Nneka to headline Afropolitan Vibes third anniversary concert

Nneka, Dammy Krane and Blackky make up the trio performing for the anniversary show which takes place on Friday 18 March. Each of the three singers represents a particular section of the Nigerian music scene. Blackky, a popular reggae musician of the nineties, represents the old school. Dammy Krane, a discovery of 2baba, represents the contemporary sound.

Sandwiched between these periods is Nneka, who has taken old fashioned consciousness and repurposed it for the younger generation. Her method is manifested eloquently on her last album, 2015’s My Fairy Tales.

Announcing the celebratory edition across social media, the organisers of Afropolitan Vibes wrote that, “Friday March 18th will mark three years since Afropolitan Vibes began at the amphitheatre in Freedom Park with just a few people in attendance. This Friday night, we hope thousands of people will gather to celebrate this milestone with us at the main stage of the same venue.”

To emphasise the growth of the concert, the official Afropolitan Vibes magazine, which is given freely upon entry, shows a large gathering of revellers under the Lagos skies on its cover.

In the time since its first edition, the concert has brought a plethora of stars onstage, invited a vast array of attendees on stage with them, and has brought many a forgotten musician to a new live audience.

This last, according to the organisers, is an important part of the Afropolitan Vibes plan. And looking back at the acts that have graced the Afropolitan Vibes stage over the years, Abby Ogunsanya, who alongside Ade Bantu, is the brain behind the concert said a performance by one of such artists was particularly moving.

“It was the night Daddy Showkey [an artist popular in the 1990s] came,” she said. “He wasn’t sure what he was going to get; he didn’t know what to expect. But the crowd started to sing his songs back to him. At that moment, you could see he actually cried.”

Ogunsanya, however, declined to mention her personal favourite performer. “They have all been great,” she said.

The third anniversary of Afropolitan Vibes concert will hold on Friday 18 March at Freedom Park, Lagos Island. The concert is free. However, Freedom Park entry fee of 500 naira ($3) applies.