Africa Oyé, the country’s biggest celebration of African and Caribbean music and culture, will take over Sefton Park for two packed days of live music, dance, workshops, DJ stages, food stalls, traders and more on 22 & 23 June 2024.
Here we’ll give you the rundown of this year’s headliners, international acts and local talent, as well as highlighting what’s happening in the Oyé Village and Active Zone.
Africa Oyé 2024 Headliners
Les Amazones d’Afrique
The powerful and creative force of Les Amazones d’Afrique will headline Africa Oyé on Saturday 22 June.
Les Amazones d’Afrique is a dynamic collective formed in Bamako, Mali, in 2014 by Malian music stars and social change activists Mamani Keïta, Oumou Sangaré, and Mariam Doumbia. The group champions the rights of women and girls, blending heritage and new talent with international voices. Their membership includes notable artists such as Angélique Kidjo, Nneka, and rising Malian star Rokia Koné.
Their music, a powerful blend of pan-African styles and contemporary pop, supports their campaign for gender equality and the eradication of ancestral violence. Les Amazones d’Afrique have been recognized in The Guardian’s Top 50 albums of 2017, NPR Music’s best albums of 2020, and even featured on Barack Obama’s playlist. They have performed on Glastonbury Festival’s Pyramid stage and appeared on the BBC music show Later… with Jools Holland.
Julian Marley
Fresh off his Grammy win for Best Reggae Album for his collaboration album with Antaeus, Colors of Royal (2023), Julian Marley will headline on Sunday 23 June with his band The Uprising.
Born in London in 1975, Julian Marley is the son of reggae legend Bob Marley and Barbados-born Lucy Pounder. Immersed in a musical environment from a young age, the Grammy Award-winning musician, singer-songwriter, producer, and humanitarian quickly mastered the bass, drums, guitar, and keyboards.
In 2005, Julian and the Marley family launched the ‘Africa Unite’ concert series, starting in Ethiopia and continuing in Ghana in 2006 and Jamaica in 2008. He and his band, The Uprising, also performed at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, celebrating with Jamaica’s Gold medalist, Usain Bolt. Known for his contributions to the consciousness movement in music, Julian is a devout Rastafarian, drawing inspiration from life and spirituality much like his father.
International Acts on the Africa Oyé 2024 Lineup
Also announced for the main stage;
- Senegalese electronic rising stars Def MaMa Def,
- Tanzanian folk-fusion singers, The Zawose Queens
- Congolese eco-friendly punks Fulu Miziki
- frafra gospel talent, Florence Adooni
- Canadian hip-hop contingent, Super Duty Tough Work.
- Congolese rumba royalty, Nyboma
- Haitian multilingual poet and MC, Vox Sambou
- Senegalese griot, Batch Gueye
Local Acts
Young artists from Liverpool will kick off the daily musical line-up at the Africa Oyé festival this summer.
Launched in 2015, ‘Oyé Introduces’ sees local artists open the musical programme on both days of the festival – following community performances by cultural organisations from across the city region – giving some of the area’s brightest young talent the chance to share the stage with international stars.
Angolan rapper and songwriter Yilly Ruel performs a unique fusion of Hip Hop/Rap and Angolan rhythms, captivating audiences with his exhilarating sound. Based in Liverpool, Yilly has been making waves in the local music scene and achieved a significant milestone as the 3rd winner of the prestigious Open Mic UK 2019 competition held at the iconic O2 Arena in London.
Born and raised in Luanda – the capital of Angola – Yilly’s passion for music blossomed during his formative years. Balancing part-time employment with his dedication to crafting exceptional music, he transformed his home studio into a creative sanctuary, producing music that resonates with the themes of self-love and self-motivation.
Yilly – who will perform on the Saturday of the festival – has recently joined forces with Rax Vibes, a band featuring members with roots from Nigeria and Jamaica.
Fraya Ofoeme is an aspiring artist from Liverpool who has been singing since she was 4 years old. She describes it as her passion – and is determined to make it her future.
The young singer is involved in various events in the city, and is currently on Sound City’s Training and Development Programme.
Fraya, who will open the music programme of the Oyé festival on the Sunday, is currently working on her own original material – embracing her Nigerian and Senegalese heritage.
Community Acts
The Community Acts for Africa Oyé 2024 have also been revealed, with MD Productions opening proceedings on the Saturday and Liverpool Hip Hop Festival presenting a showcase on the Sunday.
Since their inception in 2001, MD Productions has built up a well-respected professional repertoire in the entertainment industry as well as being well known in the Liverpool City Region for their community-based project “See you see Me”. The dance company’s journey has seen them become semi-finalists on Britain’s Got Talent three times, close the entertainment at the F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2016. In addition, MD have performed for Michael Jackson, The Royal Family and supplied artists for the likes of MTV.
Liverpool Hip Hop Festival’s youth music group is a talented group of musicians and vocalists who have grown from their Access All Areas project, supported by Liverpool Royal Court. This year at Oyé, audiences can expect to see ‘an interesting collective of different musical vibes to get you in the mood for a good time’.
Africa Oyé Village & Active Zone DJs
The Oyé Active Zone returns for 2024, and will once again be hosted by Liverpool’s world dance charity Movema. Audiences can expect the usual array of multi-arts workshops across the whole weekend, for all ages and abilities.
The increasingly-popular DJ stages Trenchtown and Freetown are also confirmed to return with a line-up of local selectors and MCs to be announced very soon. Africa Oyé’s ethos of being ‘free and open to all’ also means that as well as the festival remaining free entry, the popular Access Tent, on-stage British Sign Language translators and the Accessible Viewing Platform will all return in 2024.
This year’s Africa Oyé festival will take place on 22 – 23 June 2024, in Liverpool’s Sefton Park from 12:30pm til 9:30pm both days and entrance is FREE.