The Festival doors
officially opened at 12 noon on Saturday 15th April 2017 recording well over
5,000 attendees throughout the day and into the night at Eko Atlantic, ready
for the complete Gidi Fest Experience.
The day’s activities
started with exhilarating games of soccer and volleyball between celebrity
teams and fans, which saw the participating teams go home with N100,000 cash
prizes courtesy of Pepsi and Red Bull. The vendor stalls offered a wide
selection of foods, drinks and interesting experiences like live art in the
Vortex enclosure and life size board games to keep everybody engaged. It was a
fun filled afternoon for friends and family.
The evening’s hosts, Jimmie
and Folu Storms, welcomed the audience and called out the first performance of
the night, Nneka. The soul/reggae singer held festival goers spell bound as she
delivered a stellar performance, having been in Kenya for another festival
performance just a week before #GIDIFEST2017, it seemed the energy was right as
the audience sang to every tune and was mesmerized by her energy.
Singing sensation Simi was
next on stage, backed by her energetic dancers, she captivated music lovers
with her thrilling performance. Mild showers weren’t going to stop the show and
exciting new acts like, Falana, Dremo, Mayourkun, Wale Turner, Pryse, BOJ,
Fresh L, Cykay, amongst many more took turns to thrill the audience.
From the moment the sun set
over the Atlantic, painting an idyllic backdrop for what was gearing up to be a
night of world class entertainmnent, clouds started to gather and circle above
the festival with the imminent threat of heavy rain.
Rain or shine, the show
went on and Niniola, Reekado Banks and Seyi Shay led the charge leaving their
bands behind. As each of them hit the stage, they sent the audience into a
frenzy running out from their cover to the stage. The Gidi Squad wasn’t going
to let some showers of blessings spoil their fun.
Just when it seemed like
the rain was going to slow down, the second brigade led by DJ Obi showed up, to
turn up. Burna Boy, Davido and Diplo waiting in the wings ready to give the
brave crowd what they deserved as their fighting spirit had pushed through.
They made it clear Gidi Fest is theirs and they are Gidi Fest.
As soon as he took to the
stage, Burna Boy commanded the audience like a conductor as they sung along
with him. He surprised his fans by bringing out Skales who features him on his
recently released track, Temper.
Following suit was “rave of
the moment” Davido, who picked up where Burna Boy left off and brought the
house down with his trademark energy and 30 Billion for the account ringing
across the sea of people causing complete fanfare!
Major Lazer front man,
Diplo, was the last act of the night and setout with a mulititude of heavy beat
wrenching sounds and surprised everybody with
a few unreleased Remixes of Nigerian favourites Tekno’s “Pana”, and Mr
Eazi’s “Leg Over”.
In the blink of an eye,
Diplo became Major Lazer, as Walshy Fire appeared on stage and climbed the DJ
table. 2 for 1 was definitely more than anybody had bargained for. The duo had
fans dancing till the wee hours of the morning and the moment Diplo waved the
Nigerian flag up high with pride, it all came together for the culture.
Gidi Fest Co-founder, Teme
Banigo says “It was a trying evening with challenges around the rain and its
effects on the performances, but it was fulfilling to see the festival close at
such a high with thousands having braved the rain and interruptions. It was
truly the birth of a tribe, a movement, the #Giditribe! We applaud You!”
“This year was special for
so many reasons, I couldn’t even start to count. We had so many acts that were
either on tour or starting tours choosing to use #GIDIFEST2017 as their home
for the Nigerian leg, including Diplo. Davido sets off on a Nigerian tour in a
few weeks and Burna Boy in America later this month. Live music is the biggest
revenue generator for musicians globally and #GIDIFEST has become a necessary
stop for the global artist wanting to tour Africa. We ARE part of the tour
circuit on this continent and always aim to deliver a world class live
production”, says Gidi Fest co-founder, Chinedu Okeke.
For those who couldn’t make
it to the festival, the show was streamed on Facebook Live to over 200,000
people worldwide. WATCH HERE0
ABOUT GIDI FEST
The Gidi Culture Festival
(Gidi Fest) was founded by Chin Okeke and Teme Banigo, with the intention of providing
live, affordable and accessible entertainment to African youth. Realizing the
demand for quality entertainment is not class specific, Gidi Fest works to
break down socioeconomic barriers with an entertainment offering that appeals
to all youth-minded individuals. This platform curates and represents African
music and culture with the goal of exporting our culture to a global audience.
See images from the
Festival below
Photo Credits: Andrew
Eseibo, House of Lunettes, Lasalvy, Studio 24, SD Visuals
Special thanks to all our
sponsors
Sponsored by Afrione
Supported by Eko Atlantic,
Eko Hotel, Diamond Bank, Pepsi, Red Bull, Mikano, LASAA, Hyperia, Trek Buy Fly,
Filmhouse, House of Lunettes, Kenya Airways, Heineken
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