Afro Nation held their afterglow party at Motown Museum on Monday, August 21. Artists, industry professionals, influencers, and festival stakeholders convened on Rocket Plaza to celebrate a successful weekend of music and culture in Detroit. The Motown Museum was open for tours, and Hitsville NEXT artists took the stage to perform.
Afro Nation is a weekend-long festival featuring music from African and international performers and DJs The festival celebrates the diverse sounds of the African diaspora, encompassing genres like afrobeats, hip-hop, R&B, and dancehall. This year’s lineup featured artists such as Masego, Davido, Latto, Burna Boy, Coi Leray, Ari Lennox, and more.
While the weekend event welcomed thousands of visitors, Monday’s gathering at the Motown Museum was an exclusive celebration, serving as a gesture of appreciation to those whose hard work brought the festival to life. Attendees enjoyed food trucks, an open bar, and of course, live music. Drey Skonie, Brittney B. Hayden, and Eric Brown, Alumni of Hitsville NEXT’s Amplify competition, performed renditions of Motown classics, and headlining the show was Grammy-nominated afrobeats musician, Stonebwoy.
During the event, Natasha Manley, CEO of Event Horizon, delivered a speech highlighting the significance of Detroit and Motown to the Afro Nation festival. This was followed by the announcement of a $100,000 donation to support the expansion of the Motown Museum. Representatives from Detroit City Council presented a Spirit of Detroit award to Afro Nation for embracing Detroit as the festival’s second-ever destination in the United States. Afro Nation founders, Obi Asika and Smade, took the stage to join in the excitement and conveyed their enthusiasm about potentially hosting the festival in Detroit again.
It was an impactful day, leaving us feeling incredibly grateful to be part of such a vibrant cultural legacy. What better place for Detroiters and international industry professionals to connect than Motown, where so many artists found their voice and reshaped the musical landscape? Much like Motown, it was a celebration of black talent and excellence, and a toast to its enduring influence on the future of the music industry.
Metro Times