THE UK’S LARGEST FREE FESTIVAL OF AFRICAN MUSIC AND CULTURE CELEBRATES 21st ANNIVERSARY

Funded by Arts Council England
and Liverpool City Council

Location: Sefton Park, Liverpool
Saturday 22nd and Sunday 23rd June 2013
12:30pm - 9:30pm both days
Admission: FREE

'This isn’t just the largest festival of African and Caribbean music in Britain, it's the best'
- The Sunday Times

'A wonderful celebration of music, food, arts, crafts and fashion from Africa’
- Big Issue in the North

'Perhaps Britain's best free festival'
- Clash Magazine

One of Songlines Magazine’s Top 10 UK Summer Festivals for 2013
- -
With less than 2 weeks to go until Africa Oyé lands in Liverpool’s Sefton Park on 22nd and 23rd June 2013, organisers can now reveal the stage times! With another stellar festival set to take place, the largest free African music event in the UK have now revealed their line-up of acts from across Africa and the wider Diaspora.

Stage times on the day revealed:

Saturday 22nd June, 12:30pm start:

13.15 - 14.25 - Zong Zing All Stars (DR Congo)
14:30 - Movema World Dance Performance (15mins)
14:55 - 16:05 - JAY (Cape Verde)
16:35 - 17:45 - Black Prophet (Ghana)
18:15 - 19:35 - Son Yambu (Cuba)
20:05 - 21:25 - Osibisa (Ghana)

Sunday 23rd June, 12:30pm start:

13.15 - 14.25 - JAY (Cape Verde)
14:30 - Beatlife Drum Troupe (15mins)
14:55 - 16:05 - Yaaba Funk (Ghana/UK)
16:35 - 17:45 - Atongo Zimba (Ghana)
18:15 - 19:35 - Dele Sosimi (Nigeria/UK)
20:05 - 21:25 - Mokoomba (Zimbabwe)

This year’s festival is Oyé’s 21st Anniversary celebration and has already been nominated by Songlines Magazine in their top ten for 2013. With acts hailing from Zimbabwe, Ghana, Cuba, DR Congo, Cape Verde and Nigeria, Oyé 2013 is set to be a feast for the ears.

africaoye.com / facebook.com/africaoye / @africaoye #africaoye

Africa Oyé 2013 - First Acts Announced

THE LARGEST FREE AFRICAN MUSIC AND CULTURE EVENT IN THE UK

Funded by Arts Council of England

and Liverpool City Council

Location: Sefton Park, Liverpool

Saturday 22nd and Sunday 23rd June 2013

12:30pm - 9:30pm both days

Admission: FREE

The countdown is on until Africa Oyé will be flourishing in Liverpool’s Sefton Park on 22nd and 23rd June 2013. With another stellar festival set to take place, the largest free African music event in the UK have revealed their first acts.

This year’s festival is Oyé’s 21st Anniversary celebration and has already been nominated by Songlines Magazine in their top ten for 2013. The lineup confirmed so far features Mokoomba - ‘the most impressive band Zimbabwe have produced in recent memory’, fresh from a UK tour and after receiving global acclaim for their international debut album -

ZongZing All Stars (DR Congo) and Atongo Zimba (Ghana).

For more information on this year's festival, including the artists, please don't hesitate to get in touch.

www.onefellswoop.co.uk

Africa Oyé Cancelled due to severe weather

Funded by Arts Council of England
and Liverpool City council

http://africaoye.com/

The UK’s largest celebration of African music and culture

Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24^th June 2012

Sefton Park, Liverpool / Admission: FREE

"We are very sad to have to announce that due to heavy rain over the last few nights causing several Health and Safety issues in the set up of the festival site as well as the potential accidents that could happen over the weekend because of the weather, Africa Oyé has been forced to cancel this weekend's festival in Sefton Park.

The stage crew have been unable to put the stage up in the current conditions and the vehicles that have already driven onto the field have left much of the area unfit for the festival.

We are very sorry at having to let you know at this late stage but we hope you understand that it is out of the organisers' hands and no decision could be made until this afternoon and the early signs were promising. Unfortunately, more heavy rain this morning has tipped the scales out of Oye's favour. The decision was not taken lightly.

However...

