Africa Oyé brings the world to Sefton Park

Africa Oyé takes over Sefton Park next weekend with two days of fantastic performances from global artists.

Thousands of people are expected to descend on the park for the free annual music event, now in it 31st year.

This year’s Oyé features artists from Liverpool and London to Accra and Havana, along with DJs, dance, workshops, food stalls and a range of traders in the Oyé Village.

Headliners for 2023 are Afrobeat superstar Seun Kuti and pioneering dancehall singer, Tanya Stephens. They are also joined on the line-up by British rapper and singer ZieZie whose addition will delight his 100,000+ followers on TikTok.

Performers also include Alogte Oho - the number one Frafra gospel artist from within the explosive music scene of Bolgatanga in Northern Ghana – who will be accompanied by his powerful female choir; Grupo Lokito, who fuse blistering contemporary Congolese grooves with the fire of Cuban music, and Soukustek from Cartagena des Indias in Columbia.

Above: Soukustek from Columbia. Top: Africa Oyé 2022. Photo by Mark McNulty.

Liverpool neo-jazz singer Ni Maxine will take to the Oyé stage on Sunday afternoon - marking the first time an artist from the festival's Oyé Introduces programme has been invited back to be part of the main stage line-up, such was the acclaim following her performance in 2022.

Oyé Introduces – which was first introduced in 2015 - sees local artists open the musical programme on both days of the festival, following community performances from Merseyside cultural organisations, giving some of the area's brightest young talent the chance to share the stage with international stars.

This year, the programme sees R&B vocal harmony group AMBA and South Liverpool rap trio Black Borough performing.

Africa Oyé's artistic director, Paul Duhaney, says: "We're really pleased with the line-up for this year 's festival and how it reflects our ongoing mission to showcase the music of Africa and the wider Diaspora. Artists from Liverpool to Accra and London to Havana will take over Sefton Park this summer for a truly international celebration."

Africa Oyé takes place in Sefton Park on June 17-18, with live music from 12.30-9.30pm.