Ghanaian reggae singer and activist, Rocky Dawuni will perform at the inaugural World Peace Music Festival at Leimert Park in Los Angeles on 13th and 14th August 2021.
The performance comes just two months after the Grammy-nominated musician contributed a performance to the UN’s World Environment Day virtual concert.
It is worth noting that Rocky Dawuni will perform with his 11-piece band and include songs from his latest release, Voice of Bunbon, Vol. 1. The album explores the diversity of his signature ‘Afro Roots’ sound and fuses modern and traditional sounds from Ghana, the Caribbean, and across the African continent.
The free, all-ages community event will support and raise awareness for the Open Arms Food Pantry and Resource Center, which assists about 500 disadvantaged Southern California residents.
According to a statement by the organizers of the festival:
“The mission of the World Peace Music Festival is to bring awareness, understanding, and exploration of unfamiliar arts to local residents… while bringing social awareness and uplifting minority ethnic groups, particularly young people, who are neither represented nor given opportunities in mainstream media and art communities.
“The message of ‘peace’ will transpire from every artist that performs – expressing tolerance, human love, cultural expression, and positivity”.
World Peace Music Festival
Other confirmed artists for the World Peace Music Festival include reggae musicians Empress Akua and Jason Tamba of the Playing for Change multimedia music project, among others.
Meanwhile, Dawuni is ready to release of the third video off Voice of Bunbon, Vol 1 later this month. The clip accompanies the palm wine and highlife-inspired track ‘Woara’ and was filmed in the coastal waterways of the Greater Accra Region in Ghana.
It is worth mentioning that Rocky Dawuni has been the only Ghanaian artiste who has come very close to winning a Grammy.
Touching on how Ghanaian artists can also get that far, he urged his colleague artistes to stay true to their sound and authenticity when it comes to music.
The award-winning musician noted that his ‘Branches of the Same Tree’ album that got him the nod in 2015 defied genres gaining the attention of the Recording Academy voters.
“I created a blueprint of an album which fused highlife gospel Reggae music and great songwriting which is really always the key”.
Rocky Dawuni
According to him, the Grammy Recording Academy voters were attracted by his dynamics and how different the album sounded from the numerous ones submitted.
“It propelled them to vote for me instead of something they were familiar with”.
Rocky Dawuni
He stated that his album could be one of the projects that local artists can learn from to help improve their sound to increase their chances of a Grammy nomination.
The artiste noted that it is high time Ghanaian artists “stop forcing themselves on the Afrobeat train to gain international recognition”.
He stated that Nigerians have taken the Afrobeat and made it their own thus it was important for Ghanaian artists to carve their own niche in the international market.
“You don’t jump on the train when it has already left the station, you have to create your own innovative ideas”.
Rocky Dawuni
Read also: YOU HAVEN’T REACH THE PEAK OF YOUR CAREER UNTILL YOU PERFORM AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL-ROCKY DAWUNI