There WILL be an event happening this weekend away from the park - Africa Oyé is working on a contingency plan and we will bring you news as soon as it's been confirmed. Keep your eyes peeled to the social networks below:

Facebook.com/africaoye

twitter - @africaoye

Thank you for understanding and watch this space."

Article posted by Musicmafia

Africa Oyé 2012 Festival Liverpool Brochure Online

There's less than 2 weeks to go till Africa Oye's 20th Anniversary festival takes residency in Liverpool's Sefton Park for a weekend that will showcase the best in African and Caribbean culture.

You can now check out the Oye brochure (which contains all the info you need for the weekend, including who is playing on which day) over at http://africaoye.com/brochure12.pdf

Not only is there a star-studded line-up of acts for your listening pleasure this year but with over 90 stalls and numerous dancing, drumming and musical workshops, there really is something for everyone at this year's Oye.

Africa Oye 2012

23rd & 24th June

12.30pm - 9.30pm both days

Sefton Park, Liverpool

FREE ENTRY

Like us at facebook.com/africaoye

Follow us @africaoye on Twitter and use #africaoye to spread the word!

Be sure to check out africaoye.com for all the latest info on this year's event.

Article posted by Musicmafia

Africa Oyé reveal full line up

The Rasites (UK) / Brinsley Forde (UK/Jamaica) / Yaaba Funk (Ghana/UK) / The Endless Journey (Niger) / Dele Sosimi Afrobeat Orchestra (Nigeria/UK) / Samba Mapangala & Orchestra Virunga (Democratic Republic of Congo) / Jaliba Kuyateh (The Gambia) / Diabel Cissokho (Senegal)

Funded by Arts Council of England
and Liverpool City council

LISTEN TO AFRICA

Sefton Park, Liverpool

Saturday 23^rd and Sunday 24^th June 2012 / 12:30pm - 9:30pm both days

Admission: FREE / http://africaoye.com/

In 2012 Africa Oyé are marking 20 years of bringing the best in African music and culture to the UK.

Starting out as a series of small gigs in Liverpool's city centre in 1992, Africa Oyé has gone from strength-to-strength, and has evolved into the foremost celebration of African and Caribbean music and culture in the UK.

Over the past 20 years Africa Oyé has brought some of the biggest names in music from Africa, the Caribbean and South America to Liverpool, including Tinariwen, Peter Tosh, Femi Kuti, and of course, last year’s headliner, 'Queen of Reggae' Marcia Griffiths.

Full Line Up Now Confirmed For 2012:

The Rasites (UK)

In 2001 the Rasites Band lit up the roots market with their debut album, Urban Regeneration - a record that inspired comparisons with the early greats of the business.  UK reggae hadn't witnessed the emergence of a young band of musicians intent on writing and playing their own material, since Aswad and Steel Pulse first blazed their international roots trail a generation ago.  Since their emergence The Rasites they have recorded hits with Jamaican Superstar Luciano. After playing at 2004 Rbel Salute in Jamaica, they stayed on the island to record tracks with master Saxaphonist/Producer Dean Fraser and Bobby Digital.

Brinsley Forde (UK/Jamaica)

Best known as front man to seminal reggae band Aswad, Forde now takes to the Oye stage to deliver a charismatic set of Roots reggae.  His phenomenal stage presence and crowd pleasing vocal earned Forde a number of live collaborations with Dizzee Rascal, collaborations which blew audiences away on the likes of Jools Holland and at the Electric Proms.

Yaaba Funk (Ghana/UK)

The band was born in Brixton in 2006. The core members of Yaaba Funk met on the south London African scene in the late 1990s when, as well as studying African music, many wild nights were spent jamming together at house parties, drumming, dancing and djing 'til dawn. The name Yaaba Funk comes from an album called Yaba Funk Roots, the only album ever released outside of Africa by Captain Yaba, a musician from northern Ghana and exponent of the 2-string ‘guitar’ called the koliko.

The band has gigged extensively around London and the UK, building up a loyal fan base with their exuberant live shows, and have also performed in Europe and Africa. A floor-filling extravaganza combining the tightest rhythm section this side of Accra, fat analogue bass lines, blazing horns, sparkling African and gritty rock guitars. YF are considered to be one of the best live acts on the circuit.

