Lagos Black Heritage Festival

Last updated

Lagos Black Heritage Festival (LBHF) is an annual event in Lagos that also includes the Lagos Carnival. The festival is a feast of culture and history aimed to showcase the richness and diversity of the African heritage. LBHF celebrates African creativity with diverse performances such as traditional and contemporary dance, drama, music, painting, and photography expositions among others. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

The LBHF celebrates African creativity with a variety of performances including traditional and modern dance, drama, music, and painting, as well as a photo exhibition. Every year, the festival attracts a large number of tourists. Participants can relax and rest in a comfortable setting while also competing in motor power boat races, swimming, and watching the Boat Regatta. Traditional and modern performing techniques are combined to provide guests with a memorable cultural experience in Lagos. [4]

The yearly festival is a cultural and historical feast aiming at showcasing the richness and diversity of African heritage, as well as celebrating African creativity through a variety of performances including traditional and modern dance, drama, music, and expositions. The combination of traditional and modern performing techniques is intended to present guests with a one-of-a-kind cultural experience in Lagos.

History

The Lagos Black Heritage Festival (LBHF) was established in 2009 by Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola led government administration, in remembrance of the African slave trade story. The festival is a three week-long festival that features lots of indigenous traditional and modern events. [4]

The 2011 edition was tagged “Lagos Heritage week: Animating Heritage began with ‘FELA!, A Broadway play in Lagos which was displayed live for a week at the Eko Hotel and Suites Expo Centre at Victoria Island, Lagos. The show presented a documentation of the struggles and life of the late undeniable afrobeat musician. [5]

In 2013, about 21 million people consisting of indigenes and non-indigenes attended the festival. This shows how large the Lagos Black Heritage festival has grown since it inception and due to the large turnout, the festival generates a large amount of revenue both economically and socially. [6]

Festivity

The three-week long festival celebrates African creativity with traditional and contemporary Dance, Drama, Music, Painting, Photo exposition and others. It features events such as; the Lagos Water Regatta, the Lagos International Jazz, Drama, Dance, Art Exhibition, Beauty Pageant Context (where the Carnival Queen will emerge), and on the last day, it is rounded up with parties where all clubs in Lagos will host people at chosen venue within Lagos. [7]

Some of the Highlights of the 2015 edition are as follows; Vision of the Child — Children/Pupils Competition and Exhibition Programme; Masquerade Parade from Badagry; Exhibitions – Children Art & Art fair/Bazaar; Do Your own Thing – Talent hunt programme for youths; Drama & Dance Drama – six plays on showcase and Poetry & Music – Night of the Poets. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caribana</span> Caribbean festival in Toronto

The Toronto Caribbean Carnival, formerly known as Caribana, is a festival of Caribbean culture and traditions held each summer in the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is a pan-Caribbean Carnival event and has been billed as North America's largest street festival, frequented by over 1.3 million visitors each year for the festival's final parade and an overall attendance of 2 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Festál</span>

Festál is a free series of annual ethnically-related festivals that take place on the grounds of Seattle Center in Seattle, Washington. A major cultural program of Seattle, these festivals aim to celebrate and connect the city to its varied ethnic and international community. Most festivals contain various arts performances, dances, marketplace and other programs. These have also come to be the annual gathering place for ethnic groups of the community. Both older and younger people attend, especially the dances and musical concerts.

The carnival in Colombia was introduced by the Spaniards. The Colombian carnival has incorporated elements from European culture, and has managed to syncretise, or re-interpret, traditions that belonged to the African and Amerindian cultures of Colombia. There is documentary evidence that the carnival existed in Colombia in the 17th century and had already caused concern to the colonial authorities, who censored the celebrations, especially in the main centers of power such as Cartagena, Bogotá and Popayán. The carnival, therefore, continued its evolution and re-interpretation in the small and at that time unimportant towns where celebrations did not offend the ruling elites. The result was the uninterrupted celebration of carnival festivals in Barranquilla, and other villages along the lower Magdalena River in northern Colombia, and in Pasto, Nariño in the south of the country. In modern times, there have been attempts to introduce the carnival in the capital, Bogotá, in the early 20th century, but it has always failed to gain the approval of authorities. The Bogotá Carnival has had to wait until the 21st century to be resurrected, this time, by the authorities of the city. Colombia is recognized by its large variety of festivals, carnivals and fairs. Most towns have their own, ranging from those celebrating coffee to the ones held in honor of the town's Saint feast. The common characteristics of the festivals are the nomination of a beauty Queen and the setting up of public dance floor.

Christopher Uchefuna Okeke, also known as Uche Okeke, was an illustrator, painter, sculptor, and teacher. He was an art and aesthetic theorist, seminal to Nigerian modernism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tourism in Nigeria</span> Nigerian tourist attraction

Tourism in Nigeria centers largely on events, due to the country's ample amount of ethnic groups, but also includes rain forests, savannah, waterfalls, and other natural attractions. Tourists spent US$2.6 billion in Nigeria in 2015. This dropped to US$1.5 billion in 2017, probably due to the rise of the Boko Haram insurgency of 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Awori tribe</span> Tribe of the Yoruba people

The Awori is a tribe of the Yoruba people speaking a distinct dialect of the Yoruba language.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eyo festival</span> Festival in Nigeria by the Yorubas

The Eyo Festival, otherwise known as the Adamu Orisha Play, is a Yoruba festival unique to Lagos, Nigeria. In modern times, it is presented by the people of Lagos as a tourist event and due to its history, is traditionally performed on Lagos Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Badagry</span> Town in Lagos State, Nigeria

