ORGANISERS of the three-day urban arts fete, Shoko Festival have established pole position in the showbiz sector after successfully hosting the sixth edition of the festival that ended yesterday.
BY Kennedy NYAVAYA
The festival, that was held under the theme Come Alive, started on a high note with informative new media conferences as well as polished performances from rising and established artistes.
It managed to attract many people as evidenced by some of the well-attended shows, which were nothing short of top drawer material with South Africa’s hip-hop music icon AKA and dancehall president Winky D proving why they command huge followings in the country.
Popular South African comedian Donovan Goliath also presented a stellar act on Saturday night as he dished out jokes, much to the excitement of comedy fans.
Speaking to NewsDay yesterday, festival co-ordinator Natalie Kombe said they were satisfied with the success of the event as it had surpassed past editions.
“All the artistes that performed at this year’s festival delivered amazing performances and the turn out for both days was really great with Friday show recording the biggest attraction,” she said.
Kombe conceded that although they had faced economic challenges in the buildup, they were inspired by the need to enhance local artistry which has been floundering.
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“The issue of funding has always been a challenge, but we continued to persevere because it is very important for us to provide this space for artistes. We have managed to give local art the exposure it needs and so our goals continue to be met each year we put on the festival,” she said.
Some of the artistes who performed at the festival include; high-flying contemporary musician Jah Prayzah, songbird Ammara Brown, South African hip-hop music icon AKA, King of dancehall Winky D, South African comedian Donovan Goliath who headlined the comedy night alongside local comedians Doc Vikela, Bustop TV’s Gonyeti and Long John, Norwegian jazz act Mooyh and Bryan Kadengu.
Shoko festival is an annual event which has managed to develop into a better fete as each year passes, as the organisers have managed to promote urban culture by offering local artistes of different art forms to carve their niche and express talents in front of wide audiences.
