After a successful debut edition of Oldies Music Festival in late May, several comments were raised, not to criticize organisers but to quickly bring a second edition of the old school music extravaganza back as soon as they could. Five months later, the festival is back! December 3, is the date and Canal Olympia, Rebero, is the venue.
The festival is in its nature an event that brings memories of 80s ,90s and early 2000 (2000-2010) music played around the world. It is clearly a festival for adults.
This time round, adult audience have requested DJs to extend their playlists with the music of the 70s to ensure that the festival becomes more inclusive for more adults. Without hesitation, organisers are putting the request into consideration as far as they are all concerned to relive the memories of adult’s partying lifestyle back in the days.
The first edition served as a test for organisers to assess how the audience were going to perceive the new concept.
Some takeaways from the May edition included public appeal for more time for dance at the festival while the venue was also way too small for the audience to party.
"What I am sure of now is that people were and are still happy with the concept. But they were not satisfied with the time they were given to party because the time we concluded the show was the same time they felt they were starting to enjoy the music,” Basile Uwimana, one of the festival organisers, told Weekender.
"We took note of their concerns and we hope to extend hours of celebration because we feel they deserve more time for them to go back to a different partying era. They were quick to show their love for the festival and that is why we shifted to Canal Olympia to ensure we accommodate a bigger audience,” he added.
The event will feature MCs and DJs who lived the entertainment moments of the four decades, with the lineup comprising six DJs who are getting their turntables ready to drive music enthusiasts’ souls to their satisfaction.
The lineup includes DJ Mike, a household name in Rwanda that has been working with Wakeup Sound Studio in Nyamirambo and DJ Emery who built a name for himself in the career during his time entertaining the clubs in the region before 1994. He established himself as a reputable favorite DJ in Burundi, Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo.
Others include DJ Karim, national broadcaster lead DJ Bisoso and fellow but young DJ RY.
As usual, fashion is one of elements expected to make headlines at the festival to make it even more colorful, with music revelers set to show up in various fashion trends that used to make headlines during the old times.
Old school fashion was at its peak during the first edition and festival organisers are anticipating even more collections catching the eyes of the audience. The best-dressed festival goers will be awarded.
Festival goers are advised to dress to impress the old school way. Uwimana said that a mini-exhibition will be organised for festival goers to showcase old school electronic tools like radios and other musical tools like cassette tapes.