Yardland festival explores african sounds

A perfect symbiosis of all popular artistic genres under a beautiful Parisian sun: that’s what the Harmattan Rain teams experienced on Saturday July 6 and Sunday July 7. We look back on this event in partnership with Yard.

On Saturday, July 6 and 7, the first edition of the Yardland festival was held at the Hippodrome Paris Vincennes, France, celebrating popular cultures with a breath of fresh air punctuated by outstanding stage performances. With the aim of bringing together as many cultures as possible, Yard oriented a major part of its lineup of artists and contributors towards African horizons.

Rema. Benin City’s finest gem left his mark on this first edition with an hour-long show of his greatest hits, including his latest, “BENIN BOYS” featuring Shallipopi. Now on the verge of releasing his second album, “Heis”, Rema is sure to thrill his fan base and continue his rise to the top.

Odumodublvck. After a successful year in 2023 with his debut album “EZIOKWU”, Big Kala has chosen Yardland festival to make his French debut. The Nigerian rapper put on an energetic show, once again proving his renowned artistic versatility on tracks such as “Declan Rice”, “Cast”, “Kubolor or “Picanto”. His Paris debut thrilled the festival crowd, and there’s no doubt that the Industy Machine’s hype will continue.

NSG. “Make Afroswing Great Again”, the group from East London, lived up to the assignment. Performing on the evening of Saturday 6th, they switched from their older hits, such as the rock version of “OT BOP” and “Options”, to the more recent ones from their album AREA BOYZ, released at the end of last year. The singular energy brought out by each member of this band constitutes its unique strength, and fans were on their feet the entire time.

Amaarae. A touch of sensuality combined with a signature rhythm and a vocal style of her own – this summed up the remarkable performance of this Ghanaian talent. Familiar with performing in France, Amaarae reconnected with her solid local fan base, who gave her set the perfect musical support to make it one of the highlights of the weekend.

Didi B. The renowed Ivorian star was also part of the closing act. During his performance on Sunday evening, “Shogun” electrified the crowd with his very own style, which moves from pure rap to more danceable sounds, all topped with his distinctive, danceable Ivorian rhythms.

Harley. The Parisian talent keeps rising steadily. Showcased in one of our “Put You On” series at the end of last year, Harley seized the opportunity of his presence on the lineup to perform his most resounding hits, such as “Supalife 4” and “Siyé”, which are featured on his debut album released on May 17.

An inspiring cultural event and successful festivities to which the Nigerian community Homecoming and DJ Spinall contributed with a series of DJ sets that gave gbedu to the already energetic crowd. Yardland very first edition was a tremendous success, and this reasonannce will undoubtedly help to spread African musical culture, which exports particularly well in France. See you next year!

Credit photos: Françoise Diop