Shoko Festival…a breath of life to the 2020 cultural calendar
I recently watched this year’s Reggae Sumfest which was held as a week-long virtual experience for audiences around the globe.
The event which was streamed back July gave reggae fans access to exclusive artist interviews, professional panels for content creators, artist spotlights from past performances, and live performances.
While I did not manage to watch the whole thing, I was blown away with the performances from the likes of Chaka Demus and Pliers, Tanto Metro and Devonte, Agent Sasco, Tarrus Riley, Gyptian, Maxi Priest, Koffee, Freddie McGregor and Sizzla to name just a few.
With the original format of the event being shelved because of the coronavirus pandemic, the organisers were not deterred and managed to pull off an exceptional production.
Meanwhile in Zimbabwe, festival organisers and other major players in the cultural sector have been mute, until now.
A few days ago Delta Beverages announced that their annual Castle Lager National Braai Day which takes place every last day of October was a go but will also be taking the virtual route.
Wheels of the fete, which is being dubbed Braai Paden/Endlini, are already in motion with a sales promotion running to the 25th of October taking off last Friday.
Creators of The CookOut and Tamba Events (Braai Out) just announced exciting events to be held in Nyanga and Kariba respectively.
Shoko Festival organisers have also decided to drop a last minute announcement highlighting that they would be hosting their 10th edition from the 21st to 27th of September.
This year’s edition, which is being called The Phoenix Edition will feature a completely digital implementation with live sets being streamed from Harare and Bulawayo during the course of the festival week.
Some of the artistes who are set to perform include Poptain, Jah Master, Ray Vines, Natasha Muz, Anita Jaxson and Pro Beatz among others.
There will also be a surprise international artiste who will be announced in the run-up to the event.
Organisers are promising a mixture of new and old formats which they say will optimise the experience for the streaming audience on Facebook and other online platforms.
Those who will be tuning in can expect live performances, Peace in The Hood, Mash Ups Night, The Bang Bang Comedy Show, a Digital Poetry Slam, a Top Comedian Battle, the #DigitalMediaWeek hosted by The Hub Unconference, a #ZimbabweanLivesMatter cypher and the Voice2Rep competition among many other scheduled presentations.
“As Shoko Festival we’re all about pushing the boundaries of what’s possible and what can be performed. Because of Covid-19 we’ve had to pivot our programming and its challenged us to come up with a brand new virtual programme of cutting edge curated events, brand new musical collaborations, daring comedy game shows and an inspiring digital conference too,” says the festival director Comrade Fatso.
The festival has pledged to continue providing a platform for upcoming artists in different urban culture genres and also collaborate with more established acts from other none-urban sounds through their Peace in The Hood event and Mash Ups Night.
Some of the joint performances to look out for will include Poptain featuring rapper BlacPerl and seasoned poet Madzitateguru as well as rising star Anita Jaxson joining forces with other upcomers Natasha Muz and Sibo.
“We are proud that even in these trying times Shoko Festival is able to be one of the few cultural platforms where upcoming and talented poets can perform alongside the biggest acts in the country. The same festival can also host some of the best comedians and rappers while also running a cutting edge week-long conference that covers the state of the internet and engages our political leaders on critical issues,” says Shoko Production Manager Outspoken.
Shoko’s main sponsors this year are the Prince Claus Fund, Norwegian People’s Aid, Accountability Lab and the Heinrich Boll Foundation.
Shoko Festival is Zimbabwe’s most popular and longest-running urban culture festival. Shoko is all about promoting urban culture, free expression and new ideas.
Over the years the festival has provided a platform for hundreds of young Zimbabwean rappers, comedians, musicians and spoken word artists to perform, collaborate and express themselves.
