4th Annual Afrofunk Music Festival July 24, 2008

Afrobeat is dense, funky, intricately-layered, groove-heavy music with an intrinsic message - delivered through polyrhythmic beats, the sweat of the dancers, and the power of words. This July, that message will reverberate through California, when the Afrofunk Festival returns after three consecutive years of sold-out shows.

The Afrofunk Festival was born in 2005, when Kenyan singer Victor Sila joined forces with Liberian DJ Jeremiah Kpoh. Cresting the wave of the international Afrobeat revival, which shined a media spotlight on bands like Antibalas and artists like Femi Kuti, the AFF tapped into the vibrancy of the San Francisco Bay Area, the epicenter of the '80s World Beat craze and current home to bands like Albino, Kotoja, Aphrodesia, and Sila's own outfit, the Afro-Funk Experience. The result was a truly unique event with a righteous, humanitarian cause benefiting at-risk youth in famine- and war-torn regions of East Africa.

In the years since, Afrobeat has continued to grow in popularity, while the AFF has become a cultural institution -- not just in the San Francisco Bay Area, but along the West Coast. Now in its fourth year, the AFF (which runs July 9-26) has expanded to venues in Eugene, Seattle, Portland, Ashland, San Luis Obispo, San Diego, Los Angeles, and Santa Barbara. The AFF tour concludes with three consecutive nights at San Francisco's premier live music club, The Independent.

"There's no way we can stop doing the Afrofunk Festival, as long as the crisis facing children in Africa continues," says Sila, emphasizing that his mission has always been to raise cultural and social awareness through music.

This year's lineup stretches the boundaries of Afrofunk, presenting African, Afro-Brazilian and Afro-Latin variants, alongside nu-funk and classic soul. Performers include Sila and the Afrofunk Experience, Sambada, B-Side Players, Rocky Dawuni, Darondo, Nino Moschella, Afrobeat Down, Bayonics, Fuga, Manicato, DJ Jeremiah and the Afrobeat Nation, DJ Vanka, and DJ Felina. (Visit http://www.afrofunk.org for a complete list of performers, dates, and venues.)

The Afrofunk Festival is still a party, so bring your dancing shoes, but this is a party with a conscience; proceeds will benefit House of Hope, an orphanage in Uganda that houses children ravaged by famine and disease. Despite international media attention and critically-acclaimed documentaries like Peter Jordan's Darfur Rising which have increased awareness about the plight of African children, the situation remains grave.

Having spent time in a refugee camp as a youth himself before coming to America, DJ Jeremiah is particularly sympathetic to the struggles of Africa's children. "This is the best way I know of to focus attention on this important issue. The youth are the future. By helping them, we are giving them the hope for a better life," he says, adding, "what better medium to get this message across than Afrofunk?"

AFROFUNK FESTIVAL 2008 TOUR DATES

THURSDAY, JULY 10
NECTAR LOUNGE
412 N 36th St., Seattle, WA 98103
Sila and the Afrofunk Experience and Sambada
Plus Dj Jeremiah & The Afrobeat Nation

FRIDAY, JULY 11
SOMEDAY LOUNGE
125 NW 5th Avenue, Portland, OR 97209
Sila and the Afrofunk Experience and Sambada
Plus Dj Jeremiah & The Afrobeat Nation

SATURDAY, JULY 11
MOBIUS PRODUCTIONS PRESENTS:
310 OAK ST, Ashland Oregon 97520
Sila and the Afrofunk Experience and Sambada
Plus Dj Jeremiah & The Afrobeat Nation

WEDNESDAY, JULY 16
DOWTOWN BREWERY
1119 Garden St., San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
Sila and the Afrofunk Experience and Sambada
Plus Dj Jeremiah & The Afrobeat Nation

THURSDAY, JULY 17
WORLD BEAT CENTER
2100 Park Blvd., San Diego, CA 92101
Sila and the Afrofunk Experience and Sambada
Plus Dj Jeremiah & The Afrobeat Nation

FRIDAY, JULY 18
TEMPLE BAR
1026 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica, CA 90401
Sila and the Afrofunk Experience and Sambadav Plus Dj Jeremiah & The Afrobeat Nation

SATURDAY, JULY 19
SOHO
1221 State St # 205, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Sila and the Afrofunk Experience and Sambada
Plus Dj Jeremiah & The Afrobeat Nation

THURSDAY, JULY 24
THE INDEPENDENT

628 Divisadero St., San Francisco, CA 94117
B-Side Players, Darondo, Nino Moschella, Bayonics, DJ Vanka

FRIDAY, JULY 25 THE INDEPENDENT
628 Divisadero St., San Francisco, CA 94117
B-Side Payers, Afrobeat Down, DJ Jeremiah and Afrobeat Nation, Fuga

SATURDAY, JULY 26
THE INDEPENDENT
628 Divisadero St., San Francisco, CA 94117
Sila and the Afrofunk Experience, Rocky Dawuni, Manicato, DJ Felina

Official Website: http://afrofunk.org