AHFOMAD festival brings the best of African-diaspora music and dance to Massey Theatre and Eighth & Eight, September 1 to 3
Dremo, Selmor Mtukuzi, Ndidi O, Mimi O’Bonsawin, Liya, and Kays, plus Vancouver’s own Alpha Yaya Diallo

Alpha Yaya Diallo
Massey Theatre and Eighth & Eight Creative Spaces present AHFOMAD 2023 from September 1 to 3
FOLLOW THE RHYTHMS to the Massey Theatre and Eighth & Eight Creative Spaces this weekend, as the 8th annual AHFOMAD festival brings concerts, dance, workshops, vendors, and more to the New West arts hub.
African Heritage Music and Dance Society celebrates Black Africa Caribbean and Black Peoples’ music and cultures, bringing a world of diasporic performance to audiences.
Among the artists at this year’s event are Nigerian rapper Dremo, Selmor Mtukuzi, Ndidi O, Mimi O’Bonsawin, Liya, and Kays, plus Vancouver’s own Alpha Yaya Diallo. DJs spin tunes throughout the fest. Discover dozens of emerging acts, like RevBoy born Kalule Isaac, Ugandan recording artist, songwriter, producer based in Toronto (appearing on Massey stage September 3, see video below) or Jeyyyh, an artist from Congo and now based in Vancouver (at the Massey September 2).
The festivities wrap the night of September 3 at the Commodore Ballroom, with a concert by Sauti Sol, the Kenyan Afropop band; listen to its track "Lil Mama" below. More details are at www.festivalafrica.org.
Related Articles
The concert is an evening of music all about living things
Encompassing jazz, tango, chamber, and avant-garde influences, the group’s sound is a treat for the ears
Armenian pianist and composer draws on folklore and storytelling in interdisciplinary project
The multidisciplinary work centres on words related to nature that the 2007 Oxford Junior Dictionary left out in favour of tech terms
Performances in store range from the breathtaking acrobatics of Kalabanté Productions to a life-sized puppet in Where Have All the Buffalo Gone?
Program includes Boy on a Dolphin, The Travelling Players, On the Waterfront, and more
Photo-based exhibitions can be found throughout Metro Vancouver and in Whistler this season
The cultural calendar is filled with everything from film screenings to experimental theatre to stuff just for kids
Mongolian traditions, Czech strings, Baroque beauties, and more on the music calendar
Caravan World Rhythms presents the 10-piece band at the Massey Theatre
One-woman solo show follows the creator’s own near-death experiences, from her childhood in the Bronx to travels in Israel, Asia, and South America
Interdisciplinary artist melds software with sound performance in experimental workshop and presentation
American string players to perform compositions by Bartók and Shostakovich, plus Samuel Barber’s film-famous adagio
Maillardville’s music and culture event hosts free contra dance, Youth Zone Tent, and more
The three-piece squeezes something jagged yet soulful from its sparse guitar-drum-vocal setup
The veteran musician, hitting Festival du Bois, revisits the breadth of his career with Le Grand Orchestre
French Romantic masterpiece stars soprano Emily Pogorelc as Manon and tenor Frédéric Antoun as Chevalier des Grieux
Director Sepideh Yadegar’s debut feature follows Iranian international student Sahar as she stands up for women’s rights in Vancouver