Afrochella Music Festival 2022 (DAY 1)
By Chris Owusu-Barfi
Source: https://afrochella.com/
Afrochella is a two-day music and cultural festival held annually in December to celebrate Africa’s diverse culture and the vibrant work of African creatives and entrepreneurs. It is held at the El-Wak Sports Stadium in Accra, Ghana. It’s one of the biggest musical events held in Africa during the dubbed Detty December Season in Ghana. According to the Afrochella website, the festival is designed to elevate and highlight the thrilling and thriving millennial talent in Africa by introducing an interactive event that teaches, explains and explores various cultures through a pioneering approach.
December 2022’s festival was exciting and enthralling as it has been every year. It was even bigger and better with artist from all over Africa performing during the music festival. The festival took place on the Wednesday December 28 and Thursday December 29 2022. The artist line up for Day one of the festival included Kuami Eugene (Ghana), Kofi Kinaata (Ghana), Kwesi Arthur (Ghana), Medikal (Ghana), Gyakie (Ghana), King Promise (Ghana), Ayra Starr (Nigeria), Fireboy DML (Nigeria), Stonebwoy (Ghana) and Shatta Wale (Ghana), who replaced Burna Boy for the day one line up.
Source: https://instagram.com/afrofuture?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
The first artist performance I witnessed was Gyakie, who performed her hit single “Forever” and a few songs from her latest album. She had the crowd singing with her during the performance and she set the mood for the night. After her came Kofi Kinaata, Kuami Eugene and Kwesi Arthur. Kuami Eugene had the crowd eating out of his hands when he performed some of his songs, including “Bunker,” and “Where the Party”. When everyone thought he was done with his performance, he brought on stage some dancers, who increased the party mood and excitement among the audience. Kwesi Arthur entertained the crowd as usual, singing a few of his hit songs. Medikal came to perform with so much energy, then King Promise followed suit with his show stopping performance.
Source: https://instagram.com/afrofuture?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
There was a long pause with a few DJs taking center stage before Ayra Starr came on stage to give the concertgoers a sizzling and captivating performance, with a few laughs shared when she fell on stage. This didn’t deter her, and she continued with her great performance. Shatta Wale then took center stage and delivered the performance of the night. He was actually supposed to perform on Day 2, but due to some technicalities with Burna Boy, he replaced him that night. His performance was so good that the sadness of not seeing Burna Boy on the first day was forgotten. He performed with so much energy and vibrance. He was so engaged with the crowds and made us share a few laughs here and there during his performance. He really filled the shoes of a great headliner such as Burna Boy, and it was amazing. Fireboy DML then took the stage, and he gave one of the best performances of the night, only second to the energetic Shatta Wale. He performed hits from his 2019 album Laughter, Tears, and Goosebumps and his latest album, Playboy. The crowd sang all his songs word for word, and the excitement and joy during his performance was so amazing. Wow, it was crazy! Then came Stonebwoy to close the show with his performance of his recent hits and a few backup dancers that included two Caucasian women.
Day one of Afrochella was amazing and an unforgettable night!
Source: https://afrochella.com/