Abdi Rashid Jibril (Roots International)

Abdi Rashid Jibril is a music curator and promoter from Nairobi, Kenya.

He is the Managing Director of Roots International, a boutique event company that produces the annual Cool Waters Jazz & Roots Festival and hosts a weekly live music night called Thursday Nite Live in Nairobi. The event has featured over 350 concerts and is recognized as one of the best weekly live music platforms in East Africa.

Apart from Cool Waters Jazz & Roots Festival, Roots International Presents has promoted notable concerts featuring renowned national legends and international artists among them Meklit Hadero (Ethiopia/USA), Sal Davis & Maia von Lekow (Kenya), Ochieng Nelly (Kenya), Sousou and Maher Cissoko (Sweden/Senegal), Addis Acoustic Project (Ethiopia), Habib Koite & Bamada (Mali), Suzanna Owiyo (Kenya), Waldemar Bastos (Angola), Thais Diarra (Mali/Switzerland), Aline Frazao (Angola), Tomasz Licak/Radek Wosko Quartet featuring Carl Winther (Denmark), Kareyce Fotso (Cameroon), Ayub Ogada (Kenya), Kristin Amparo (Sweden), Kabo Leburu (Botswana), Franck Biyong (Cameroon/France) and Keziah Jones (Nigeria/UK), Grace Barbe (Seychelles), The SOIL (South Africa), Luedji Luna (Brazil)

Besides presenting Nairobi audiences with Africa's and the world’s rich musical heritage, Roots International serves as a talent booking agent with a great network and relationships with artists both in Kenya and Africa. His company Roots International offers workshops in event curation, event management, career coaching, audience development. Roots International is proud of its contribution to the growth and development of the live music sector in East Africa.