Saturday 8th August 2015 was indeed a landmark date with home grown talent from Ghana making an impact on the international music scene.
As Sarkodie, EL, Kwaw Kese and other notable Ghanaian artists took the stage in New York for their History in The Making Show at The Apollo Theatre, on the other side of the North American Continent, Wiyaala, VGMA Female Vocalist of the Year and Afrima’s Most Promising Artiste in Africa brought her own unique brand of Ghanaian culture to The Afrikadey! Festival in Calgary, Canada.
This year’s festival, now in its 24th year was headlined by Rocky Dawuni, arguably Ghana’s most successful music export, with Wiyaala mounting the stage as the second headline act.
Afrikadey takes place every year at the picturesque Princes Island Park in downtown Calgary and aims to celebrate and enrich the community’s knowledge of the diverse cultures of the African continent and diaspora.
Previous headline acts have included Angelique Kidjo, K’Naan and Common as well as many diverse acts from the African continent and diaspora.
Tunde Dawodo, the artistic director of the festival said that after researching artists across the continent that he felt that “Wiyaala’s presence and delightful movements on stage will captivate onlookers” and that as a “powerful singer, Wiyaala might be the next Angelique Kidjo of the music world”.
Wiyaala is currently negotiating to perform at events later this year in Germany and Denmark and is working on a number of collaborations with Ghanaian artists and Zimbabwe/US Afrima award winner Dearzim.