From Afrobeats and Afropop to the African house music scene and African Hip-Hop, Destination Africa on BBC Radio 1Xtra will broadcast a week of exclusive content to celebrate the hottest sounds of Africa from Sunday 23 March to Sunday 30 March.
For the on-air project, BBC Radio 1Xtra travelled to the centre of the Afrobeats scene in Lagos, Nigeria, to explore, discover and meet some of the biggest artists. The results of the trip are special programmes, interviews, videos, exclusive Live Lounge performances and freestyles from UK and African artists.
To kick it off, DJ Edu presents a special Radio 1Xtra Stories documentary on Sunday 23 March called This Is New Africa, which explores the booming African music market and why UK Afrobeats artists are heading to Africa to find success. Fuse ODG and DizZY are just some of the UK artists of African heritage heading back to the continent to make their mark. Edu finds out whether there is money to be made in Africa and asks what artists from both continents can do to achieve long-term success.
Trevor Nelson’s show is the home of the Live Lounge on Radio 1Xtra and, for the week of Destination Africa, he will host special Live Lounge performances from Monday to Friday. The performances will come from some of the biggest artists in Africa, some of which were recorded during the trip to Nigeria, with the others coming from London. Confirmed for Live Lounge performances across the week are Wizkid, 2 Face Idibia, Mista Silva, Iyanya and Fuse ODG.
Also, each day, audiences will have the chance to hear different freestyles in Charlie Sloth’s weekday show. The freestyles will come from African MCs, including M.I., Jesse Jagz and Eva.
Wrapping up the whole week will be a special five-hour Destination Africa special (30 March 9pm–2am) presented by DJ Edu. The programme will capture the new music from established and emerging artists and producers in Lagos and will feature live performances, interviews and mixes from his trip to Nigeria. Rounding off the show is 1Xtra talent (1–2am), presented by Lagos’s hottest radio DJ, DJ Xclusive.
There will be special Destination Africa content across 1Xtra during the week including features, performances and Live Lounges from the trip reflected across the schedule. The audience can listen on air and watch online at bbc.co.uk/1xtra to celebrate one of the most exciting music scenes in the world.
DJ Edu says: “I’ve been privileged to witness the growth of African music in the UK, and am really excited to showcase the biggest and newest talent from the heart of Afropop, Lagos, Nigeria to our audience, from Wizkid to Yemi Alade.”
Each weekday, Radio 1Xtra will partner with BBC World News’ Focus On Africa – the TV show which looks at the biggest African and International stories from the BBC – to broadcast some of the content and live performances recorded in Lagos.
