The 14th edition of the Koroga festival went down on Sunday and it was an amazing Koroga. Capital FM was also celebrating 20 great years of entertaining Kenyans. Fans of Koroga made their way to the Arboretum grounds, expecting a great musical experience and it’s safe to say that they were not disappointed.
The bi-monthly music experience hosted by emcees Maqbul & Wangui Kabala had the legendary Cameroonian musician, Sam Fan Thomas, South African recording artist, DJ, record producer and businessman – Oskido and internationally renowned and soulful musician, Gilad Millo headlining the much anticipated musical occasion. Fans expressed their building-up excitement and by the end of Sunday’s acts, there were so many epic memories made at the 14th edition!
Food & drink
One of my biggest ups in any event is the mouth-watering delicacies prepared. I always find it magical when you have an array of meats, sauces and desserts filling up the air! –but hey, that’s just me.
Given that the organizers have the strict policy where revelers are not allowed to bring food and drink from outside, they did a hell of an amazing job in taking care of our food and drink cravings. There was a great assortment of food and drink vendors, from juicy barbecues from Kula Craft Truck to cold beers from Carlsberg on the hot Sunday afternoon.
A certified afternoon party
With the event of Capital FM celebrating its 20th birthday, the Capital FM DJs lined up a number of great mixes that no doubt rallied people up for the main performances. The tracks played were definitely suited for the crowd whose majority population was over 25 and the DJs took us back, I mean way back! Back to the times when we danced the ‘mosquito’ and the ever popular ‘shuffle’ and sang along to Bon Jovi’s ‘It’s my life’. For over half an hour, they had us one our feet, reminiscing back to the days when music was really music; when you could actually relate to and sing along to the lyrics of the songs.
With our drinks and meat platters in our hands, we had the privilege of witnessing some of the greatest mix masters, like DJs from Code Red, who played music tracks that made us dance. DJ Styles was on fire with his mixes. That was definitely a certified afternoon party!!
Headliners performances
Can I just take a minute to applaud Gilad Millo’s performance? I’ve never seen so much soul in such an act! From the moment he got up on stage, you could feel that it was going to be one of the most amazing live acts that he would give and sure enough, he delivered! He even said that just as everyone has dreams of their own, one of his was having his son playing with him at Koroga Festival and boy, they were an amazing father-son duo.
From some of his famous tracks like ‘Rangi ya Bahari’ and ‘Sema Milele’ to his most recent release ‘Nakuahidi’ featuring the beautiful Dela, which revelers were singing along to word by word. He also performed a new song with one of his band members, Tim Baraka, which is definitely going to be a big hit when released!
Oscar Bonginkosi Mdlongwa, popularly known as Oskido also did not disappoint. He owns a record label that houses musical acts like Mafikizolo – who rocked the stage during the 13th edition of the Koroga festival. The godfather of South African house music still has his music playing in my ears.
Sam Fan Thomas, whose international hit and perhaps his best known album ‘African Typic Collection’ had people on their feet during his whole performance! Even when they didn’t fully know the words to his songs and most didn’t even understand some of the words in the songs, they still surged on! He had such an energetic show that after his last set, the crowd chanted for him to perform some more and to that, some of his fans got up on stage to dance with him.
Apart from the famous track ‘African typic collection’ my favorite tracks were ‘Coupe de grace’ and ‘Noa’ where the legend gave an unforgettable performance that will be remembered by everyone who attended for years to come.
The weather
The day started out on a lovely high with the warm sun out, but as the evening approached, we had a light shower that dispersed the guys enjoying the show from the cozy chairs outside. That however didn’t stop the party as guys still danced in the rain to Leonard Richie’s ‘All Night Long’ all the way to the after party.
For all those who couldn’t make it for this edition, watch out for the next epic show and bring your friends and family as well. Entrance for kids under 12 years of age is free and the kids present this time sure looked like they had an epic time as well.
