Artistes are all set and have promised lit performances at Trace's awarding ceremony and festival. During a press conference with journalists, Olivier Laouchez, chairman and co-founder of Trace highlighted how excited they are for the event after 20 years. “It took us 20 years to establish the award ceremony and bring together the 60 singers that will be in Kigali. We are more than thrilled that we shall celebrate Afro Urban Music,” he said. ALSO READ: What you should know about Trace Awards & Festival in Rwanda Asked if the Trace Awards will be coming back to Rwanda, Olivier pointed out that if the first edition goes well, they will definitely talk to Rwanda Development Board (RDB) and host another edition. He further added that among performers all local artistes who were nominated will perform at the awarding ceremony, each given three minutes performance. The ceremony which will last hours will start off with a red carpet for 90 min. Among many great performances set to light up the BK Arena, Soweto Gospel Choir’s alongside Mr Eazy is one good collaboration that music lovers would like to see their combination. Having bagged three Grammys, the choir’s performance is highly anticipated. ALSO READ: Trace Festival: African artistes celebrate afro excellence share experiences D’ Banj who is the event’s host is looking to leave Rwanda with a Rwandan nickname. He said that he regards himself as an entertainer rather than a singer. He mentioned that he is open to collaborating with Rwandan artistes and so far, he got recommendations of The Ben and Bruce Melodie. He disclosed that he doesn’t ask money for a collaboration. The highly anticipated three-day festival takes place at Kigali Convention & Exhibition Village (KCEV) on October 20-22, while the Trace Awards, which is the highlight of the festival, will stage on Saturday, October 21, at BK Arena. Bruce Melodie, Bwiza and Chriss Eazy, who are among the leading music stars in Rwanda, will share the stage with Nigeria’s Davido and Rema at the Trace Awards, with many other Rwandan artistes given a chance to shine at the Trace Festival including Maestro Boomin, Ish Kevin, Kenny K-Shot, Sema Sole, Angell Mutoni, Boy Chopper, Mike Kayihura, Tsonpa, Hottempah Collective, DJ Fans-T, DJ Higa, DJ Rusam, and DJ Ira.