Badagry, also spelled Badagri, is a coastal town and Local Government Area (LGA) in Lagos State, Nigeria. It is quite close to the city of Lagos, and located on the north bank of Porto Novo Creek, an inland waterway that connects Lagos to the Beninese capital of Porto-Novo. The same route connects Lagos, Ilaro, and Porto-Novo, and shares a border with the Republic of Benin. As of the preliminary 2006 census results, the municipality had a population of 241,093.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carniriv</span> Annual fest in Nigeria

The Carniriv is an annual festival, held in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. The Carnival starts few weeks before Christmas, and lasts for seven days. During this time several ceremonial events are held, most of which hold some cultural and or sacred significance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FESTAC 77</span> 1977 international festival in Lagos, Nigeria

Festac '77, also known as the Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture, was a major international festival held in Lagos, Nigeria, from 15 January 1977 to 12 February 1977. The month-long event celebrated African culture and showcased to the world African music, fine art, literature, drama, dance and religion. About 16,000 participants, representing 56 African nations and countries of the African Diaspora, performed at the event. Artists who performed at the festival included Stevie Wonder from United States, Gilberto Gil from Brazil, Bembeya Jazz National from Guinea, Mighty Sparrow from Trinidad and Tobago, Les Ballets Africains, South African Miriam Makeba, and Franco Luambo Makiadi. At the time it was held, it was the largest pan-African gathering to ever take place.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terra Kulture</span> Arts and culture organisation

Terra Kulture is an arts and culture center in Lagos with an attached restaurant.

The Lagos International Trade Fair (LITF) is the largest international exhibition in West Africa. The Trade Fair is the premier International Trade Fair in Nigeria with the spectacular 10-day event usually starting on the first Friday of November, annually.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ofala Festival</span>

The Ofala Festival is an annual ceremony practiced by Igbo people, particularly the indigenes of Onitsha, Umueri, Umuoji and other neighboring communities such as Aguleri, Nnewi and Ukpo in Dunukofia Local Government Area. It serves as a rites of renewal of the king or Igwe or Obi and it is similar to the Igue festival in Benin and the Ine, Osi or Ogbanigbe Festival in many mid-West Igbo communities of Nigeria. The term ofala, is derived from two Igbo words - ọfọ and ala. The festival is celebrated within two days mostly in October by the Obi and is a customary obligation that must be performed every couple of years without fail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Felabration</span> Music festival

Felabration is an annual music festival conceived in 1998 by Yeni Anikulapo-Kuti in memory and celebration of her father Fela Kuti, a Nigerian musician and human rights activist known for pioneering the afrobeat genre of music. The one-week-long event which is held annually at the New Afrika Shrine in Ikeja, attracts visitors from different countries and has thus been considered as an official tourist destination by the Lagos State Government.

Badagry Festival is an annual event held in Badagry, a town in Lagos State, Nigeria. It is organised by the African Renaissance Foundation (AREFO). The event reflects the significance of the ancient town during the slave trade era. It is a convergence of culture and display of African heritage. The organizer brings the indegine and culture-loving fans from around the world to celebrate the festival. One of the major highlights is the artistic display by masquerades, dancers, and fire eaters. It features football competition, the beating of Sato drum, and Liberation Day Celebration.

The Lagos carnival also known as the Fanti or Caretta Carnival of Lagos, is the most prominent in West Africa. The carnival is usually held during the Lagos Black Heritage Festival, a colorful folk festival which holds annually in Lagos. The origins of the carnival dates back to the Lagos colonial period when the Brazilian former slave returnees came back to reside in Lagos in the 19th century. The carnival was re-instated in 2010. The event is usually centered on Lagos Island, filled with troop displays of costumes and various forms of entertainment including music and dancing. The carnival portrays an eclectic mixture of Nigerian, Brazilian and Cuban heritage of the city. The Lagos Carnival is filled with amazing and memorable activities.This festival is one of the most colorful and celebrated cultural festivals in Nigeria and quite notable in Africa generally.

African design encompasses many forms of expression and refers to the forms of design from the continent of Africa and the African diaspora including urban design, architectural design, interior design, product design, art, and fashion design. Africa's many diverse countries are sources of vibrant design with African design influences visible in historical and contemporary art and culture around the world. The study of African design is still limited, particularly from the viewpoint of Africans, and the opportunity to expand its current definition by exploring African visual representations and introducing contemporary design applications remains immense.

Kayo-Kayo festival is an annual religious and cultural state festival celebrated by the descendants of Oba Kosoko for the historical arrival of King Kosoko to Epe in the year 1851. Kayo-Kayo which literary means “eating to satisfaction” is known with the Epe community of Lagos State.

References

  1. Lagos Black Heritage Festival. Tell. 2002.
  2. "Lagos Black heritage festival 2015 beckons". Thisdaylive. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  3. Japhet Alakam; Adelakun Ogo-Oluwa (16 April 2015). "Lagos Black Heritage Festival begins in grand style". The Vanguard. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  4. 1 2 "Lagos Black Heritage Festival, Festivals And Carnivals In Lagos State :: Nigeria Information & Guide". www.nigeriagalleria.com. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
  5. "From Lagos Black Heritage Festival". Vanguard News. 4 May 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  6. "21 million people for Lagos Black Heritage Festival". Vanguard News. 18 March 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  7. "Lagos Black Heritage Festival (LBHF) begins in grand style". Vanguard News. 15 April 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
  8. "Drama & Dance | Black Heritage Festival | ASIRI". ASIRI Magazine. 23 April 2015. Retrieved 15 February 2023.

"Lagos Black Heritage Festival". Archived from the original on 2 November 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2020.