Appetite For Afro: These African Club Music Parties In Singapore Are Coming In Hot
Have you jumped on the Afro hype yet? (Credit: Africa Parties SG)
It’s everywhere. You can’t shy away from it. The rise of African club music has become somewhat of a local scene phenomenon and the crowds are ravenous for it. It’s fitting considering Singapore’s cosmopolitan geographical hub and the open-doored inclusivity of the party scene. One can easily now stumble out on a Saturday night and end up immersed in the cross-continental sounds of Afrobeat or amapiano. What a scene we live in eh?
The appetite for it has increased, and you’ll see its influences spilling into the programming of mainstream and left-field events. In fact if you dig a little deeper, and you’ll even find some promoters fusing African sounds with other worldly genres for cultural combos that just click on the dancefloor. Fancy a taste yourself? Here are several African club music parties in Singapore for your exploration.
(Credit: New Nakhra)
New Nakhra FKA AfroDesi
When these torchbearers first surfaced, they ignited a spark as a collective called AfroDesi, fusing the worlds of Afro and Desi club music to positive effect. It was a cross-cultural amalgamation that clicked instantly, and a fiery rise that eventually prompted a moniker evolution – transforming into New Nakhra. Despite the alias switch, New Nakhra continues to stick to its roots both culturally and musically, blending Bollywood and Bhangra scorchers with the surging uptrend of Afrobeats. New Nakhra also participated in Peace Centre’s farewell festival, PeaceOut, drawing the attention of voracious partygoers craving something fresh.
Follow them here.
(Credit: Africa Parties SG)
Africa Parties SG
Some promoters prefer to cut to the chase when plugging the theme of their programming. Simply called Africa Parties SG, this series believes in pushing authenticity by exploring the vast canvas of African genres. Aside from your amapiano and Afrohouse go-tos, Africa Parties SG treks further by exploring ndombolo from Congo, kizomba from Angola and coupé-décalé from Ivory Coast. With residents like DJ Gillou on the decks, the series takes pride in its identity, even offering African cuisine and pre-party dance classes in its gatherings.
Follow them here.
(Credit: Dub Skank’in Hifi)
Wild Fyah
There’s a tightly-linked historic relationship between Afro and Caribbean music, so it’s quite natural to see one of Singapore’s respected reggae pioneers entering the fray. Spearheaded by Firmann Salim (Rumshot) who reputedly runs the reggae-focused Dub Skank’in Hifi Soundsystem, Wild Fyah is his glowing brainchild that combines African flavours with dancehall, dub and other Caribbean-inclined influences. Wild Fyah has turned up the heat at venues like Moonstone, Vertigo26 and Alegria.
Follow them here.
(Credit: aRapiano)
aRapiano
The Afro-fusion experiments continue with this mish-mash escapade. aRapiano calls itself Singapore’s only Afro-Arab party, gelling Afrobeat and amapiano with Arabic rhythms. A fairly new contender in the scene, aRapiano was launched by performer and dance instructor, Şimal Evirgen, who knows very well that you can’t separate the spirit of African music from the power of dance. aRapiano events feature bellydance performances and darbuka drum showcases, alongside Afro-peddling DJs and DJ K and Badgal Didi and veterans like Ollie’Des himself.
Follow them here.
(Credit: Courtesy of SWTLKR)
100% Afrobeats
Coincidentally when we were coming up with this list, we couldn’t help but notice a recurring name who’s played at some of these aforementioned parties. When he’s not spitting bars as an emcee, SWTLKR is also proficient as an Afro selector, so it’s no shocker to see the silver-tongued multi-hyphenate running his own batch of African parties. You’ll find these in his 100% promotion, a melange of events that’s pumped out UKG and baile funk, and not forgetting his 100% Afrobeats offshoot that puts the sounds of Afrobeat and ampiano on a pedestal. And with this fellow behind the mic? You’ll be hyped up every step of the way.
Follow them here.
(Credit: Fuego)
Fuego
If dancing to Afrobeat and amapiano turns you into a sweaty mess, you might wanna hit up Singapore’s first and only Afro beach party by Fuego. The collective’s ongoing beach party series dubbed Afrobeatch currently resides in Sand Bar at Sentosa, offering a breezy backdrop for your bum-shaking shenanigans. The Fuego crew often have tie-ins with other venues, collaborating with the likes of Zouk, Drip and Tipsy Unicorn to spew Afro artillery laced with titillating bits of reggaeton and dancehall.
Follow them here.
