Common Added To Virtual ‘Planet Afropunk’ Fest Line-Up
The rapper will join the likes of Ari Lennox, Tiwa Savage, and Bootsy Collins for the global festival’s 15th year.
Rapper Common, Cape Verdean singer Mayra Andrade, and the Sudanese-American artist Dua Saleh are among the latest additions to the line-up of Afropunk’s first-ever virtual festival, Planet Afropunk, taking place October 23-25.
The artists will join such acts as rising R&B star Ari Lennox, Nigerian singer-songwriter Tiwa Savage, funk legend Bootsy Collins, and singer-songwriter Moses Sumney.
As the global festival celebrates its 15th year, Planet Afropunk 2020 will be particularly momentous, as it will mark “the largest virtual gathering of the worldwide Black creative community,” according to its website. All programming will revolve around the theme: “Planet Afropunk: Past, Present And Future Is Black.”
Afropunk organizers further explained that this year’s event “pays homage to the reality that the upheavals we’ve gone through over the course of the year are far from novel; they have been central to the Black experience across space and time.”
They continued, “As Black people, our unity and creativity are our greatest weapon against oppression and adversity. To convene a global family reunion at this moment in time is essential.”
In addition to the artists listed above, music fans can also look forward to live-streamed performances by Meshell Ndegeocello, Serpentwithfeet, MC Yallah, Duckwrth, Blac Rabbit, and DJ Poison Ivy, among many others.
Planet Afropunk will also host a high-profile line-up of speakers, including the Emmy and Grammy Award-winning artist and producer Robert Glasper, actress Amanda Seales, Daily Show correspondent Dulcé Sloan, activist Tamika Mallory, and actor Jesse Williams.
The interactive event will feature a variety of “digital destinations,” including links to Black-owned restaurants and vendors, a virtual exhibition of South African artists, and Ideaville, which will highlight Black voices and stories, including a Black Queer Town Hall and community soapbox. Activism Row, meanwhile, will offer in-depth conversations on a variety of topics, including criminal justice reform.
All programming for the weekend-long festivities will be free, but attendees will be encouraged to donate to a variety of organizations, including Black Futures Lab, Color of Change, Movement for Black Lives, Equal Justice Initiative, Fair Count, and The Bail Project.
For more information on Planet Afropunk or to RSVP, visit the official website.
