Nigeria’s Asa to headline MTN Bushfire festival

Asa will be joined by Blinky Bill Sellanga (Kenya), Smiles Mandla Makama (Swaziland), Mahube (SA), Thabang Tabane (SA), Sereetsi & The Natives (Botswana), Gran'Mah, Dobet Gnahoré (Côte d'Ivoire), Maia and the Big Sky (Kenya), Eme (Nigeria), Moonchild (South Africa) and Aramboa (Switzerland and Austria).

Born in Paris to Nigerian parents, Asa earned fame through her first single ‘Eyé Adaba’ which received extensive airplay in Nigeria. Her debut self-titled album went platinum and appeared on several radio chats in Africa, Europe and Asia. In 2008, Asa was awarded a Prix Constantin award, a music prize awarded to the best album of an artist. Her music is a fusion of pop, soul and a twist of reggae and features English and Yoruba lyrics.

Makama is a 2018 Swaziland Music Awards lifetime achievement winner who is an elder statesmen of the Swati music scene. He has opened for Salif Keita and was featured on English singer Manfred Mann’s Earth Band. His most notable instrument is the smilerphone, a great innovation of the traditional makhoyane bow.

Mahube brings together some of Southern Africa’s top musicians in an explosive collaboration directed by the multi-award winning Steve and Bokani Dyer. The music group will pay tribute to the late Oliver Mtukudzi who was one of the leading forces of the group.

Tabane is the heir to Malombo music founder Philip Tabane. The ‘Nyanda Yeni’ singer will perform with a full band at the festival.

Folk jazz band Sereetsi & The Natives is considered a pioneer on the cultural landscape in Botswana. Known for presenting a sound that blends traditional Botswana rhythms with western influences, the three-member band will perform songs from its latest album Motoko – an album that represents the experience of lead man Tomeletso Sereetsi who grew up in the streets of Somerset in Francistown.