African Beats Festival is one of the major events in Europe showcasing African music and culture. It is also one of the largest world music events in Poland. The festival has been organized in partnership with the ‘Music Against Racism’ campaign of the ‘NEVER AGAIN’ Association. African Beats Festival takes place at Kaweczyn near Warsaw on 9-11 August 2024.
The festival’s stars include Vieux Farka Touré from Mali, a pioneer of the ‘Desert Blues’ genre. The line-up features also Sona Jobarteh, a musician and composer as well as founder of The Gambia Academy, an educational institution promoting African culture, history and traditions.
Among the scheduled performers there are also Bombino, a guitarist and vocalist from Niger, known for his virtuoso style of guitar playing and deep connection with the Tuareg tradition, the Tasuta N-Imal band from Morocco, the Kabusa Oriental Choir from Nigeria, Madou Konte from Senegal, the Polish-Tanzanian project Sinaubi Zawose & Pamoja Zanzibar, the Senegalese Badji Band, the Warsaw Afro-Beat band Faso Tamala, and Moribaya - an international group of artists from Poland, Australia, Burkina Faso and Ukraine, united by their passion for West African traditional music.
The programme of the event includes numerous educational workshops such as African dance, drumming and singing, film screenings, discussions as well as sports activities.
The ‘NEVER AGAIN’ Association’s co-founder Rafal Pankowski emphasizes that the partnership between the ‘Music Against Racism’ campaign and African Beats Festival has a special meaning in 2024: - ‘It is an expression of solidarity with the African diaspora in Poland and other countries in the face of adversity, discrimination and xenophobia’.
‘NEVER AGAIN’ is an independent anti-racist organization founded in Warsaw in 1996. It has campaigned for peace, intercultural dialogue and human rights both in Poland and internationally.
The ‘Music Against Racism’ campaign was launched by the founder of the ‘NEVER AGAIN’ Association Marcin Kornak (born 1968, died 2014). From the age of fifteen, due to an accident, Marcin lived with a physical disability. He was a poet and songwriter who cooperated with independent rock bands. The campaign was followed by ‘Music Against War’, announced after the invasion against Ukraine, and joined by musicians who want to express their solidarity with refugees and to protest against violence in the world.
The ‘NEVER AGAIN’ Association invites musicians, record labels and promoters who are interested in releasing music or videos as well as organising shows with the promotional support of ‘Music Against Racism’ / ‘Music Against War’ to get in touch via email: info@neveragainassociation.org.
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Źródło: Stowarzyszenie "Nigdy Więcej"
