Here are the artists you can see live at ACCES 2022

The forthcoming edition will place special emphasis on showcasing Tanzanian music to music buyers, international label execs and festival organisers, among other stakeholders. Over the years, a key highlight at ACCES has been its eclectic showcase programme, which features exciting artists from across the continent with enthralling live performances.

This year’s ACCES will see Tanzanian acts like TaraJazz Zanzibar, Tofa Jaxx, SinaUbi Zawose & Watupa Mawe and Vitali Maembe in action. The line-up also includes Flying Bantu (Zimbabwe), Joyce Babatunde (Cameroon), Naïnako (Madagascar), Oumar Konaté (Mali), Tankiso Mamabolo (South Africa) and Kalam (Burkina Faso). More acts will be announced in September.

Ahead of the conference, which takes place at the National Museum & House of Culture in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, on 24, 25 and 26 November, Music In Africa brings you a playlist featuring our diverse selection of showcasing artists.

TaraJazz Zanzibar (Tanzania)

The innovative seven-piece band draws from an array of Tanzanian musical traditions, fusing them with taarab and its Arabic, African and Eastern influences. The result? Immersive soundscapes that preach cultural harmony.

Oumar Konaté (Mali)

Oumar Konaté’s music is both vibrant and majestic. The singer-songwriter, guitarist and vocal powerhouse instantly captivates the listener. Having played with multiple bands and toured extensively, Konaté, whose music also preserves golden traditional Malian sounds, has mastered the art of blowing festival audiences away with his original take on the desert blues. At ACCES 2022, Konaté is expected to perform music from his extensive catalogue, which dates back to his self-recorded 2008 debut offering Lahidou (The Oath).

Flying Bantu (Zimbabwe)

The five-man band is famous for its unique approach and marriage of Afro-rock, reggae, funk and jazz – accentuated by a traditional Zimbabwean musical signature. The band’s dashing sound and rich takes have made them de facto ambassadors of Zimbabwean music. At ACCES 2022, the group will bring its global message of truth, peace, unity and harmony to a diverse audience. 

Tofa Jaxx (Tanzania)

Emerging singer-songwriter Tofa Jaxx boasts a mature and soothing vocal style that caters to various themes. His music is delivered in English and Swahili, and his work crisscrosses everything from rich jazz to nostalgic electro pop, R&B and blues. 

Kalam (Burkina Faso)

Kalam, whose story is a breathing resistance to oppressive traditions, summons ancestral spirits, channelling them through her captivating vocals and her manipulation of the kundé, a traditional stringed instrument that women were traditionally banned from playing. Daring and defiant, Kalam has grown to become the queen of the instrument. She released her debut album Education in 2018, but music has lived with the artist since childhood.

Naïnako (Madagascar)

Founded in 2006, the charismatic Naïnako is an acoustic band that explores secular themes as much as it does religious subjects. The group’s incredible a cappella harmonies and traditional southern Madagascar influences make for a unique listening experience.

SinaUbi Zawose & Watupa Mawe (Tanzania)

SinaUbi Zawose hails from the famed Zawose family identified by the traditional Gogo sound. Considered a virtuoso of the zeze, a traditional stringed instrument, the artist, who is behind 2008’s Wichemaje album, is credited with modernising the Gogo tradition. At ACCES 2022, he will be joined by Watupa Mawe, who will co-steer this musical time capsule. 

Joyce Babatunde (Cameroon)

Joyce Babatunde’s craft begins with Afro-soul and spoken word, but expands into other channels like neo-soul, rap and jazz with underpinnings of African chants and rhythmic motifs. These unique characteristics reveal themselves upon first listen, and then, with more plays, unfold to expand into boundless narratives. It is part of the reason that her debut LP is being widely and feverishly anticipated by her fans.

Tankiso Mamabolo (South Africa)

Tankiso Mamabolo’s exquisite voice and music can be heard in the Sotho, Xhosa and in English languages. Bold, vivid and majestic, the singer and poet, who has been performing her own compositions since 2018, tackles questions of identity, love, loss and memory with charming storytelling. Her debut album Freedom Hurts Sometimes was released in 2020.

Vitali Maembe (Tanzania)

Vitali Maembe is a conscious and fearless singer-songwriter, guitarist and activist who seeks to awaken society with his work. His sound, while it honours his Tanzanian roots, also has a uniquely global appeal that has seen him playing events all over the world. Thematically, Vitali Maembe tackles everything from mental health to criticising corrupt political regimes, which got him arrested last year. 

ACCES is a pan-African trade show for music industry players to exchange ideas, discover new talent and create business linkages. ACCES is held in a different African city every year, attracting active music industry players from across the globe. ACCES is organised by the Music In Africa Foundation, a non-profit pan-African organisation, in partnership with Siemens Stiftung, Goethe-Institut, the Tanzanian Ministry of Culture, Arts and Sports and Alliance Française.