The Batakari Festival is a cultural event organised by

King Ayisoba King Ayisoba born Albert Apoozore ( 1974) is a Ghanaian traditional musician known for his unique style of music alongside the kologo. Early life Ayisoba was born in Bongo Soe in the Upper East Region of Ghana. Career He used to play and s ...

to showcase ''Batakari'', a traditional handmade

Ghanaian smock A Ghanaian smock is a plaid shirt that is similar to the dashiki, worn by both women and men in Ghana. It is the most popular traditional attire in Ghana. The smock is called Bingmaa in Dagbani language, Bun-nwↃ or Bana by Mamprusis, fugu in ...

from the

Upper East Region The Upper East Region is located in north Ghana and is the third smallest of the 16 administrative regions in Ghana. It occupies a total land surface of 8,842 square kilometers or 2.7 per cent of the total land area of Ghana. The Upper East regi ...

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

. The inaugural event was held in 2013 and the festival has since become an annual event in Ghana.

Background and Program

developed this idea due to his love for Ghanaian Northern fashion. He said people in the past associated the locally woven clothe, ''Batakari'' with juju and occultism and the concert was his move to change people's stance and address the misconception about wearing ''Fugu'' or ''Batakari''. He believed that propagating the wearing of the fashion through programs like his will consequently create jobs for people thereby reducing the rate of unemployment and also serve as a source income for the youth in Northern Ghana. The festival is held on an annual basis in specific cities in

at specific dates. In

Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...

, various venues have hosted the event, some of which include; the National Theater and Alliance Française. Guest artistes are invited to perform and showcase their Batakari attires, however, the main performers are

and his team of

Kologo Kologo is a village and seat of the commune of Tiémala-Banimonotié in the Cercle of Bougouni in the Sikasso Region of southern Mali. The village is 25 km south of the town of Bougouni Bougouni is a commune and city in Mali, the admi ...

players. Some guest artistes that have been invited to grace the occasion include;

Wiyaala Noella Wiyaala (known under the stage name Wiyaala; born 22 December 1986) is a Ghanaian Afro-pop singer-songwriter who sings in her native language Sissala and Waala dialects and English, often combining all three languages within her songs. W ...

Wanlov the Kubolor Emmanuel Owusu-Bonsu, known by his stage name Wanlov the Kubolor (born September 8, 1980, in Ploiești, Romania) is a Ghanaian-Romanian musician and film director born to an Akan father and a Romanian mother. Kubolor is a Ga word that essentiall ...

, Kwaw Kese, Yaa Pono,

Atongo Zimba Atongo Zimba (born 1967) is a musician and griot from Ghana. His tours in Europe, South America and Africa include a benefit for the 2010 Haiti earthquake, at the Alliance Française in Accra. His 1994 album ''Allah Mongode'' was recorded in Switz ...

and Zea from the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

References

{{reflist Music festivals in Ghana Cultural festivals in Ghana Annual events in Ghana

Background and Program

See also

References