Music and cultural festivals that happen annually are part of the activities on the events calendar in the country. Each year, people look forward to partaking in such festivals.
Over the past years, the cultural festivals appear to have gathered unprecedented momentum such that when they are approaching, people always look forward to patronising them.
Cultural events such as Umhlangano wa Maseko Ngoni in Ntcheu, Mulhako wa Alhomwe in Mulanje, Umthetho in Mzimba, Kulamba in Mkayika, Zambia, Chiwanja cha a Yao in Machinga, Khulubvi Arts and Cultural Festival in Nsanje and Gonapamuhanya in Rumphi are among the festivals that continue to gain steady relevance.
The efforts being invested in shaping their organisational structures speak volumes of their significance. The resource mobilisation drives are as passionate and well-laid out.
This year, was all joy for the Maseko Ngonis when they converged at Mkolimbo in Traditional Authority Kwataine in Ntcheu after a year’s absence following the tragic death of Ngoni Impi Vice President Saulos Chilima in 2024.
It was all joy and merry when royal Inkosi ya Makhosi Gomani V led Ngoni warriors draped in war regalia and armed with fighting paraphernalia in dancing ingoma.
Other cultural festivals in the year included Mulhako wa Alhomwe, Umthetho and Gonapamuhanya.
On the music front, the feeling one gets is that more could have been done. While in2024, the music festival space was almost flooded, this year there was a slow down.
The illusionz Beach Festival made its first bow at King Fisher Inn in Mangochi. As a new entrant in the space, the organisers pushed beyond their weight. The array of artists they brought from abroad and local was inspiring.
More was expected of them this year given the promising start they took off with. However, it was never to be as the organisers postponed the event, citing forex challenges as the reason. The calendar fell one festival short.
The UMP Festival made its return in 2024 after an eight-year absence.
Organisers, Chitoliro Productionz, were all hyped up and the vibe transmitted to all in the creative space. Festival-goers were excited with the prospect of once again dining on the UMP Festival table.
The grand return was made at Cape Maclear in Mangochi. It was a cocktail of different events such as fashion exhibitions, visual art displays, modelling, music performances and movie screenings. Not a bad way to announce a return after a long break.
This year they were back at the same venue. The organisers announced it would be a week-long festival with different activities lined at multiple venues across the Cape Maclear beach line. However, tt was a challenge they never really fulfilled.
This year, the festival failed to live up to its billing due to some organisational discrepancies. Added to that was the absence of an announced headliner. That made it difficult for the event to be evenly marketed and the numbers that turned out were not impressive.
The shortage of fuel during the time of the festival only made things worse. Festival-goers as well as participating acts faced challenges to access fuel to get to the venue. That only served to the detriment of the event.
It has now been two years since the last Sand Music Festival was held. Since the passing of Impakt Events Management founder ‘Soldier’ Lucius Banda over a year ago, the event appears to have gone to bed.
In 2024, the organising team said they could not quickly organise an event of repute given the time available. They promised to be back this year. But this year too the festival was no show. No explanation was given.
That development sent worrying signals among followers of one of the oldest and most followed music festivals to date. They feared it may be destined for the deathbed.
But such fears were allayed when Impkt Events Management announced they will hold a fundraising show in preparation for next year’s event. That fundraiser came in form of a successful Mawhoo Experience show which featured South African amapaiano hotshot Mawhoo.
The success of the show gave assurances that the organisers still have the heart and passion to pull off big events in the country. Many hope they will be buoyed by the success of the show to bring back the SandFest next year.
Although much was done, but it is clear that the music side of festivals fell short.