The Endless Journey (Niger)

Touareg singer, guitarist and songwriter Alhousseini Anivolla and Wodaabe singer Bammo Agonla have toured Europe, Canada, America and Australia with the internationally acclaimed group Etran Finatawa. Mamane Barka is a charismatic musician and ethnomusicologist who is widely known in Niger as a virtuoso ugurumi player. Internationally, he is best known as the last master of the Biram, a sacred instrument of the Boudouma people that he learnt in order to save it from obscurity. Oumarou Adamou, the son of a Hausa Griot, is a famed percussionist and lifelong friend of Barka. Together, their swirling strings, driving rhythms and haunting vocals evoke the vast open spaces of the desert and the very soul of nomadic life.

Dele Sosimi Afrobeat Orchestra (Nigeria/UK)

Dele began his career when he joined Fela Kuti's Egypt 80. He then created the Positive Force band with Femi Kuti, with whom he performed from 1986 to 1994. In both bands he was keyboard player, also musical director taking care of re-orchestrating and arranging music as well as handling the recruiting and training of new musicians. Based on Afrobeat, Dele's music is a blend of complex funk grooves, Nigerian traditional music (including hi-life), African percussion, underpinning the jazz horns and solos from other instruments, as well as rhythmical singing. With a 15 strong line up featuring a brass section and some amazing dancers, this is one live show not to be missed!

Samba Mapangala and Orchestra Virunga (Democratic Republic of Congo)

Samba Mapangala was born in Matadi in what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo. He spent the early 70s with various bands in Kinshasa, before moving to Uganda in 1975 where he and some other Congolese musicians formed the Les Kinois band. They moved to Nairobi in 1977. He formed a new band, the Orchestra Virunga, in 1981. The band is named after Virunga volcano located in Congo.

Orchestra Virunga released their first album, It's Disco Time with Samba Mapangala in 1982. In early 90s the group gained some international popularity through album releases like "Virunga Volcano" and "Feet on Fire."

He has continued to record, and is still one of the leading musicians in East Africa. He is now based in the United States.

Jaliba Kuyateh (The Gambia)

Modernising the exquisite Kora music of Gambia into what he calls ‘Kora Pop’, Jaliba Kuyateh - together with his band - unite current and ancient Gambian sounds into an electric and uplifting live show.  Kyuateh began playing the 21-stringed instrument at the age of five and is now among the most dynamic of its players.

Diabel Cissokho (Senegal)

Part of a great line of Cassikho griots, Diabel Cissokho’s virtuosic talent, his resonant voice and rocking kora style, have been welcomed everywhere from WOMAD and Glastonbury to London’s Barbican, where he performed alongside Femi Kuti, Cheikh Lo and Manu Dibango.  Diabel’s success with bluesman Ramon Goose cemented his reputation as a versatile musician, able to effortlessly cross cultures. Their album Mansana Blues was lauded as “a flavoursome mix of slide guitar, mellow kora and undulating Mandinka rhythms” (fRoots) which “delivers moments of steamy pleasure” (Songlines).

Article posted by Musicmafia

Africa Oyé 2012 - First Acts Announced

We are delighted to announce the first acts to be playing Africa Oyé 2012 this coming June in what is the festival's 20th anniversary year.

Acts confirmed so far for 2012:

Yellowman and the Sagittarius Band (Jamaica)

“We're delighted to announce that Yellowman is back by popular demand after his successful 2011 UK tour organised by Africa Oyé. With a career spanning over 30 years, few Jamaican artists can claim to have had such an impact worldwide as this legendary deejay and MC. Massively influential in both reggae and hip-hop, Yellowman's back catalogue, list of collaborations and producers speaks for itself as he continues to tour worldwide with the now legendary Sagittarius Band. Yet to play the main stage at Africa Oyé, 'King Yellow' is sure to tear it up with tune after tune of classics.” - Paul Duhaney (Festival Director)

Samba Mapangala & Orchestra Virunga (Democratic Republic of Congo)

Dele Sosimi Afrobeat Orchestra (Nigeria/UK)

The Endless Journey (Niger)

Yaaba Funk (Ghana/UK)

In 2012 Africa Oyé are marking 20 years of bringing the best in African music and culture to the UK.

Starting out as a series of small gigs in Liverpool's city centre in 1992, Africa Oyé has gone from strength-to-strength, and has evolved into the foremost celebration of African and Caribbean music and culture in the UK.

