BEVERLY HILLS, August 02, (THEWILL) – Yeni Kuti, daughter of the late legendary musician, Fela Anikulapo Kuti, has revealed that about 250,000 guests will attend this year’s Felabration festival.
Felabration is an annual music festival conceived in 1998 by Yeni in memory and celebration of her father.
It incorporates musical performances, Fela Debates, symposiums, secondary schools debate and the Felabration carnival.
She made this known at a press briefingon Wednesday, a day that marked the 20th anniversary of the death of the late Afrobeat maestro, who died on August 2, 1997.
“All is now set for the 2017 edition of Felabration, the annual festival to commem orate the life of activist and Afrobeat founder, Fela Kuti,” she said at the Kalakuta Museum in Lagos.
“Presently, we are expecting no less than 250,000 guests all over the world,” she said.
Yeni said that the festival proper would run for one week, beginning fromMonday, October 9-15, which is Fela’s birthday.
She said an art and painting competition was flagged off onApril 1and participants had until June 30, 2017, to submit their works to be evaluated by members of the Felabration organising committee (FOC) to pick the top three winners who will be announced before July 31.
Theo Lawson, Head, Felabration Organising Committee, said this year marks the 20th anniversary of Fela’s death in 1997, and the central theme around the celebration is ‘The Prophecy’.
Lawson said the theme song would be ‘Pansa Pansa,’ the title of one of Fela’s songs which literally means ‘you ain’t heard nothing yet’.
According to him, a new addition to the celebration, different from that of the previous years, is a tour package to walk tourists through major landmarks in Fela’s life.
“The tour will take tourists from Abeokuta, the birth/childhood place of Fela to Lagos where he lived and died,” he said.
“Tourists will also visit the house he was born in, his childhood neighbourhood and the schools he attended while growing up.
“They will also visit his first home in Lagos, his first ever club of performance, Afro-Spot, Old Shrine, site of old and first Kalakuta Republic, among other places of interest.
“Most of the musical performances from various artistes will still take place at the New Afrika Shrine in Ikeja, Lagos, Freedom Park on Broad Street, Lagos Island will also play a big role in the musical aspects of Felabration.”