Zim: Shoko Festival 2020 announces programme

Confirmed artists include Poptain, Jah Master, Ray Vines, Natasha Muz, Anita Jaxson, Pro Beatz, Blac Perl and Sibo. An international act and more local acts will be announced soon.

The event, which is in its 10th edition, will run under the theme The Phoenix Edition and will comprise physical and virtual elements, with live sets streamed from the two cities.

“As Shoko Festival, we are all about pushing the boundaries of what is possible and what can be performed,” Shoko Festival director Comrade Fatso said. “Because of COVID-19, we had to change our programming and it challenged us to come up with a brand new virtual programme of cutting-edge curated events, brand new musical collaborations, daring comedy game shows and an inspiring digital conference too.”

Shoko Festival production manager Tongai Makawa said: “We are proud that even in these trying times Shoko Festival is able to be one of the few cultural platforms where upcoming and talented poets can perform alongside the biggest acts in the country, and that the same festival can also host some of the best comedians and rappers while also running a cutting-edge, weeklong conference that covers the state of the internet and engages our political leaders on critical issues.”

This year’s edition will be streamed on Facebook. Shows on the programme include Peace In The Hood, Mash Ups Night, The Bang Bang Comedy Show, Digital Poetry Slam, Top Comedian Battle, Digital Media Week hosted by The Hub Unconference, the #ZimbabweanLivesMatter cypher, and the Voice2Rep competition, among others.

Shoko Festival is one of Zimbabwe’s most popular and longest-running urban culture festival. Over the years, the festival has provided a platform for musicians, comedians and spoken-word artists. The festival also hosts free conferences, workshops and panels, and aims to give upcoming artists in different urban genres an opportunity to perform and increase their fan base.