Over the past 20 years Africa Oyé has brought some of the biggest names in music from Africa, the Caribbean and South America to Liverpool, including Tinariwen, Peter Tosh, Femi Kuti, and of course, last year’s headliner, 'Queen of Reggae' Marcia Griffiths.

Finally, we are sure you will all be glad to hear that Africa Oyé will remain a free and unfenced event. The festival has always maintained that they are committed to keeping Africa Oyé open to all. Thanks to all their supporters, sponsors, and the generous donations received at last year’s festival, they have managed to do so once again.

http://africaoye.com/

Africa Oye 2011 review @ Sefton Park, Liverpool

Last weekend saw African Oye return for it's ninth year at Sefton Park, and as usual it attracted people in their droves. An estimated 20,000 people turned up over the weekend to enjoy live music, fantastic authentic food, and a few beverages from the festivals very own inn.

The line up over the weekend covered many countries from Western Sahara, Cameroon, Mali, Jamica, Benin and Ethiopia to name but a few. The music itself was wide and varied and Saturday saw artists such as Mariem Hassan, who gave a fantastic hypnotic opening performance, Kareyce Fotso, who delivers her songs with such emotion, you can physically feel the power behind the lyrics to Marcia Griffiths, the "Queen of Reggae", who had the packed out Sefton Park dancing along to her songs and her energy shone through. This was a fantastic way to end to the first day.

Sunday brought a different style of music, with more emphasis on dance/R&B, with the extremely talented Amkoullel, Mali's leading rap artist who gave a performance any Eminem or Jay Z fan would have been made up to see. After seeing him perform, you can see how he's won the Malian Hip Hop award three times. Other highlights were Zewditu Yohannes, a young woman with a beautiful voice that ebbed and flowed it way across the park and Sierra Leone Refugee Allstars, a band formed in 2004, who gave such energy and zest to the final performance of the night, you could see that people didn't want the weekend to end.

So all in all thank you to Africa Oye for providing another fabulous free weekend for the people of Liverpool and the North West to enjoy fantastic live music from these extremely talented people and I can't wait to see what 2012 has to offer us.

Review by Alison Goggin

Full weekend photos http://www.flickr.com/photos/musicmafiauk/5852468038/

http://www.africaoye.com/

Africa Oye Festival in Liverpool this weekend

This weekend sees the annual Africa Oye festival in Liverpool's Sefton park. This event has grown from strength to strength over the years and with the admission charge that was being threatened now abolished there is no reason not to go along to the this free event and savour some of the great food on offer and listen to some amazing talent and, fingers crossed, the weather will be as nice as it was last year!

Sefton Park, Liverpool
Saturday 19th and Sunday 20th June 2010
12:30pm– 9:30pmon both days
A celebration of African music and culture
Admission: Free
Full line up confirmed* (running order tbc):

Saturday 19th June
Boukman Eksperyans –Haiti
Les Espoirs De Coronthie –Guinea Conakry
The Gangbe Brass Band – Benin
Ti Coca –Haiti
Victor Deme – Burkina Faso

Sunday 20th June
Andrew Tosh – Jamaica
Carlou D– Senegal
Les Freress Guisse – Senegal
Michael Rose – Jamaica
The Rasites –UK
To’Mezclao – Cuba

http://www.africaoye.com/

Africa Oye Festival 2010 Review and Gallery

A sunny Sefton Park in Liverpool, saw about 20,000 people descend on it for the return of African Oye this weekend, the largest free African music festival in the UK. With music from a wide variety of countries like Senegal, Haiti, Cuba, Jamaica and the UK and a vast selection of food and various stalls selling numerous items from these countries, this festival catered for everyone's taste.

The music was of course the highlight of the weekend, (apart from the Jerk chicken from one of the stalls). With some of the bands playing two hour sets, which might seem like a long time but the music and energy from each band was so captivating that the time just flew by. One act who stood out the most for me was Carlou D, from Senegal. His performance was to so hypnotic that you were swept away with every move, beat and lyric.

If you missed out on this event, I suggest that you mark it in your diaries for next year as if this years festival was anything to go by, you will be missing out on one of the best weekends Liverpool has to offer in relation to music.

Words: Alison Goggin